Page 30 of Wolf's Forbidden Curse

Matt called out to me with an unmistakable sense of urgency in his voice, but I ignored him. He wanted me to sort things out with Rory so bad, then so be it. But I wasn’t going to lean into this ridiculous high-school gossip game. I wasn’t going to send my messages through Rory’s best friend.

No—instead, I was going to talk to him face to face, like the goddamn adult that I was.

CHAPTER 13

RORY

Ispotted Nic walking out of the rec center just in time. She had her swim bag slung over her shoulder, and her hair was wet and matted from the pool water. I’d wondered whether or not she would be here today since swimming laps was also one of her favorite day-off activities. I didn’t even know if she had the day off. She was already gone by the time I woke up.

Hiding behind a nearby tree, I watched her walk to the bench next to the bus stop and sit down. She got her phone out and called someone.

A second later, my phone rang.

Luckily, I was a safe distance away, so she didn’t hear the dinging. I answered in a hushed voice. “Hey, Nic, what’s up?”

“Hey,” she said. “I’m at the rec center.”

“Yeah? Is that where you ran off to this morning?” I asked. “Matt and I were taking bets. He thought maybe you took an extra shift at work, and I said you were out on a date with Jackson, but you made him take you out at the crack of dawn so nobody would accidentally see you two together.”

“Ha, ha, very funny. No, I wasn’t at work nor was I with Jackson. I went shopping and then came here.”

“Shopping? You hate shopping.”

“Which is exactly why I chose to do it super early in the morning when the mall isn’t crowded yet. I needed new underwear—sue me.”

I laughed. It felt good to be joking with her again. Maybe she wasn’t mad at me anymore. “Well, anyway, what are you calling about? Need a swim partner?”

“No, actually, I just finished up a long set of laps and was wondering if you wanted to get something to eat. I’m starving.”

I winced. If only I hadn’t just engorged myself at breakfast with Matt. I literally couldn’t even stand the thought of having another bite of food. But she was offering me an olive branch, so I didn’t want to refuse it.

“I just left the cafe,” I said. “Matt and I kinda went all out, so I’m not hungry. In fact, I’m not sure I will be eating anything for the rest of the day, to be honest.”

“Oh.”

“But we can still hang—” I was perfectly willing to ditch my swim plans if it meant getting the chance to talk to Nic in private. To figure out what’s been going on with her. Or if she’d rather pave over the last few days by saying nothing and pretending like it never happened, I was fine with that as well. “I could meet you at a restaurant and just order a drink or something.”

“Nah, that’s okay,” she said. “I’ll just order something when I get back home.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m positive. It’s no fun going to a restaurant and being the only one chowing down. But hey, I’m catching the bus, so I’ll be home soon. Are you at the house? We could watch a movie or something?”

I made another pained expression. I couldn’t lie and say I was home since she would surely beat me back there. I was on foot and would have to catch the bus after hers to even get there in the next thirty minutes. But I also couldn’t confess where I actually was because she would want to know why I was hiding from her.

“Nah, I’m—walking on the beach.”

She laughed. “You’re what?”

Admittedly, it was a terrible lie. I’d stolen it from Matt without really thinking. He was the kind of guy who went for long walks on the beach. I wasn’t.

“I needed to—digest.” Yes, that’s what Matt had said. “After eating so much at breakfast. Thought I would go for a walk.” Mental note—text Matt after hanging up and give him the updated cover story.

“What time do you think you’ll be home?”

“Not sure yet,” I said. “Did you wa–”

“Alright,” she cut me off, sounding a little irritated suddenly. “That’s fine. I’ve got some errands I need to run later anyway, so I’ll just see you around.”

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