Page 3 of Broken-Hearted

I grab the coffee jug, more to use as a weapon than because I think that’s what he wants, and walk over to his table. He turns from the window at my approach, his expression inscrutable. Up close, his eyes are even prettier than from a distance.

Seriously, Clara? You think now is the time to be noticing your potential abductor’s pretty eyes?

“Decided on your order?” I drag one of the small white cups on his table toward me. There’s no missing his scent this close. Warm cedar and soothing mint. He smells almost as good as he looks.

“Clara?” Pretty brown eyes sweep over me. Unless I’m mistaken, a spark of interest makes me think he’s appreciating the way I look the way I’m appreciating the way he looks.

“Who wants to know?” I wait to fill his cup with strong black coffee. The contents of my jug are going in his cup or on his face, depending on his answer.

“I’m Nathan.”

Why does that name sound familiar?

“Nathan?” I prompt.

“Blackshaw. I came down from Hardin to take you to… well. My family.”

His pack, he means, but you can’t go around talking about packs in public spaces without people thinking you’re mad or worse, believing you.

“I’m good here.”

I’d known someone would eventually track me from Dawley. Yes, I probably could have left the state, but I wasn’t looking to get as far away as possible for my benefit. I just want to keep my sister safe. That’s all.

“Your sister was worried when you took off.”

It would have been less painful for someone to punch me in the gut. Martha was a protective big sister when we had a pack. After our pack died, she was overprotective, and I can’t blame her for it. We’re all each other has in the world. She’d do anything to keep me safe, and she’d have been devastated when I sprinted off into the forest.

I mentally wince. “Yeah. I’ll call her once I’m settled.”

“So, you’re not going back?” His expression doesn’t change.

“That wasn’t my place.” I was supposed to be going to Hardin, home of the cold-blooded alpha, to see if it felt like home in a way that no place ever has. Regan, the Dawley-Stone Luna, arranged everything. She spoke to her old alpha, Dayne, and he’d agreed to send one of his packmates to come collect me.

Except, the moment Nathan set foot on Dawley-Stone land, someone tried to kill him. It was clear someone—namely an obsessed Minnesota alpha—was hanging around and wanted me to go nowhere.

I decided it was best to take on all the risk of looking after myself and run, leaving everything behind. Including my big sister.

I’m tempted to ask him about what happened in Dawley. He’s not bruised or half-dead so that attack on him hasn’t made him any less attractive.

You need to pull yourself together.

This is not my usual way of thinking, but I’ve been single for a while. It isnotmy fault my hormones are in overdrive. Since a conversation about people trying to kill him isn’t one we should conduct in a public place, I’m just going to have to stay curious about the attempt on his life.

“So you’re going to stay here?” he prompts, relaxed in his booth.

I shrug. “It’s an easy job and the tips are great. Did you want to order any food?”

He shakes his head, smiling faintly. “Nothing on the menu caught my eye.”

I ponder the cause of that smile as I fill his coffee cup and slide it toward him. “Well, enjoy. Feel free to leave the money on the table when you’re through. No need to wait for me to come back.”

There’s a hint in there for him. A big one. But will he take it?

His faint smile grows. “I get it. Thanks for the coffee.”

I relax.

Perfect.

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