Page 31 of Shadow City: Silver Wolf

No small dick. Maybe insecurity then.

"Because I'm his best friend." He scoffed like that should be obvious. "And we’ve been inseparable since I left Shadow City."

"Are you sure?" I tilted my head and shrugged. "Because it seems like you're busier hanging out with Luna and her daddy than trying to be a friend to Killian."

"Aw." He chuckled. "It’s cute that you’re so concerned."

He was enjoying getting under my skin. I wanted to snap back at him, but I'd already said and done too much. I’d come out here to be alone and calm myself. Fighting with him had resulted in the complete opposite.

The time had come for me to take control. I took a few steps toward Killian’s house, determined to leave his ass behind.

"Dove." He sighed and caught up then stepped in front of me. "Give me a moment, please."

Wow, he was being nice…except for blocking me. "You have one minute."

A growl emanated from his chest at my demand, but his eyes softened. "I want to know how you really are."

The concern in his voice caught me off guard. I didn't like him sounding like a nice guy, especially when I got confused vibes from him. There was no evil inside him, which proved that he was a good person, unlike Luna and Dick. Once again, I was thankful for that perk of being a silver wolf—being able to sense someone’s true intent. Hating him wasn't possible, despite him getting under my skin. That was why I needed him to be the douchebag from a few minutes ago. "I'm fine." The awful odor of a lie wafted off me.

"You're trying to lie to me?" He coughed and waved a hand in front of his nose. "Do you think I can't smell it or something?"

Man, I hated that he had me there. "The words came out."

And now I didn't have any of them. The hole in my heart ripped open even more. So far, my lone wolf status hadn’t fractured me mentally, but the restlessness was a sign of that beginning. I needed to figure out my next steps, which should involve finding another pack, but I couldn’t take the risk. At least, not right then. As soon as I joined one, the link would alert them all that I was different than a normal wolf.

Griffin's fingers brushed my arm. "Hey, are you okay? It's like you're somewhere else."

"Yeah, sorry." I would work harder to hold myself together. I couldn't break down, especially in front of him. "And I'll be fine." I internally cringed, waiting for the smell of a lie to reek again, but reassuringly, the air stayed fresh. I did believe that.

Strange.

I hadn't expected to.

"What can I do to make it better?" He inched closer to me. “I want to make things easier for you.”

My body betrayed me, and I leaned toward him. I had to forget about his touch, smell, and proximity. "Tell me what you learned from the bear shifter." There. Even if he did affect me, I’d managed to keep our conversation strictly business.

"Well, that was a clusterfuck." His jaw clenched, and his hand dropped as he looked up at the night sky.

Wow, helpful. "Care to expand on that?"

Griffin met my stare. "I came over to tell Killian what happened, and I heard you two eating dinner together."

I studied him, at a loss. "Why didn't you knock?" He didn't seem like the type who would care if we were eating dinner. He'd barge on in.

"I expected him to be alone," he said tightly. "So I was waiting for you to leave, but here you are in the backyard in your pajamas. Are you staying with him?"

"A reminder, I was the one who was attacked, not him." I gestured to the house. "And how is my staying here any of your damn business?"

"It's not." He lifted his hands. "I was curious. And I wanted to talk only to him because I was trying not to see you."

His words stung, which made me even angrier. He shouldn't have this much of an effect on me. In fact, I should have been ecstatic that he didn't want to see me, but the fact that the air didn't smell told me all I needed to know. "Then why did you start talking to me?" If he didn't want to be around me, then he shouldn't have said anything in the first place. "I was about to go inside, and you wouldn’t have been forced to have this conversation."

"Because I thought about it, and I figured you should know too." He blew out a breath and narrowed his eyes.

Wanting to get back to the actual point, I crossed my arms. "Then tell me—what happened with the bear shifter?"

"There isn't much to tell." Griffin ran a hand through his gelled hair, messing it up.

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