Page 95 of Pack Kasen: Part 2

“Did she say anything about me?”

Namely, if she was staying or going. Silas had told me she looked confused and frustrated when he’d found her kicking a tree. I asked why she’d been kicking a tree. He said he thought I had something to do with it.

That sounds about right.

The kiss wasn’t all me. She wanted it as much as I did. Maybe I should have broken it off sooner than I did. But my mate was kissing me. She was in my arms and I couldn’t let her go.

“We all need different things,” Emilio says, pulling me from my thoughts.

He’s holding Joy’s hand, eyes serious as he studies me. “Joy needs me to have her back, and to believe in her. I need her to think twice before she flings herself into danger, and to spend the night in my arms so I know she’s safe.”

“And the reason you’re telling me this is…”

“You know what you need. What does Kat need?”

Everyone has an opinion about what I should do with Kat. Would snarling at them convince them to stop giving me their opinion? Yeah. But I know why they’re doing it.

Pack is family and family—a good family—wants to help.

I’m lifting my beer to my lips when I see her.

Kat.

She’s worn nothing but jeans and sweats since I saw her. Other than when I made the drive down to Gregson College. She’d been in a prim looking black dress similar to the one she’d worn when I’d broken into her apartment.

She’s not wearing jeans, sweats, or a black dress now.

As she steps into the dining room, her back is straight, her expression calm, but there’s a tension in her bare shoulders that makes me think she’s nervous.

And that dress…

I run my eyes up and down the silky green material. She said her favorite color was mint green. This is a slightly darker shade, and it flows over her curves. Her dark hair falls in soft-looking waves to her shoulders, and I want to bury my hands in it.

“You’re not listening to a word I’m saying, are you?” Amusement warms Joy’s usually husky voice.

I hand Emilio my bottle and cross the room to a woman so beautiful, I struggle to believe she’s mine.

Kat watches me, eyes wary and shoulders tense as I close the distance between us.

Inches away, I stop and offer her my hand. “Dance?”

She lifts her chin. “I don’t dance.”

I swallow my smile. “You look like I just asked you to go to war.”

“Same thing.”

“It’s a dance, Kat.”

“There’s no just anything with you.” Her voice is so quiet that I’m not sure if she’s talking to me or to herself.

I keep my palm up, waiting for her to decide. She hasn’t said no yet, at least not definitively. She hasn’t said yes either.

“If I say no…”

I take a step closer, her scent teasing my nose. “I’ll convince you.”

“And if you can’t convince me?”