Page 8 of Bad Wolf's Nanny
“Irritating?” Ethel supplied.
“Arrogant,’ Lola said. “Arrogant, and…and…rudeand…”
“They’re really not all like that,” Ethel said. “Take Felix. He’s a very reasonable male. Nicolas isn’t too bad either, when he’s not trying to suggest ridiculous plans tomodernizethe library. I mean, really, the cheek of it.Modernize,” Ethel scoffed, shaking her head, before pausing to consider Lola. “And if I may, my dear, perhaps alpha males aren’t the only ones who might come off as arrogant.”
Lola cringed, wishing the floor would just open up and swallow her whole. “I really am sorry about what I said. I didn’t mean it at all. It was just—”
“Dane,” Ethel replied. “Trust me, he would test the patience of a saint. He can be a right nuisance when he wants to be. You can’t let him get to you.”
Lola risked glancing over at the males, finding them locked in conversation. Dane seemed slightly distracted, though, his jaw set, his dark eyes ablaze. As if sensing her gaze, he looked over, and she ducked her head down with a squeak.
“That’s easier said than done,” she half-whispered to Ethel, “they’re so…so…ugh.” She groaned, her head falling back. What was it about stupid alpha males that made her lose her wits? She normally prided herself on her extensive vocabulary, but as soon as an alpha male came along and teased her, she was rendered a blithering imbecile. It was positively humiliating.
Ethel chuckled lightly. “Maybe this will be a good thing for you, my dear. Spending some more time with shifters. You may come to find that alpha males aren’t as scary as you believe.”
“I’m notscared,” Lola retorted, perhaps too quickly, her cheeks warming. “That’s ridiculous. What could I possibly be scared of? The verynotionis…is…insulting.”
Ethel’s eyes sparked with merriment. “Then I offer my most sincere apologies,” she said, “I’ll be sure to refrain from insulting you in the future.”
Lola’s lips thinned as she stared down into her glass. “I mean,” she said, somewhat abruptly, “sure, they can be…intimidating. But I’m a grown woman. I can handle myself.”
“I’m sure you can.”
“And if thisDaneinsists on being a…aneanderthal…then I’ll deal with it. Like an adult.”
“I’m sure you will.”
Lola chewed her lip. “Do you think I insulted Felix?”
“No,” Ethel said, waving her hand airily. “Trust me, he has to deal with shifters with far more attitude than you. He knows what Dane can be like. He certainly has a…uniqueability to wind people up. I’m sure the alpha won’t hold it against you.”
“That’s good,” Lola said, though she was still practically shaking with tension. She missed her quiet little office in Yale, with its small window and cozy bookshelves and peace. There were so many people here, so many new scents, so muchpotentialfor her to stick her foot right back in her mouth and make a right mess of everything.
“Though there is one way I can think of you getting into his good books,” Ethel said, waving her arm in a come-hither motion to somewhere behind Lola. “After all, no alpha male can ignore the opinion of his mate.”
“Hi, Ethel,” a tall woman bounced over, her hazel brown hair thrown into a messy braid, a wide smile on her face. “Lovely to see you here! Unless…oh God, please don’t tell me the boys have broken into the library again.”
Ethel laughed at the sheer panic in the woman’s voice. “Don’t worry, my dear, I have alarms set up specifically to counteract the little terrors. No, I actually called you over to introduce you to Lola, she’ll be working with me for the next few weeks in the library.”
“That’s a relief,” the woman said, grinning at Lola before sticking out her hand. “Hi, Lola, I’m Cassie. Lovely to meet you!”
“You too,” Lola said, cautiously shaking Cassie’s hand. She was a human, she realized with a start, albeit one covered in Felix’s scent.
“Lola, was it?” Another woman came up beside Cassie, tucking some fluffy blonde curls behind her ear with one free hand, a tiny baby swaddled in her other. “So nice to meet you! I’m Daisy, and this is Max.”
Lola smiled at the adorable bundle of a newborn, his little face still scrunched up. “He’s beautiful!”
“Yes, I think so,” said Daisy with a laugh. “Then again, I’m biased!”
Lola laughed politely, trying to think of something witty and charming to retort. What would Professor Conrad say? She was so good at this sort of thing. Lola, on the other hand, was completely and utterly inept.
“Well, I think he’s one of the most beautiful babies I’ve ever seen,” she said. “And I’m a completely neutral, objective onlooker with no personal stakes in the matter. My data is completely impartial.”
Impartial data. Fantastic. Yet again, she wished the ground would just swallow her up.
But to her immense surprise, Cassie’s eyes widened and she leaned in closer. “Ooh, do you know much about data analysis? I’m starting an astronomy course next fall, and I’ve got so much prep work to get through before then, including a whole bunch of statistical work!”
“Oh, um, I guess so,” Lola said, her eyebrows rising. “I mean, my research is mostly historical, but there is a good deal of data work I have to do, so I know the basics…”
