Page 55 of The Mating Game
I grin fully then, noticing that her eyes linger on my mouth as I do so. “I’m fine with being weird friends.”
“Hey, yo, Hunter!” Thomas calls.
My head swivels, and I find him looking at me expectantly. “We’re all hitting the bar this weekend. You want in?”
I frown. That’s no doubt Cat’s doing. Honestly, the idea of piling into the crowded bar in town, surrounded by people who mostly look at me with pity, even so many years later, sounds like a chore.
“No thanks,” I tell him. “Not really the bar type anymore.”
Thomas shrugs. “Suit yourself.”
I swear I hear a whispered mention ofvampire, but surely I’m just imagining it.
“It’ll be fun,” Tess says quietly, studying her wood swatch intently as if she’s not invested. “You should go.”
That gives me pause. Is she saying that to be polite? Or is she saying that because shewantsme to go? And why does that matter all of a sudden? This game we’re playing becomes more confusing by the minute.
“I’ll think about it,” I say, knowing I most likely won’t but not wanting to disappoint her.
Her lips curl slightly. “Sure.”
I take one last glance at her brothers, making sure they’re occupied before I gently touch her elbow and lean in. “I meant what I said. I want you to tell me if you start feeling…off. I don’t want you to make yourself suffer.”
I actually can’t stand the thought of her suffering.
“Oh, I…” I notice her throat move with a swallow, and then she nods slowly. “Okay.”
“Good,” I answer, not missing the way she shudders slightly with the praise.
It’s just hormones. That’s all.
That seems to be the motto of my life lately.
“I’d…better get back to it,” she says.
“Okay,” I answer, letting go of her elbow once I realize I’m still touching her.
There’s a slight blooming of her scent that threatens to distract me, and I feel a tension in my chest from breathing her in. Which is probably my cue to put some distance between us, something I’ve been trying to do whenever I’m not helping her practice shifting. Just in case.
I leave her to her work and return to my counter, knowing I have paperwork from the bank that’s calling my name no matter how much I’d like to pretend it doesn’t exist.
Still, as I settle back on my stool and start shuffling through the small stack once more, I can’t help the way my eyes shift up every so often to take note of whatever Tess is doing in the other room. I glance her wayfarmore times in the next hour than I’d like to admit, actually.
I can’t help but think back to my conversation with Jeannie, once again wondering why it never occurred to me to seek outherhelp when Tess needed guidance. It was obviously the most reasonable answer, one that would have meant I could keep my distance, which would probably make for a much easier time for the both of us. For reasons I don’t want to examine too closely…I realize that the idea of anyone elsehelpingTess leaves me feeling irritable and unsettled.
And I have no idea what to make of that.
13
Tess
“So, how isNowheresville? Have you found the yeti yet?”
I don’t make a joke at Hunter’s expense about his strange imperviousness to the cold; I know that would mean getting into his slightly undone flannel and his sweat and his axe swinging—all things that would have Ada foaming at the mouth and asking too many questions.
I flounce back against my bed instead, jaw working as I stare up at the ceiling. “It’s nice, actually. Quiet. I met a really nice girl in town too.”
“Excuse me,” Ada huffs. “Are you trying to replace me with a snow bunny?”
