Page 32 of Alpha Rising (Secrets of the Northland Shifters)

“And that’s the fussiest one of all,” Angel said with a defeated sigh.

“But it’s delicious,” I said to Abby. “Good choice.”

Angel made ahmphsound and lit a stalk of dried rosemary on fire before extinguishing the flames under an overturned glass.

“What does that do?” Abby asked.

“The smoke coats the inside of the glass and—according to Sarah—makes it ‘fancy,’” Angel said, while making air quotes and giving me another annoyed look.

“I found the recipes online,” I explained. “But I gave them new names to suit the occasion.”

He put whiskey, maple syrup, and lemon juice in a shaker with ice, then poured it into the smokey glass and slid it across the bar to Abby.

She took a sip of her drink. “Oh! Itisgood.”

“I’ll try one too,” Lauren said.

“Just don’t go advertising how good it is,” Angel said. “If I have to burn any more of this shit, it’s likely to set off the sprinkler system.”

“You’re so funny,” Lauren said with a little too much enthusiasm.

Angel raised his eyebrows but kept his eyes locked on the bar as he wiped up a spill.

“Angel, do you know Abby and Lauren?” I asked.

“Of course. They’ve both been here for a couple of summers.” He tossed the bar rag into the tiny sink.

“You know our names?” Lauren asked, legitimately surprised.

“Shouldn’t I?” Angel grabbed another sprig of rosemary.

Lauren reached across the bar and touched his hand, stopping him from taking the next step in the recipe. “How ‘bout you tell me which drink isyourfavorite? I’ll have that one instead.”

Angel gave me a look that said,Please don’t leave me alone with these two.

I took a gulp of my drink, eyes smiling at him over the rim of my glass, and left him to his admirers.

* * *

An hour later,I had leveled up and was now hovering between stage three I-Love-You-Guys and drunk-dialing U.S. Deputy Marshal John Riordan.

I knew overimbibing wasn’t smart. When you had secrets to keep, naymultiplesecrets to keep, alcohol was the en-e-my. But I needed an outlet, and I wasn’t the only one in the room who was letting loose. Although I’d put good money on being the one who needed it most.

For example, I was pretty sure—out of all the people in the room—I was the only one who, in the last couple months, had witnessed a crime boss’s illegal activities, been separated from her family, her job, hername, moved into the wilderness, pushed into a job she wasn’t trained for, and then…to top it all off….somehow had become a pseudo member of a family that logic said shouldn’t exist.

I took another sip of my second (or third?) Trailblazer.

There had to be something wrong with me to accept the impossible so easily.Morethan accept it. Seek it out.

Because there was no denying I wanted Reese Fitzpatrick. As scary and as intense and as impossible as his very existence might be, I wanted him.

So with all that was going on in my crazy fucked-up life, I deserved to get drunk. Screw the consequences. I’d deal with them in the morning.

“How’s it going, Sarah?” Playlist Kelsey asked as she entered the ladies’ room where I was reapplying my lip gloss. “Are my music choices working out for you okay?”

“Perfection,” I said. “Thanks for your help.”

Lauren, Abby, and another woman I didn’t know came in behind Kelsey and stood in a line at the mirrors, fluffing out their hair and checking their lipstick and eyeliner.

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