Page 44 of Rejected Wolf's Secret Baby (Rejected Moons 4)

“Good,” I say, feeling a little uncertain and trying not to let it show. “Then I’ll stay out of yours too.”

I turn and walk away from them without looking back, but I feel his eyes, and Deidre’s too, watching me.

26

BRANDON

I’vebeenatthebar for about an hour, sitting on a stool in the corner and slowly drinking the same beer, when Kayla appears. “On your own tonight?” she asks, grabbing a stool and pulling it over to me.

“So are you,” I note.

“Mind if I sit?”

“Go right ahead. Can I buy you a drink?”

“If you like.”

I flag the bartender to bring a beer for her and one more for me, draining the one I’ve been working on. “What brings you out tonight?”

“This is where all the fun is,” she says. “I’m too young to stay in on a Friday night.”

I laugh—not because Kayla’sold, though she is a year older than I am, but because her personality is so infectious. It’s always been easy to see why she’s one of the most popular members of this pack.

I look around. “Is Alicia with you tonight?”

“I figured you’d be looking for her,” Kayla says. “You two have gotten close lately.”

“Yeah, I guess we have.” I wonder what Alicia has said to her about us. Kayla probably gets to hear things I don’t about how Alicia feels. I know there’s no chance she’ll tell me, and I wouldn’t want her to betray Alicia’s confidence, but it is frustrating sitting so close to someone who has the answers and knowing I can’t get them.

Still, maybe Kayla understands my frustration, because she says, “She likes you too, you know.”

“Yeah, I know she does,” I say. “I’m just not clear on how much. Sometimes it seems like she wants me to leave her alone.”

“It isn’t that. She’s just worried about Emmy. The kid’s never been out of the human world. It’s hard having her back here for the first time. I mean, I can’t even imagine what that must be like for Alicia.”

“I’d have thought it would be good, having a shifter baby in a pack. Even if she doesn’t mean to stay.”

“It’s just complicated for her,” Kayla says. “There’s a lot to cope with. I don’t know if it’s the kind of thing you or I can really understand. Since we’re...” She trails off.

“Since we’re not parents ourselves,” I say.

“Right.”

“I’m not trying to make it harder for her,” I say. “Do you think Ishouldleave her alone?”

“No,” Kayla says. “Honestly, I think she benefits a lot from having you around. I tried to get her to come out tonight but she said she was tired from being out all day—I did think you might be here. But the only possible babysitter was David, and even though he’s decent as a brother-in-law, he’s not the most responsible guy.”

I nod. I don’t mind David personally, but I wouldn’t leave him in charge of a plant. “I see what you mean,” I say.

“I think she’s having some mixed feelings,” Kayla says. “She’s not sure what she wants.”

“That would explain why she seems so back and forth all the time,” I say. "Sometimes, when we’re together, it feels like the chemistry between us is almost otherworldly. And then she pulls away.”

“That’s Alicia,” Kayla says. “She’s guarded. If she thinks you’re getting too close, she’ll pull back.”

“But you do think she wants me.”

“I don’t know,” Kayla says. “I can’t answer that. I don’t speak for her. But the real question is, do you want her?”

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