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"Ambitious and fiercely original. Sondi Warner is the exciting new voice we've all been wai...
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August 30 | Friday Night
I smelled cedarwood, thunderstorms. I knew that scent. Expectancy and panic warred as I looked around for the source, and Mys met my gaze across the crowded establishment.
I hadn't seen Aurie's friend since the interlude in the alley. I wasn't ready to see the Empath. Flashes of erotic memory exploded in my mind: The taste of their minty kiss. The sound of their moan. The feel of them in my arms. Aurie's visible excitement at catching us. Passion tugged at me.
"Sorry. What?" I glanced at Tegan squeezing my hand.
Her flustered expression softened when she succeeded in getting my attention. "I said I'm glad we picked this place. I miss going out with you."
"Yeah. Wanna sit here?" I pointed out a table. Any table.
As we took seats, Tegan launched into a conversation I hardly heard over the music and a pounding headache—a sign too long a stretch had passed since my last transformation. I needed to get to my cabin soon or I'd lose control, triggered by seeing Mys on a date, for instance.
And out with the mayor?
Seeing them forced me to deal with the amassing complications of this case. Not only did Aurie's mother think I was incompetent and distracted, but the actual distraction was away from the task I had assigned. Mys was supposed to be watching Aurie. I wanted to say something. It would make me look jealous.
Because I was jealous. Aurie was fine at the protected studio. This was simply business, as usual, for Mys.
I rubbed my face, trying not to stare. A server stopped beside me, and I absently ordered tonic water. My partner asked for the same. Tegan's confession to Mrs. Edison that she had been treated for alcoholism had been news to me, although I vaguely recalled her mentioning AA. I had been preoccupied lately.
Again, my attention shot across the room as the suave mayor leaned toward Mys with a pleasant smile. My restless foot-tapping jostled our table. Tegan slid a hand over my knee. "What's wrong with you, big guy? It's like you're ready for war."
"Nahin. We haven't been out together in a while, that's all. What's up?"
"You don't remember, do you?" Her tone made me suppress my emotions and try to focus because the stiffness of her smile and her wounded eyes told me I should remember. I wracked my brain, snapping my fingers as it came to me.
"Wait a minute, it's your birthday, isn't it?"
"Yeah, thirty-two today! Now, tell me I don't look a day over twenty-five."
"You don't."
"Stop lying!" Tegan howled. I shrugged and chuckled. It was the truth. She was fit, and she took great care of her herself. She was undeniably attractive.
"Birthday jitters behind the extra-flirty attention lately?" I asked. I crossed my arms on the table and tried to relax. She flushed, erupting in giggles.
