“Estelle, a-are you okay?” Zara takes her hand and gives her a worried look. “You look a little… spacey.” “Is it my imagination or is Tyree the finest looking man on this planet? Like, we were just sitting here talking about chemical compounds, and a god unexpectedly walks in wanting to sweep me off my feet?” Her eyes dart from Zara to me as she fans herself with her hand. “Is it warm in here?”  Zara giggles at Estelle, then clears her throat, trying to sound serious, but she’s too happy to manage that. “He’s good looking, but not a god, Estelle. That’s the pull of the mate bond. I thought from your initial reaction that you didn’t feel it, but then I saw you two talking before he left. So something must be happening to your heart. What does he smell like to you?” “You mean his cologne? It was like blackberries and vanilla but a little bit of amber too.” She closes her eyes, blows a deep breath out with a smile on her face, thinking about it. “Th

In the morning, the sound of the shower running wakes me up. Zara’s scent and apricot shampoo fill my nose. I roll over and feel myself getting hard thinking about her naked in the shower. “Okay, so NOW can we mate?” Rocky eggs me on, trying to get me to go into the bathroom. “Only if she wants to, Rocky. Last night was a lot for her and we don’t know what her mind is like right now.” I turn and look at the clock. It’s only seven a.m. Her Wednesday classes don’t start until one p.m. I wonder why she’s up so early. I quiet my mind and try to feel her emotions, but nothing feels out of place. “Alright, but when Lavender and I get to hang out, she and I can mate now. Right?” My reservations don’t deter him. “Well, now that I’ve accepted Zara, I can’t stop you from mating with Lavender.” I will admit, he has been patient, so I don’t roll my eyes at him. “Do we need to have the talk again before this weekend?” “No. We don’t need to have the talk.”

I clear my throat. “So, there’s more… a-and I need you guys to be understanding and not judgemental of my friends, okay? We can have that conversation some other time. I’m well aware that’s a whole… thing.” “What do you mean, there’s more?” Mom puts her hands on her hips. “Keller, since when did your life spiral into drama series?” “Mom, please hear me out.” I put my hands up. “It’s about Jensen.” “Don’t tell me Jensen was at your penthouse last night, too.” Dad’s eyes grow wide. “No, but he was there for the surprise birthday dinner Jasper and Sam threw for me.” I feel my face contorting into a snarl, but I control it. “Lisa, Skylar, and Carla were there, too. I don’t know if they knew about it beforehand, but they all saw it. So did my human friends.” I clear my throat. “Saw what? He didn’t shift in front of your human friends, did he?” Mom’s tone is annoyed and slightly angry. “No, Mom. He made some sort of fucked up agreement with

On the way to the restaurant, I sit in the back of Amy’s Mercedes Benz. It’s practically a limousine. My feet don’t even touch the floor. I settle into the seat while we pull away from the curb. Amy looks at me through the rearview mirror while she drives. “Alright, now that we have some privacy, we have business matters to get out of the way, Zara. Estelle and Keller told Phil and I your concerns about working in the lab with Estelle. We want to offer you a solution so you can continue working on the cure for the sigma pheromone.” “Wh-what did you have in mind?” I feel my heartbeat grow faster. I really don’t want to work in the lab if Jensen is going to be there. Even if they are going to let me work on the sigma pheromone cure. I look out the window. We are moving too fast for me to open the door and jump out. I look back at Amy, but she has returned her attention to the road. “It’s alright, baby girl. We’re going to set up an office for you in the dining

I wake up in bed by myself, feeling like a balloon is making my head swell. I blink to adjust to the low light, but even my wolf vision can’t cut through the darkness. There is a faint light coming from under the door and a slight chemical odor in the air. It reminds me of scorched beakers in a lab. “Lavender? Was that a bad dream?” I groan and rub my fingers on my scalp, trying to get relief from the pressure in my skull, but it doesn't really help much. Wait a second. There is no injury to my hand. How long have I been asleep?  It takes a minute to realize Lavender hasn't answered me. I take a second to collect myself and call for her again. "Lavender? Are you there?" I still feel connected to her. It's like she’s there, but she seems distant. As if she’s not close enough to the surface to answer me. I close my eyes and search my mind for her. Actually, no, it feels different. Mom always used to use the expression ‘I was beside myself.’ I think that is