Page 4 of Swan

If Lockland hadn’t stolen my heart a long time ago and crushed it so it didn’t beat for anyone else, I could have given it to this kind man.

A blush bloomed over my cheeks at the thought.

What was up with me and thinking about Drake as more than a friend? You would have thought I’d learned my lesson by now.

I shook my head. “Thank you, but I’ll handle it.”

“What’s goin’ on?” Coyote asked with an easy smile as he wound an arm around his brother’s neck and pulled him close to mess Drake’s black hair.

Drake cursed and shoved at him. “Nothin’. Now you can kindly fuck off. Swan and I were talkin’.”

“Hey,” Maya called as she approached with Texas at her side holding her hand.

Drake groaned. Dropping his head back, he said, “All I need is Ruby to show up and?—”

“What are we talking about?”

At Ruby’s sudden appearance, I burst out laughing. Everyone stared.

I pressed a hand to my stomach and shook my head while I used the other to pat Drake’s shoulder. “Have fun. I’m off to tuck myself into a corner and finish the book I was reading earlier.”

Drake grinned and winked. “My job is done.” With that, he walked off.

“What was that about?” Coyote asked.

“Who knows when it comes to our brother,” Maya replied.

Ruby nodded. “He’s always been a bit strange.” She smiled and waved to her boyfriend, Dillon, who stood chatting with Talon and my dad.

Maya glanced to me just as I was trying to sneak off. “Do you know what Drake’s going on about? Does he have a job with you? I thought he was working in the garage?”

If I were to guess, he was referring to lifting my mood, but I wasn’t going to voice my thought. Maya and Coyote would only question me about why I’d been down in the first place, and I wasn’t rehashing my thoughts of her brother, my loneliness, and Lockland.

I shrugged. “I’m not sure what he’s saying. Sorry, and bye,” I said and quickly walked away.

I loved my friends, but I was more of a loner.

Books were also my friends.

They gave me what I wanted.

A way to shut off my mind.

To enter another world with other possibilities.

Which was why I’d recently completed my Master of Information Management after finishing my Bachelor of Information Studies to work alongside Mum in the library she managed.

The library was such a beautiful place to work.

I’d only been there for a year, which had flown by.

“Swan, hey. Hello,” Romania called as she raced up to me.

“Hi, Rommy. Are you here with Dodge and Low?”

She nodded, smiling. “Yep. I got to ride my bike down here. Dad nearly shit kittens when a car pulled out of the petrol station right in front of me.” She cackled. “The guy screamed like a banshee when Dad punched in his window to yell at him. Of course, Mum threw some words at him too. It was hard to hear though from the wind and roaring of the bikes. But still, it was funny. What’re you doing?”

I pulled out my phone. “Just sneaking off to read.”

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