Page 17 of Cold Moon

“Like, you own me?” I dragged my thumb across the edge of the bills. Hell, there were probably twenty of them. That was four hundred freaking dollars.

Alpha Grove just leaned in to catch my eye and smiled. “No, Dante. Like I think you’re worth helping. So settle in. On Monday, I’ll take you out to the Hill farm to meet Ridge. Just... call me if anything goes wrong, if you don’t feel well, okay?”

“Yessir.”

He left me standing there, dumbfounded, in an apartment that was mine, sort of. It was a blank slate, a fresh start, and I didn’t know what to do with it.

* * *

I couldn’t standthe quiet for long. There wasn’t much to do in the apartment. I put my feet up on the coffee table and ate some baby carrots, flopped on the bed, then the couch, and back again, but it was lonely.

The clinic hadn’t been loud, but there’d still been people coming and going, and Skye was there to talk to.

I didn’t have any friends here, but I couldn’t just sit around. And it was getting late enough for lunch. I left the apartment, locking the door behind me—maybe I didn’t have anything to steal, but all that stuff belonged to Isaac the grocer.

I wandered around town, keeping my head down and ignoring the weird looks people gave me and the way they moved to the very edge of the sidewalk or even out into the street to avoid getting too close.

They were scared of me. I understood, but—well, there was one person who wasn’t.

Skye had mentioned Chadwick’s Grille to me a couple times. That was where he got our breakfast sandwiches. He came back with tea for himself too.

When I went in, the door rang above my head.

It was a traditional diner, clean and shiny with chrome furniture and patent leather booths. I blinked at coming in from the sunny sidewalk, and before I got my bearings, there was someone in front of me.

He smelled like alpha and anger—and while that was familiar enough, this guy was big and blond and clean shaven. He looked preppy.

Any proper Reid wolf would’ve torn his throat out, the way he was growling at me.

“You’re that Reid alpha,” the guy accused, drawing himself up to his full height, his arms hanging a couple inches from his sides like he wanted to appear bigger than he was. Too bad that alpha posturing bullshit didn’t work on me anymore. I’d seen real monsters. This guy didn’t rate.

“Dante Reid.” I stuck out my hand the way I would have if he were any ordinary human I met on campus. It was one thing to bare my neck to Alpha Grove—another thing entirely to show deference to this asshole. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

He growled low in his throat.

“Skip,” a middle-aged woman behind the bar snapped. She had lines around her mouth from smiling, but right then, her glare was narrowed at the alpha. “Leave him be.”

He hesitated for a second, his jaw clenched and chin stuck out, but clearly, this lady called the shots at Chadwick’s. He inched out of the way, barely making enough space for me to step into the restaurant.

I edged around him, and she waved me over to the countertop bar.

“Hey, hon. I’m Wanda. Forgive my son there. Young alpha—you know the drill.”

I did. Unfortunately.

“It’s no problem, ma’am.”

She grinned at me, not like she was uneasy at a strange alpha. I figured, in a town like this, with their country charm and apple orchard, she got plenty of out of towners in her restaurant.

“Can I get you something?”

“Yes, ma’am. Skye Johnson’s been coming by some mornings and afternoons, grabbing meals for me while I was stuck at the clinic. Thought I might return the favor, but, uh, maybe you can help me with what he likes?”

Her hand fluttered to her chest. “How sweet! Well, last time he had the salad, so I bet he’d be happy with the turkey wrap. You want to see a menu, sweetie?”

“Oh, um, no. No, thank you. I’ll just have whatever he’s having.”

She made a little sound and gave me that look Mom used to give me, as if she wanted to lean across the counter and pinch my cheeks.

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