Page 15 of The Mating Game
God, maybe that was a poor choice of words.
Now I’m thinking about those shoulders again. I reason that it isn’tmyfault I was confronted with a physique that nearly defies the laws of nature within five minutes of arriving. Honestly, I’m just pondering the idea that he has to order all his shirts in a custom size. The absurdity of that possibility is enough to distract me from the grumpy innkeeper.
Jeannie simply laughs, taking another bite of bacon before she holds the last little bit under the table for the cat. “He wasn’t always. The pup has had a rough go of it these last few years.” She snorts. “Last decade, really.”
“Pup?”
“Old habit,” she tells me. “He shifted so early that first time. Practically a puppy. I haven’t really been able to shake the nickname.”
“So he’s a shifter then,” I press.
“Sure is,” she says. “We both are.”
“Ah, I thought I smelled…”
“Reginald used to say I smelled just like cake batter,” she sighs wistfully. Her nostrils flare then. “You smell pretty lovely yourself.”
I feel my cheeks heat. “Yeah, I…” And what do I say to that? I can’t go and dump all my recent problems on this woman I barely know. Not when I don’t know how to feel about them myself. “Thank you.”
She leans in then, inhaling deeply. “You actually smell so familiar to me. It’s odd.”
“Oh, I…Your nephew seemed to have a bit of an issue with it, actually.”
Her brows raise. “Did he now?”
“I don’t think he likes me very much, truth be told.”
“Oh, I’m sure that’s not true,” she argues.
I must be making a face, because Jeannie reaches over to give my forearm a pat. “He’s a lot like Reginald,” she tells me, nodding her head toward the giant cat, who is happily snacking on his bit of bacon. “He’s really kind of sweet once you get to know him.”
“Are we talking about me?”
I tense at the sound of Hunter’s voice and turn to find him standing in the doorway.
“There you are,” Jeannie says. “We were just saying we all needed to have a sit-down about the plans for this place.”
He cocks a brow. “Oh, do we?”
“Don’t be like that,” she scolds. “Tess is here, and she’s willing to help, so you need to be respectful.”
“I’m plenty respectful,” he mutters as he steps farther into the room.
His scent bombards me as he plops down on the other side ofthe table, folding his arms over the top and eyeing me warily. This scenting business is still so new, and I haven’t quite figured out how to get a handle on it. On the one hand, they both smell really good, but on the other…Jeannie’sscent doesn’t make me squirm in my seat.
“I was just telling your aunt that we should probably go over the budget and pin down what we absolutely can and can’t do.”
“Oh?” Hunter purses his lips. “Like what?”
“Well, for starters, Jeannie said the heat in this place isn’t what it used to be. Do we have room for a new furnace?”
Hunter scoffs. “I highly doubt it. We can barely afford the cosmetic stuff Jeannie mentioned.”
“We really need a new generator,” Jeannie points out.
Hunter makes a face. “And where are we supposed to get the money for that?”
“Okay,” I say, placating. “So we focus on cosmetics for now, and hopefully more business will come in to help offset the cost for some of the bigger projects.”
