Page 15 of Wicked Stranger

“Fuck.” Zane cursed under his breath as he reached out and steadied the coffee in her hand. “Careful. Don’t burn yourself.”

Her eyes met his, and she saw the promise in his that this moment was not over, just postponed. Her heart soared, wanting nothing more than to escape with this man, this stranger that she couldn’t get enough of.

“I had the strangest dream.” Bruce’s sleepy voice had them grinning. “Do they have a Cat Hall of Fame where the balls of amazing cats are cast in gold and displayed for all to see?”

“What in the fuck is wrong with you?” Thorne appeared, shaking his head, glaring at Bruce, then nodded good morning to Zane and Raina.

“The dream was so real.” Bruce grouched at Thorne, who poured his coffee. “I would seriously think about losing mine if they were dipped in gold. Where’s Wicked? I’m going to ask her. And fuck you, Thorne. Nothing is wrong with me, grumpy ass dickhead.”

“One of these fucking days I’m going to kill that cat.” Thorne grumbled, which only made the situation funnier.

Zane winked at Raina as they stared at each other, trying not to laugh, but Raina broke, laughing hysterically. For the first time in a long time, she forgot about her problems and had a small glimmer of hope for her future.

CHAPTER11

Zane held the board while Thorne hammered in the nails. His mind wasn’t on work but on a beautiful little human who was quickly stealing his heart, a heart he thought was destined to be alone.

“Dammit, Zane.” Thorne looked down at him from the ladder. “Get your head out of your ass and hold the board still.”

Zane did as ordered but shot back, “If you can do a better job, climb your ass down here and hold it yourself so I can hammer those nails in like a man, not a boy.”

“Fuck you.” Thorne finished, then climbed down to glare at Zane. “Seriously, what has gotten into you?”

“Nothing,” Zane replied, moving the ladder before picking up another board. Thorne burst out laughing, actually pointed at him, then bent over laughing harder. “What the hell are you laughing at?”

“Oh, shit.” Thorne rubbed his chest as he stared at Zane. “She’s it, isn’t she?”

“What in the hell are you talking about.” Zane frowned, walking past Thorne to place a board. He picked up a hammer and some nails. He began pounding the nail’s in with such force that one bent. “Shit!”

“Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about.” Thorne chuckled, shaking his head. “I know the signs. Head up your ass is definitely a sign that you have found your mate.”

Zane didn’t say anything even though Thorne was right. He had found his mate, but to announce it to anyone other than himself was out of the question. Until he knew what Raina felt for him, he would remain silent, even with his best friend. Rejection was something that Zane had felt before. It was humiliating enough not to have others looking at you with pity.

Knowing he had to say something, he glared back at Thorne. “You had your head up your own ass way before Wicked came into the picture, so shut the fuck up so we can get this done.”

“Denial of the obvious is also a sign,” Thorne mumbled with a chuckle but continued to work.

Neither man said much as they worked. Before long, it was time for lunch. Cleaning up, they made their way to the back of the house.

“Did you hear from Mac about the wolf?” Zane asked before they went inside.

“Yeah, I talked to him earlier,” Thorne informed him, wiping his boots on the rug outside the door. “Seems he’s a Shifter who was thrown out of his pack. I talked to the pack leader, who came and got him. They do not condone violence against women and said they would make sure that justice was served since Raina doesn’t have a man who would do it.”

Those words sent his panther raging inside him. He felt his lips curl up in a snarl but kept his cool. Even though he felt it was his right to dole out justice on Raina’s behalf, he also knew that, as of right now, he didn’t know where she stood on their situation. She was a human, and humans didn’t understand the mating rituals of his kind.

“You okay with that?” Thorne asked, watching him closely. “If not, I’m sure I can make a phone call. They just picked him up half an hour ago.”

“She is not my mate.” Was all Zane said, but added to himself…yet.

“If you say so.” Thorne chuckled but opened the door and went inside before Zane could cuss him. The fucker.

Zane’s gaze landed right on Raina, who was lying on the floor with Jamison on her knees, making airplane noises. Rose was crawling around them, patting Raina on the cheeks. The twins were growing so fast. Jamison had started walking or attempting to walk while Rose was still a crawler.

“You’re so fucked.” Thorne laughed loudly as he passed with a plate of food.

Eyes narrowed, he glared at Thorne, keeping his words to himself. “What’s so funny?” Wicked asked with a smile.

“Nothing,” Zane replied, giving Thorne a warning glare, then looked at Wicked with a smile. “Thorne thinks he’s funny, but he isn’t.”

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