“She lives,” she teased, setting the bag on the coffee table and offering me a cup.
I accepted it with grateful hands. “What time is it?”
“Late,” she answered, plopping down beside me. “But I’ll say you’ve earned the indulgence.”
I raised a brow. “Really?”
She smirked, shrugging. “Enjoy it while it lasts. Suicide drills first thing tomorrow morning.”
I groaned, leaning back into the chair. “I hate you.”
She blew me a kiss.
I took a sip of the coffee, letting the warmth and caffeine flood my sluggish system. “How did I get here?” I asked softly.
“Lucian brought you,” she answered. “Carried you in himself like a goddamn knight in pressed slacks. Laid you down, made sure you were comfortable. Wouldn’t leave until I promised to call if you threw up or so much as breathed wrong.”
My heart thudded. “Right.”
She raised a brow, those sharp eyes of hers seeing too much. “What’s with the long face?”
I shook my head and instantly regretted it when it throbbed.
“Ah, I see,” Maya mused, smirking. “You hoped to wake up in a different place.” She winked.
“Say, maybe, Lucian Reed’s bed?”
My cheeks instantly flamed. “No, Maya. Jeez.”
She snorted. “Yeah, okay. I’m convinced.”
I sighed. “I just-you said a bunch of things and… I thought maybe…” I stared down at my coffee. “Did I misread it?”
Maya tilted her head, scrutinizing me like she could see right through to the truth lodged chest. “No, babe. You didn’t. But I’m guessing you’re wondering why he didn’t do in my more.”
I nodded.
“Because you were drunk,” she said simply. “And Lucian is a lot of things-strategist, visionary, charming devil-but he’s not the kind of man who’d take advantage of someone go Chapter 30 PREIN NING AMAZIN not fully in control of their choices.”
That… made sense.
And it made me feel something else entirely. It quadrupled the respect I had for Lucian.
Maya leaned in. “What happened to ‘we’re just friends’? Do you want something more,
Sera?”
I chewed my bottom lip, at a loss for an answer. “I… don’t know. What if I do want to pursue something with him? What if I regret not saying something last night?”
Maya leaned back and grinned, looking particularly proud of herself. “Then say something today. Tomorrow. Whenever. Just… don’t let it fester.”
I let out a breathy laugh. “You make it sound easy.”
“Because it is. You don’t need to make it harder than it really is.”
“In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not exactly dripping in feminine allure,” I said. “He’s an
Alpha-polished and powerful. I’m…” I shrugged, familiar self-deprecation settling over me.
“Me.”
Maya frowned. “Okay, first of all, ew. Don’t ever talk about yourself like that again. Second,
Lucian isn’t some shallow prick looking for arm candy. If he wanted pretty and empty, he could find it tenfold. But he’s stuck to you like gum on a shoe, even though-no offense, babe-you’ve hardly been receptive.”
That made me laugh, and she nudged me with her elbow.
“Listen,” she said more gently, “you’re allowed to want things. You’re allowed to feel desired. And trust me, Sera, you are desirable. You have nothing to prove-not to the right man.”
AIR
I stared at her in awe, unable to believe that there was someone on this earth who saw me this way.
“You’re pretty fucking amazing, you know that?” I whispered.
Maya leaned in and kissed my forehead. “I know.”
I craned my neck to look up at her as she stood. “Going somewhere?”
She winked. “I need to not be here for a while.”
I frowned. “Here… like your home? Because of me?”
She shook her head. “Oh, no, babe. It just turns out I’ve made too good an impression on my surroundings, and I’ve become more visible than I’d like.”
My frown deepened. “Huh?”
She laughed, stroking my hair affectionately. She pushed the paper bag to me. “Breakfast burrito and cinnamon roll,” she announced. “Help yourself to anything in the fridge. Stay as long as you need to.”
I blinked at her as she moved through the room. She grabbed her keys from the counter and slung a canvas tote over her shoulder.
She was acting so odd, but I didn’t want to push. “You’ll tell me what this is eventually, right?”
Her smile was soft, affectionate. “Definitely. I promise.”
Then she moved towards me again and leaned down to hug me, long and warm and anchoring.
“Don’t run from good things just because you’re afraid,” she whispered against my hair.
“You’ve lost enough.”
When the door closed behind her, I was left in the quiet of her apartment, cradling coffee between my palms and wondering what the hell was going on.
***
ETHAN’S POV
Twenty-three hours.
That’s how long I had left to find her-the intoxicating woman with wildfire eyes and a challenge on her lips. My mate.
Maya.
Discovering her name was the easy part. Actually finding her was proving impossible. And now I was stuck prowling the streets around her favorite restaurant like a creep.
Logan was in a constant state of agitation, prowling just beneath the surface, restless.
She was out there-close, maybe-but just out of reach. And the bond didn’t help. I’d honored her rules. No sniffing, no shortcuts.
And still. Nothing.
I was losing my mind. And my pride. Fast.
So when my phone buzzed, and my mother’s name lit the screen, I was already frayed at the edges.
“Ethan,” she greeted, her voice soft. My chest ached slightly. Ever since my father died, she hadn’t fully regained her luster, and I had no idea how to give her the comfort she needed.
“Hi, Mom.”
“I wanted to ask…” She hesitated. “How is your sister?”
I winced at the memory of last night at the restaurant-the one I found out that Maya frequented often.
I should have acted better, but Maya’s scent I’d smelled on Sera made me lose half of my mind, and nothing else mattered but finding out where it had come from.
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