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Was it? Fashion was a weakness, not just of mine, but of our whole group. We could only identify our mark’s choices with the help of hours of scouring the internet in the wee hours this morning.

Derek continued. “The restaurant is less than a year old and already one of the most popular in the city. The waitlist is over nine months long.”

“One of the men with him was either an owner or investor,” I said, then added, “He seemed to know every staff member, and the chef came out to greet them once they sat. We can’t find a paper trail of who truly owns it, though. Records list a private company, but the more I dug, the less I found out.”

“That’s not uncommon.” She didn’t seem phased by the secretive world. “It would be nearly impossible to find a single business the Velez own or invest in. We hide the truth under lies and layers of bullshit and buy-offs.”

The way she casually tossed around Velez secrets made my skin itch. She knew more than we did, clearly, but she didn’t seem to realize that. She was from headquarters, born and raised with the Alpha as a real man, not just a vague idea or threat. Living in the heart of the pack, she saw things most never would, yet I had the distinct impression she was also sheltered.

She only knew what it was like living within the Pack’s most protected territory. She didn’t know how it was to be Velez out in the world. To cross paths with enemies, without guards standing at your back. She didn’t know what it was like to live with humans and have to hide.

In some ways, she was the truest form of a Pack member, while at the same time unable to relate to ninety-five percent of the rest of us.

The worst part was, she didn’t know.

“Do you guys have any extra abilities?” she asked suddenly, like she was ready to move on too.

“Like being able to extend my claws and teeth?” Derek smirked. “Nope, we’re all normal wolves.”

Her eyes trailed over his body before moving to mine. “No bond marks.”

It wasn’t a question. She’d already looked.

“None.”

It was something we’d dreaded growing up. We waited for one to appear as each of us shifted for the first time. A spot of skin that meant being split up forever. Forced to mate with whomever fate decided, rather than staying with our chosen family.

She smiled, and I had to know why.

“Do you?”

“No, and thank fuck for that.” She moved back until she reached the side of the pool, then lifted her arms and spread them over the tiled edge. “That’s the last thing I’d want.”

“You never want to get married or settle down?” Derek asked.

I wondered the same thing.

She stiffened. “I never want to be controlled by someone else. I don’t want to be forced to stop my work. I trained too hard and gave up too much to just be a wife.”

“And you don’t want kids.”

Her eyes dropped. It was a fraction of a second, but I caught it. She was about to lie. “No.”

“That’s not true.” I had to call her on it.

“I thought you said you didn’t have any extra abilities.”

“Learning to read people is a skill anyone can learn,” I shot back.

She looked away from us. “I don’t want to bring any children into my world, especially a girl.”

That I could understand. None of us was in a rush to have kids either. Not with all we’d been through. Having a child wasn’t some impulsive decision or something to do because the Pack expected it of you. You should want to love and nurture them.

You should want them.

“There you are,” Derek called out, breaking the stillness of her admission.

Marco immediately dove into the water, while Javier sat next to Emilia’s hand, giving her plenty of space.