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“Not looking like a snack, she won’t,” I grumble. “She’ll get gobbled up. I’ve read like adozenfairy tales about thisexactsituation.”

Grace just laughs and we move forward through the dark shadows of the canyon. We’re not going far, of course – a little map at the back of our instruction packet showed that the Guard’s tent is just across the clearing from us. But considering that we don’t want to getcaughtwalking right through the middle of the camp, we’re taking the long, secret way round, staying close to the cavern walls.

I sigh as we pick our way carefully through the dark, a little shiver running through me in the cold night. Passively, Idoworry about Shayne, who always privileges fashion over practicality. I cross my arms over my chest, grateful for my hoodie and jeans.

“Come on, Nadia,” Grace says softly. I look up to see her studying me as we walk. “What’sreallywrong?”

“I just – I don’t get thepointof this – going to flirt with the wolf boys,“ I say, gesturing a hand out towards the fire I can see burning in the distance with a few figures gathered around it. Probably the guards and whichever of the other nursing students snuck out before us – we certainly weren’t the only ones. “I mean, it’s not like a relationship between a human and a wolf can ever actuallywork.”

“I mean, I’m not sure Shay cares about a relationship,” Grace murmurs, smiling a little as we walk. “But also, why not?”

I roll my eyes at my friend. “Thousandsof years of prejudice, Gracie! The wolves havealwaysbeen in control – they just stopped enslaving humans like, two hundred years ago! And we only got equal rights completely fifty years back! We outnumber them six to one but -”

“Oh, for heaven’s sake, Nadi,” Grace murmurs, frowning down at her feet. “I know my history lessons, all right? But we’re in a different era – this administration has done alotto ensure wolf and human equality. Wolves and humans date in the capital all the time!”

“That doesn’t wipe away the fact that wolves spent thousands of years consolidating resources and power! It’s not like Ethan Kincaid took the throne apoorman. He’s a billionaire! And hegotthat way by exploiting capitalist systems that privileged his secret knowledge about wolvesandhis physical strength.”

Grace looks at me like she’s worried, her mouth flattening into a straight line. “You know I’m always down for a critique of capitalism, Nad,” she says. “But these boys are not their fathers.”

I blink at her, shocked that she doesn’t agree with me.

“Come on,” Grace says, nodding to the fire as we arrive at the edge of the guards’ camp. “Just…talk to them. See what they’re actually all about. If they suck, we’ll go.”

“You forget,” I snap, glaring a little. “I grewupwith these wolves. I know exactly who they are.”

I turn away from her, storming into the little circle of firelight and taking a seat at the far side, pointedly as farawayfrom the four wolves and their band of new friends as I can get. Cole Kincaid turns towards me as I sit, his brows raised in surprise.

But I just stare into the fire, scowling and ignoring him.

Or at least, pretending to.

Gracie sits down next to me and, secretly, I’m grateful that she didn’t abandon me. “Sorry,” I murmur, meaning it but not happy to admit it.

“We’re good, Nadi,” Grace says, smiling and giving me a nudge. “Look, Shayne’s having a good time.”

I raise my eyes to the group again, immediately seeing Shayne laughing, seated on a log next to a very tall, broad-shouldered blonde guard, sharing the bottle of tequila with him. She flicks her long hair over her shoulder, looking lovely, thrilled, and perfectly at ease.

Even as I try to find something to hate about the moment…I can’t. Shayne. She’s just so…happy. I’m not going to begrudge her that.

I do narrow my eyes at the blonde though, thinking that he’d damn well better behave himself.

As Grace and I sit, quietly enjoying the warmth of the fire, I let my eyes move over the rest of the group. Daniel and Amari are here, but there’s no surprise in that – they’re verysocial. I recognize a couple of other girls from our year at school mingling with them and two other guards. Some sit, some stand – but it’s easy to see that everyone is being very friendly, eager to get to know one another.

I try to concentrate on my fellow nursing students, trying to remember all of their names and match them to faces. But my eyes move, of course, fucking inevitably, to Cole.

I huff out a sigh through my nose as I watch him, trying to figure out what the hell everyone else sees in this guy.

He sits a little apart from the group, graciously greeting everyone who comes to say hello and being quite friendly. But every time, he evades getting sucked into a conversation and instead returns to his seat on his log by the fire.

What. Toogoodto talk to us humans? I narrow my eyes to a glare.

He has a wide stick in his hand and is whittling at it passively with a knife, passing time and keeping occupied. But I realize as I watch him that he’s not paying very much attention to it.

Instead, every few seconds he looks up, scanning the darkness around us and casting his eyes over his men to ensure that they’re behaving. Shay moves over to Cole to introduce herself, abandoning her blonde to offer the Prince some tequila. Cole smiles warmly at her –

I roll my eyes when Shayne basically melts at that –

And then Cole takes the bottle. He raises it to his lips and lifts it. But I narrow my eyes because…his throat doesn’t move before he lowers the bottle and hands it back to Shayne.