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“Mmm, breakfast,” Grace says, stretching her arms over her head. “Let’s go!”

But I just return my head to my knees, wondering.

Grace gets up from her bed and joins me on mine, putting an arm around my shoulders, giving me a squeeze. “Tell Auntie Gracie,” she coos, funny and sweet, playing my therapist as she always does.

“I just…should I even be here, Grace?” I whisper. “I was so excited about this. But that stupid Prince – he’s ruiningeverything.”

“He’s not ruining anything, Nadia,” Grace whispers. “Honestly, he hasn’t done anything except his job, and be nice to you, and tease you when…well, when you deserved a bit to be teased. You came for him hard when you called his friend a deranged parrot.”

I smirk, unable to help it. But then I narrow my eyes and glare at her, not liking that she’s taking Cole’s side. Grace just raises her eyebrows, letting me know that she said what she said and she’s not backing down from it.

“No one has the power to ruin this experience except you, Nadi,” she whispers, reaching out to tap a finger at my temple. “You’re letting your inner demons get the better of you. You know that.”

I shut my eyes, knowing that she’s right but also…completely unsure if I’m strong enough to handle this. Maybe it would be easier, better, to just…go home.

“Come on,” Grace says, standing and tugging on my arm, taking me with her. “Let’s leave Shayne here to rot in a puddle of tequila-scented misery and go get breakfast. I’m hungry.”

“No, I’m coming,” Shay says, whipping the pillow off her head and turning over with a sigh. “I need sustenance. I need…bread.”

Shayne sighs and hauls herself up, trooping away with us to the bathroom to quickly wash and brush our teeth. It doesn’ttake long to get ready, our bathing facilities and outfit choices being as basic as they are. It’s not fifteen minutes later that we’re stepping into the mess tent in our scrubs, accepting the little trays of hot food from the table by the door.

“Yay!” Shayne says, beaming, apparently over her hangover with alarming ease. “My boyfriend’s here!”

She starts to stride off and my eyes widen as I see that she’s walkingrightfor a table withthreewolves sitting at it.

One of which – of fuckingcourse– is Cole Kincaid.

“You have got to bekiddingme!” I growl, dashing forward and putting myself bodily in front of Shayne. “We are not sitting there!”

“But!” she says, her mouth falling open in dismay as Grace catches up. Shayne peers around me at the table. “My boyfriend is there!”

“Which one is your boyfriend?” Grace asks, peering between the blonde and the brown-haired wolves who chat idly with their Prince and commander.

“Bothof them!” Shayne whines, her posture slumping like it will be a cruel and devastating punishment if we don’t let her sit with them. “The blonde one is Greg and he’s obsessed with me, but the brunette is Tommy, and he’s playing hard to get –“

Grace tilts her head to the side, intrigued.

“Guys!” I groan, glancing around, aware that we’re making kind of a scene by standing here arguing instead of just picking a table and sitting down. “This is –“

“Nah, I’m with Shay,” Grace says, looking at her and nodding. Shayne gives a squeak of delight. “I didn’t get to talk to the guards about wolf culture last night becausesomeonehad too many emotions.” She glares at me. “I still have questions.”

My friends both look at me pointedly for a second, clearly letting me know that I’m not the only one whose needs and interests matter. Leaving me standing alone, they start towardsthe table with the wolves, Shayne cheerfully asking if they mind if we join them.

For a moment, I debate sitting alone. But when I realize that would open the risk of having a stranger sit down – even that horribleRosegirl – I decide against it. I feel quite grim as I arrive at the wolf table, not saying hello as I plunk my tray down, letting my distaste for the situation be blatantly known.

“Good morning, Nadia,” Cole says, looking up at me, his face kind - even apologetic.

I narrow my eyes at him on instinct – unable to help it – and then sink into my chair.

“So,” Grace says, leaning forward and looking between the three gigantic Alphas with whom we’re having breakfast. “Do you guys really have fated mates and you can tell by smelling them? And you like…bite them? Or is that all rumors that humans made up?”

My mouth drops open, appalled, as I stare at my friend.

Chapter 11 – Breakfast with the Wolves

Nadia

“And what does this whole mate thing mean for like, your dating life?” Grace asks, stabbing some eggs with her fork and taking a big bite, clearly absorbed in the questioning. “Do you just not dateanyone, sitting around waiting for your mate?”