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I opened my mouth, but no words came out.

What could I say?

Sorry, I am a freak, don’t mind me.

Been there.Done that.And I could tell you from experience, it wasn’t fun.

No.I would just have to make sense of the vision that had felt way too real, too powerful, all on my own.

Later.Much later.

Right now, I was left standing on the precipice of something unknown, caught between the realms of reality and the supernatural.

It was almost as if the wolf in my vision was still there with us.But that just couldn’t be.

“Um, I don’t know,” I said, lying to the man.

I could feel my heart pounding, the weight of the moment pressing down on me, and I knew that whatever I said next could alter the course of both our lives.

“I hope that’s the first and only time you’ll lie to me, Jezebel Braydon,” he murmured, and just like that, I knew I had to get away from him.

“Would you mind dropping me by the house?”I whispered.

“Sure.My name is Emmet, by the way.Emmet Quinn,” he said.

I rolled the name around my head, testing the way it sounded.Emmet Quinn was a good name.

Strong.

Real.

Worthy.

True, I didn’t know him from Adam, but I had no business talking to him or any man.Not with all my baggage.

Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to ground my thoughts.

“Thanks, um, is there anything I need to do?For the goats, I mean,” I said when he rolled to a stop a few feet from my front door.

Emmet turned his green gaze on me, then his lips quirked in a smirk I was sure had melted heartsand panties, all over the Garden State, and elsewhere since I swore, I heard a bit of country in that deep voice of his.

“Go out with me,” he said unexpectedly, and I froze with my hand on the door.

“Um, no,” I finally managed, my voice barely above a whisper.

“Why not?”

“Because, um, I don’t know you,” I replied weakly.

“So, get to know me.Come on.Take a chance,” he teased, and dammit I was tempted.

But I knew better.

“I don’t think so.But thanks, anyway,” I replied, then opened the door and ran up the stairs to my house.

I heard his door slam and turned to see just what the heck he was doing.And that was my mistake.

Emmet moved fast.He crowded me against the door, his big body taking up all the space on the top stair.I had to steady myself with my hands on his chest, else I might have slipped.