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She sneers at him. “Bathroom break. You know how ladies always go to the bathroom in pairs? I need her.”
Sean rolls his eyes, but that doesn’t stop us from getting up to exit the ballroom. He doesn’t follow, doesn’t seem the least bit suspicious that something might be happening. I know why, too. He just said that no one would ever escape the packs. He thinks I would never try, assuming my only goal is evidence of the relationship he had with Gayle, which I’m sure he’s confident that I’ll never find. If there was proof, it’s most likely long gone by now.
Kinsey fake gags as we leave the area. “I can’t believe I just said that.” She shivers in horror.
I laugh because it’s exactly like her. She’s not the kind of girl who thinks we need to go to the bathroom in pairs. My initial reaction subsides, and a knot forms in my stomach. “Did something happen?”
She grins, and switches positions with me so I’m walking against the wall. We walk by an open door, and a pair of hands shoot out to grab me. Kinsey chuckles as I’m imprisoned against a hard chest. Nathan’s aroma engulfs me before I can panic. The door closes, leaving us isolated together. In the dark, my lips seek his. We come together in a frenzy of fevered touching and heated kisses. He grips my chin, almost to the point of pain, but he assaults my mouth like he can’t get enough. His growl reverberates through the room when he comes up for air. “Don’t you dare doubt us.”
Kinsey must have told him I was worried he’d go back with Gayle. At this point, I don’t even care that I’m being chastised; I’m happy to have his tongue down my throat, erasing all those thoughts. “So, you’re in it with me?” I ask when I come up for air. “We’re leaving tonight?”
He nips at my lips. “We’re leaving tonight.”
27
Nathan returns to the ballroom as Kinsey and I take that bathroom break. “That was dumb,” I sigh, still giddy from Nathan’s fervent kisses.
“Sometimes, the risk is worth the reward. I was watching out for people. You were fine. No one even noticed.”
I take a deep breath, smiling at a woman who enters the restroom behind us. I move closer to my friend. “So, we’re all on board?”
“You didn’t talk it over with him?” She lifts a brow.
I shake my head. “No, we were otherwise engaged.”
She smirks. “He’s all for it.”
“Well, I got that part,” I blush, only highlighting the rose-colored powder I’d placed there earlier. “But he knows what to do?”
“Mm-hmm. Wait for the signal. We’ll do it during dinner while everyone is preoccupied.”
My stomach twists in knots. There’s so much riding on this. “When’s—”
Just as I’m about to ask when dinner is, a chorus of hard plinks sound from the other room. The woman washing her hands quickly dries them. “That would be dinner,” she says, leaving in a plume of perfume.
I fan my face.
“Be casual. Be cool.”
I nod, following Kinsey back into the room. Sean’s staring in the direction of the door, his foot tapping against the marble, and when he sees me, he visibly relaxes. Jonah glares at him as the two of us make it to the table, which now boasts two more couples. “I thought I’d have to send a search party after you,” Sean says flippantly, a touch of a warning in his voice.
“I told you it was just girl stuff,” Jonah remarks.
Kinsey leans over, giving him a kiss on the lips as the couples now seated with us titter like they’re the cutest couple alive. They kind of are, but whatever. Conversation moves, as it always does, to mates. The couples seated with us are both from Daybreak, so they ask Kinsey and Jonah question after question. None of them bother to ask Sean and me. As far as they’re concerned, I have a scarlet A on my gown. They already know our story.
Honestly, I barely keep up with the conversation. Outwardly, I stay calm, but I’m reeling inside. I’m so close to leaving with Nathan. I can almost taste the freedom, like fresh raindrops on my tongue. Like the sun on my wolf’s fur. It’s something I haven’t had in a very long time.
I breathe out, centering myself and not allowing the nerves to take over. I’ve been letting things happen to me this entire time. I sat there at Greystone like a good little shifter. I played their game. Now, it’s time to play mine.
My pack didn’t want me. My mate didn’t want me. It’s time for me to live out the rest of my existence with someone who does.
Kinsey brushes my leg with hers, and I straighten, waiting for the sign. She told me it would be obvious, something I wouldn’t have to second-guess. When it happens, I am to leave the mansion through the southwest corner of the grounds. I’m to wait for Nathan there for a maximum of three minutes. If he doesn’t show, I’m to shift and race to the car. I’m allowed to wait there for another few minutes. If he still doesn’t show, I’ve been told to leave without him.
I won’t, but that’s what I’ve been told.
I hope it doesn’t come down to that.
Someone hits their fork on the water glasses again, and I perk up, believing it’s the announcement for the next course. There’s movement next to me as Sean stands, grabbing his glass and clearing his throat. I gape at him, worry cascading over me at what he’s about to do. He gives a nervous laugh as the whole room turns toward him. “Good evening, Winter Solstice guests. My name’s Sean Collins. I’m a pack member of your hosts, Daybreak. I have some amazing news to share with all of you.” He peers down at me. To everyone on the outside, he must look like a lovesick fool. I blink at him, dread boiling in the pit of my stomach. “My mate and myself have been separated, and I’m happy to tell you all that I’ve just accepted her.” He beams down at me, a sickening spark in his gaze.