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“But you should know that Raf didn’t care about the money,” he adds. “He was a mess when you were in recovery. I doubt he has any idea how much he even spent.”

Jake rummages in his back pocket for the key card, and I open my mouth to ask how he knows what Raf was like when I was recovering from the accident. Raf had me transferred to Chicago to the best TBI rehab center in the country shortly after I was diagnosed. Jake was here in Colorado.

But before I can get the words out, the keypad blinks, and Jake throws open the door to our room.

I suck in a breath as the huge canopy bed comes into view. It’s draped in crisp white linens and seems to dominate the entire room. The walls are painted a hue of deep yellow that’s not quite goldenrod and not quite mustard.Sunlight streams in through tall French doors, which housekeeping left cracked for a bit of fresh air. The light breeze stirs the gauzy white canopy, and I exhale slowly.

It’s both luxurious and cozy — perfect if Jake and I were here on some romantic getaway. Instead, I’m supposed to platonically share a bed with my brother’s best friend who brutally rejected me on my birthday.

I have the worst luck.

Jake’s low whistle tickles my ears as he wheels my suitcase into the room. He hangs our garment bags in the closet, then crosses to the bed and bounces on the edge of the mattress. “Nice.”

It’s ridiculous, but being cooped up in this romantic room with Jake is just too much. Ihaveto get out of here.

“I’m going to the pool,” I announce, turning toward my suitcase so Jake can’t see how flustered I am.

I came to Carmen’s wedding to have fun and celebrate my best friend’s big day. I’m not about to let this thing with Jake ruin the whole weekend.

I grab my bikini and storm into the bathroom as Jake turns on the TV. I dress quickly and run a hand through my hair, belatedly realizing that I left my coverup in my suitcase.

Feeling self-conscious, I slide back into the room and grab my coverup. Jake’s gaze burns through my skin as I turn to leave.

“A swim sounds nice,” he says, making me jump. “I . . . think I’ll join you.”

CHAPTER FIVE

JAKE

Moving like a predator,I stalk down the hallway and take the steps to reach the pool on the ground floor. I wasn’t going to let Elena hit the pool alone — not after she strutted into the room wearing thattinyfucking bikini.

She’s already down there when I arrive. The sunflower-yellow fabric of her swimsuit barely covers her ass, and don’t even get me started on that top. Her glossy black hair cascades down her back, and I find myself wondering what it would feel like wrapped around my hand. Elena’s long golden legs dangle into the water as she laughs at something Carmen said.

Carmen. Talk about a bad influence. I swear, that girllivesto make trouble.

“Yo!”

I turn at the sound of Maddox’s voice and break into a wide grin. I hadn’t realizedhewas going to be at this shindig, and it’s good to see a familiar face.

Maddox is a big guy — dark-haired and well-inked. He looks like somebody who should be dressed in leather,straddling a big black Harley. Instead he’s lounging in a pool chair and sipping a beer. Beside him is Nick, another one of my pack brothers.

I plop down in the empty chair on Maddox’s other side, and he hands me a cold Corona.

“Thanks, man,” I say, taking a long drag.

“Didn’t know you were gonna be here.”

“Neither did I.”

Maddox gives me a strange look, and I nod toward Elena. “Rafael wanted me to keep an eye on his sister this weekend.”

Our little town of Gold Creek is a forty-minute drive from Denver, but every shifter in Colorado knows Raf.

Maddox’s eyebrows creep up, and he shakes his head as a chuckle rumbles up his throat. “So you’re here to keep her from getting fucked by the groomsmen?”

“Basically,” I grunt, my wolf snarling at Maddox’s implication that Lena would sleep with any other male here.

Nick doesn’t speak, but I know he’s listening. He stares out at the party with sharp green eyes that could cut fucking glass, as if he half expects someone to throw a grenade into the gaggle of females drinking and chatting at the other end of the pool.