Page 24

“Yep. 3:30.” I ran my fingers through my tangled ponytail. I’d slept in too late to fix it, so it didn’t look great.

“Unless… have you had lunch yet?”

I was out of it after not sleeping much, so I had to glance at the clock. “No. Not for another hour.”

“I can bring you something to eat, if you don’t have plans with your friends.”

My face heated further.

I didn’t have plans, but…

Well, if I accepted, it would bring us closer together. And I didn’t want a mate, or a committed relationship.

But he wasn’t my mate.

And we couldn’t commit to each other, given that we weren’t mates.

So…

“Lunch would be nice.”

“I’ll pick something up on the way.”

“Thank you.” I bit my lip. “I need to get back to work.”

“Alright. I’ll see you soon.”

“Bye.” I hung up, biting my lip harder as I stared at my phone.

Tori crossed the small room and sat down in the chair beside mine, leaning back and studying me. She was tall, with strawberry-blonde hair cut in a pixie, and pale skin.

“Stop judging me,” I said, my face still warm.

“I’m not judging you.”

“You totally are.”

Her lips curved upward. “You look happy, Sienna. Why would I judge you for that?”

“You think it’s dangerous to sleep with someone who isn’t my mate,” I countered. “You think I could get attached. Or he could get attached. Or it could break my heart when he finds his mate. Or?—”

“I don’t think any of those things, but it seems like you do.”

I heaved a sigh. “I don’t know what I think anymore. I just know I don’t want a mate. It’s too risky.”

Tori nodded. “I get it.”

She was mated, but she’d been against it for ages too. She was the one who taught me how to put on enough perfume and lotion to hide my scent.

“And if I can’t have a mate, why not have fun with Bauther right now, you know? He likes me, and I like him.”

“And he has four masters’ degrees, apparently.”

I smiled.

“Just don’t let yourself get too attached to him, and everything will be fine.”

She was right.