Page 139 of Brushed By Moonlight

I winced.

His eyes sparkled. “She does.” But then his nostrils flared, and I steeled myself.

Clement was a wolf shifter, and wolf shifters had good noses. Too good for me to hide the scent of dragon, no matter how hard I’d scrubbed or how much I’d sweated while running.

His eyes went wide, and his expression hardened.

Ten awkward seconds followed. Neither of us uttered a word, but so much passed between us. Memories of the past, hints of a future. A whole fantasy world that sprang up, then faded away. The walls of a friendship, once solid, now crumbling, like mychâteau. Could it someday be repaired the way walls or a roof could?

Clement’s eyes filled with anger and jealousy, and for a moment, I worried what he might say or do. But all that ebbed away, replaced by deep sorrow.

Guilt stabbed at me, but what could I say?

“You look good too,” I said with an undertone that added,And I’m sure you’ll find the right person soon.

He stepped away.

“Good to see you,” he murmured, a martyr whispering his last words.

I swallowed hard. Madame Martin was right. He was a good man. Just notmyman.

It hurt me to hurt him, and words wouldn’t help. But, oh! A new love interest might.

“Did I mention my sister and cousin are coming soon?” I asked. “Gen keeps asking about you.”

Absolutely true, because my younger sister had been infatuated with Clement from about the age of five. Unfortunately, Clem was four years older and had barely noticed her.

But Gen — Genevieve, officially — had been an annoying chatterbox back then. Nowadays, she was poised, intelligent, interesting — and much, much prettier than me. Wasn’t a good man just what she needed after a string of toxic relationships?

“That’s good,” Clem said, unenthused.

Then, yikes. His eyes started glowing, and his jaw clenched. His wolf side was prowling closer to the surface, and crap. It wasn’t ready to accept defeat.

This isn’t over yet,that determined glint said, then communicated something likeLet the best man win.

Crap. Just what I needed — a wolf and a dragon shifter feuding over me. Flattering, but potentially fatal.

I could see and hear it now. The earsplitting howls, the possessive growls, the bared teeth. Marius would unleash his fire, while Clement could call in an entire wolf pack to assist. If I didn’t find a way to de-escalate things, they could lay waste to lovely Auberre and burn my château to a crisp.

Not good. Maybe Gen could fly in a week sooner. Hell, tomorrow would be good.

Then again, knowing my sister, she would fall for Henrik instead.

The town clock struck the quarter hour, spurring me into action.

“Oops. I have to go.Merci.” I waved to Madame and Monsieur Martin, bid Madame Fontaine a politeAu revoir,then turned to face Clem.

My lips moved with two false starts before I finally got something out.

“À bientôt.” See you soon,I said, hurrying out the door.

“À bientôt,” he whispered.

Four pairs of eyes followed me out. Especially Clement’s.

I always picked up the pace on my run back to the château, but this time, I really hit the gas, desperate to escape to the safe bubble of home.

A soon-to-be slightly less safe bubble, what with Henrik on his way, but still. Home was home.