Page 23 of Emerald Moon (Pitch Mountain Pack #2)

seventeen

At dinner, Jo wondered if people would ask them about the “friend” she brought, but, for the most part, their family was like their mother and didn’t want to open up a conversation they didn’t want to deal with.

So they ate and chatted with family about boring topics like work and the weather in Hickorywood, but there was one person Jo knew would want to know more, and they weren’t sure about how good they felt about lying to June.

“So is this your girlfriend or something, Jolene?” Jo’s great aunt Pearl blurted in the middle of a conversation about the winters up in the mountains.

Everyone at the table froze. Someone dropped their silverware, the clattering ringing out at the silent table.

Jo choked on a piece of broccoli, but managed to talk around it. “Yeah, she’s my girlfriend,” they said quietly.

Pearl studied them both like a judge at her bench and Jo sunk into their chair, hoping they’d disappear as an entire table’s worth of eyes landed on the two of them.

Pearl pointed her fork in their direction.

“Good. I like her.” She stabbed a piece of chicken on her plate. “So what’s it like in the summer?”

Jo ignored the whispers around the table. “Horrible. Humid enough to make you feel like you’re swimming when you walk.”

“Still good for birding,” Cass said.

Pearl nodded with appreciation. “When I could still get around easily, I used to go birding with my husband. He always wanted a bird for a pet, but I told him they’re happier outside.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” Cass said, which was the right answer by the way Pearl nodded.

The rest of the table was quieter after that, and the tension was thick, but Jo found they cared a lot less than they would have before.

It was getting easier to keep up the act and let their family into their life a little more. June was going to be another test, but with how busy she was with everyone else, Jo didn’t get another chance to talk to her until people were starting to retire to the rooms for the night.

“Found you!” June plopped down next to Jo and Cass in an empty chair. She put her elbow on the table and cast a sly glance at the two of them. “Okay, but, for real, you’re the first person Jo has ever, ever brought home, so you’ve got to tell me everything. How did you two meet?”

“Cass is in another pack close to ours — close enough that my pack goes there during full moons so we have space to run. We first met during one of those full moons.”

“Hearing you talk about werewolf stuff is wild. I still can’t believe you are one, and I definitely want to hear more, but not until I hear more about this.” She gestured between the two of them. “Was it love at first sight?”

Jo’s heartbeat quickened. They opened their mouth to speak, but Cass was first.

“For me it was.” Cass threw an arm around Jo’s shoulders.

“Aw, that’s so sweet. I bet it was the same for you, Jo. You always got crushes so easily in high school.”

Jo had been so ready to lie, but now, nothing came to mind. “Yeah, well —”

“I think it look Jo a little longer,” Cass added. “We started off as friends.”

June put both hands to her chest. “So cute. Okay, okay, so how did y’all get together?”

Jo was ready for that, at least. “We went on a short camping trip together and that was it. Everything just sort of clicked.” The more Jo spoke, the less it felt like lying. Aside from the girlfriend stuff, and the love at first sight stuff, most of this rang true. The two of them had just clicked.

Except for the issue of the almost kiss in the tent.

Jo dug their fingers into their leg. June asked another question, but they didn’t hear what she said.

That whole situation was nothing. Cass hadn’t tried anything like that since, so it must have been something else.

Jo had just gotten the wrong idea. It wouldn't have been the first time. On top of that, Cass was only into women and she didn’t seem like the type to treat Jo the wrong way.

She’d been nothing but a respectful friend this entire time.

Cass started stroking Jo’s shoulder with her thumb and that pulled them back into the conversation, but did nothing to help them forget the maybe kiss.

She was pretending to be Jo’s girlfriend. Of course she’d touch Jo a little more like this. Really, they should be doing the same.

“Jo bakes for me all the time,” Cass said, still stroking their shoulder. “They know I like savory things, so I get treats like cheesy tarts and savory macarons.”

“The first one sounds delicious. The second sounds interesting. But knowing Jo, they were both good. I’m so glad you’re at a place where you can use your talents.”

Jo laughed weakly, leaning in to Cass’ touch. “Hardly. I mostly just prep things for the bakery.”

“But not for long, right, babe?”

Jo’s brain went offline at the last word. They were pretending, Jo reminded themself, and it was something Krista said often, so maybe that was where Cass got it from. They laughed again. “Maybe.”

If Cass was going to sell this thing, then Jo could, too. They slid their hand from their own leg to Cass’ thigh and had immediate regrets. It was too much. Cass’ leg jolted under their touch and Jo started to pull away, but Cass’ other hand came to rest on top of it, holding their hand in place.

Jo looked up and their eyes met. They thought they’d find a similar panic in Cass’ features, but all they found was her typical calm, and Jo was swept up into it. It started in their shoulders and dripped down their body like a warm blanket being wrapped around them.

That’s what being around Cass was like, a warm blanket wrapped around Jo’s shoulders on a chilly evening.

“I wouldn't be surprised. Jo’s always been a baker,” June said.

“The things I made when I was younger were awful,” Jo said. “Or did you forget the ‘burning chocolate in the microwave’ incident?”

June grinned. “How could I forget that smell? You melted a plastic bowl! But they weren’t all bad. Even if they looked funny, they sure tasted good.”

“I have gotten better,” Jo was willing to admit.

Cass squeezed their hand. “Everything I’ve tried has been amazing.”

“You keep this one, Jo. She’s hot and nice. The best combo.” June winked, then wiggled her fingers and leaned in towards them with a renewed interest. “When was y’all’s first kiss? Who started it?”

“I did,” Cass said. “It was that first night we went camping together, in the tent. It felt like the right time.”

Jo’s soul left their body. They nodded robotically.

How much of this was fake for the act and how much of it was real? Was this Cass admitting that it’d been an attempt at a kiss? Jo replayed that moment in their mind — the quiet conversation, Cass getting closer, Cass being close enough to touch, and then panicking and going to bed.

It had been a kiss! Right? Or probably not. Jo tried to keep their features neutral while they had an inner meltdown, but they knew their face always told the truth.

June noticed. “What’s got you making a sour face?”

“I’m not making a sour face. Anyway, shouldn’t you be getting to bed soon? I hear there’s some big event tomorrow starring you,” Jo deflected.

June narrowed her eyes at Jo, but let it go.

“It’s true. I’ve got about a million things I need to get done before I can go to sleep and tomorrow’s going to start early.

Which, I know you’re, like, nocturnal or something now — as though you weren’t already before — so I’ll cut you some slack, but I need you in my hotel suite before lunch, alright? ”

Jo promised and June left for the night with another hug — and one for Cass, as well.

“Your sister’s nice,” Cass said as they stood to leave.

“Did you mean it?” Jo blurted.

“Mean what?”

Jo scrambled to cover. Their tongue burned with the desire to ask about the kiss in the tent, but instead they said, “When you called me ‘babe.’” They laughed much too loudly for the situation. “That was so classic Krista.”

“I guess I did pick it up from her. It felt right in the moment, though. Was it too much?”

“No, no, not at all! It just felt like you’d summoned her.

” Jo laughed again. “I should probably text her. I haven’t done that all day and I told her I’d let her know when we got up here and how things were going with mom and June and everything.

I can’t wait to tell her about standing up for myself and that June’s been awesome.

It’s been pretty good so far, right? At least way better than I thought.

Tomorrow will be a whole other beast, but we’ll manage, I’m sure.

Thanks for being here, again. It means a lot. ”

“Like I said before, I’m glad you picked me.”

Jo smiled, but couldn’t take their eyes off the gentle curve of Cass’ lips. “Do you have another great bird shirt for tomorrow?”

“You’ll have to wait and see.”

“It’s a bird shirt.”

“It could be something else.”

“Did Krista help you pick it out?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, then it might not be a bird shirt.”

They turned a corner in the hotel hallway and Jo could see their room door in the distance.

Their exhaustion hit all at once knowing the end of the night was near.

A day like that would have taken a lot out of Jo on a normal day, let alone a day when they already started with half the energy they usually had.

Pretending was hard, and not just pretending Cass was their girlfriend.

Pretending that they felt okay when they didn’t was necessary but always difficult. It drained Jo like nothing else.

“I’m going to be busy in the early afternoon before the wedding,” Jo said.

“So you can hang out in your room or do whatever. There’s some sights in the area if you want to drive around and see them.

I could make some recommendations. Not that you need me to tell you what to do or anything.

Mostly this place just kind of sucks, though. I moved for a reason.”

“I’m sure I can figure something out.”