I stared at Liv’s math on the whiteboard, but my mind was on Henrik. I kept thinking of how his fingers felt inside me and the way he held me while he did it. I couldn’t get over his kiss and how he looked so sad when he left.

“So, what do you think?” Liv asked, tapping the marker on her chin. “I keep staring at it, and it just doesn’t add up for me. I don’t know where I went wrong.”

I shook my head, reminding myself that I needed to focus. I was at work and needed to keep my head in the game.

“You put a minus in the third line and a double positive on the sixth line. “

Liv looked back at the whiteboard, and her eyes scanned it. I watched her shoulders drop. “You’re right. How did I miss that?”

“It happens,” I explain. It wasn’t the first time someone had brought a math problem to me, asking where they went wrong.

She turned to me. “You’re a genius, you know that.”

I gave her a smile, but my mind wandered to when Henrik said those exact words.

Questions quickly filled my head. What was he planning for us to do on this date?

Was I supposed to dress up? Did I even have anything to wear?

And was he expecting something afterward?

He seemed pretty disappointed when I said I didn’t want to go further.

I know we had a wonderful make-out session, and he made me come so quickly. I should be embarrassed, but I wasn’t. But was he expecting something to happen after the date? Was that why he was asking me to go out?

“You still there?” Liv waved the marker at me, and I quickly shook my head.

“Sorry. Just have a lot on my mind.”

“What are you thinking about?” she asked as she swung into a chair next to me.

I looked at Liv. I wasn’t as close to her as I was with Sam, but I’d known Liv for a few years, and she was nice. She didn’t gossip. I felt she was someone I could confide in.

“Actually, Liv, are you in a relationship?”

Liv seemed surprised by the question but nodded her head. “I am. I’ve been dating a guy for almost two years now.”

“Do you remember being nervous about going on dates?”

She nodded. “Oh yeah, I was nervous. I actually threw up on our first date because I was so nervous. But he still stuck around. Why are you nervous?”

I shrugged. “Obviously, everyone knows that Henrik and I were forced into marriage, but no one really knows that we are still learning things about each other. I just…I get so nervous that I’m sure I’m going to screw it up.”

Liv gave me a soft smile. “That’s the risk of dating. And Henrik seems like a good guy. His pack speaks highly of him, and he seemed nice when he was here.”

I nodded because he was. Henrik cared about me and gave me space when I wanted it.

He was sweet and did little things for me.

He always had coffee ready for me in the morning, even when he didn’t drink it.

He always asked how my day was when I got home and offered to give me space if I had a bad day.

He did so many things to make me feel comfortable.

Maybe tonight wouldn’t be any different.

I left the lab a little before four and arrived home.

I was nervous and still worried about what was in store for the night.

Henrik was coming down the stairs, and I froze, taking in his outfit.

He had changed into a pair of jeans and a crisp white long-sleeve shirt.

His hair was slightly curled, falling in nice waves.

He gave me a smile as he got to the landing.

“You look nice,” I said as I chewed on my lower lip. “What is the plan? Do I need to change?”

“What you're wearing is fine.”

I looked at my black pants and the white blouse. I always made sure to dress appropriately for work. But if we were going somewhere fancy, I should dress up. But if he were wearing jeans, maybe it wouldn’t be that fancy.

“I’m taking you out for dinner. There is a nice restaurant near a creek with a waterfall. I thought it would be a nice place, and afterward, we had a little walk to our second location for the date.”

He opened the door and gave me a smile. “Ready?”

I nodded and took a deep breath.

We headed out to the car, and Henrik drove. Soft music broke the silence, and I looked outside the window, taking in the town. I had grown to really like Henrik’s pack. The people I had met were nice and none of them made me feel uncomfortable. If anything, they were welcoming.

“We’re here,” Henrik said as he pulled up to a large restaurant. The building had string lights and large windows. You could see an outside area with chairs and tables. People were already eating and chatting.

We headed inside, and Henrik made a reservation. The gal running the front smiled. “Let me go check to make sure it’s ready. It will be just a moment.”

Henrik nodded and turned to me. “It’s nice here, isn’t it?”

“It’s fancy,” I said, looking around. “I feel underdressed.”

Henrik stepped closer to me, placing a hand on the square of my back. “You look wonderful.”

I blushed, chewing on my cheek, feeling my body heat up. Whenever he touched me, I felt like I was on fire with need.

“Oh my god! Henrik!” A voice rang out loudly and we both turned, looking to find a tall, thin lady standing just behind us. She had long, thick red hair that curled perfectly around her. She had a stunning face. She had the perfect body weight and height to be a model.

She was wearing a long red dress with a slit that went up her left side. The slit stopped just a few inches from her hip. It was tight and had a plunging front, her breasts nearly falling out for display.

I instantly felt worse about my outfit. I tensed as she looked at Henrik with hunger in her eyes. “It is you! My goodness, long time no see.”

“Ashley, nice to see you.”

I swallowed, glancing at Henrik and back at her. Who was she? She clearly knew Henrik enough to call him so happily.

“Oh, don’t be so modest! My god, you look as wonderful as ever. And you must be?” She glanced at me, and her eyes scanned me. She didn’t show what she was thinking on her face, but I knew she looked away too quickly for it to mean nothing.

“This is Katie, my wife.” Henrik pulled me closer to him, and I offered her a smile.

“Oh, so you're the wife everyone has been talking about.”

I felt like I’d been slapped, but she said it in a manner that came off like she was being polite.

“And you are?” I asked, tilting my head. “I haven’t heard about you.”

She chuckled, glancing at Henrik. “Well, he isn’t the type to bring up past relationships.”

I frowned. So, she was an ex-girlfriend. Great. Of course, he would have dated her. She was stunning.

“So, what brings you here?” Henrik asked.

Ashley batted her eyelashes. “I have a date with John. He’s the guy I started dating after we broke up.”

I chewed on my lower lip when the waitress came back. “Your table is ready if you want me to take you back.”

“I’m going to run to the bathroom if you want to go back and sit.” Henrik offered.

“No, I’ll wait for you,” I said, giving him a smile. He kissed me on the cheek before he turned to the bathroom.

“So, Ashley…” I glanced at her and watched her watch Henrik as he walked away. I could see the lust in her eyes before she brought them back to me. “What do you do for a living?”

Ashley raised an eyebrow at me. “I’m a therapist.”

I nodded and turned, waiting for Henrik to return, but she continued talking. “If you don’t mind me asking, is your marriage an open one?”

I turned around, stunned by the question. “I’m sorry, what?”

She shrugged. “I’m just wondering because I don’t see how it would be a closed one. I mean, let’s be honest. Everyone knows you guys were forced together, and it’s only a matter of time before he starts looking for someone better looking.”

I felt my jaw drop open and anger filled me. I curled my hands into tight fists. “Aren’t you in a relationship?”

She nodded. “I am, but Henrik is better. He’s an Alpha, after all.”

I ground my teeth together. I took a slow breath in and felt a hand land on my side. “You ready to eat?” Henrik asked in a soft tone.

Ashley gave Henrik a smile. “It was great seeing you, Henrik. You look good.” She walked past the waitress.

“Ready?” Henrik asked, looking at me, and his smile slipped. “Why do you look angry?”

“Can we please leave?” I asked, refusing to even look at him.

I felt his hand cover mine, and he gave it a squeeze. “Yeah, if that’s what you want.”

I nodded, needing to get out of there. Anger was boiling over, taking over all the other emotions. Henrik turned us, and we headed out the door. Once outside, I took a deep breath and let the cool air hit me.

“Did something happen?” he asked, looking at me confused.

I wanted to tell him what Ashley had said, but I didn’t know if he would believe me. So, I instead just decided to shake it off. “I just…don’t want to be in there. I got the feeling she misses you.”

His eyebrows went up. “Ashley? No, we had a mutual understanding.”

I shook my head. “I’m sorry if this ruins your plans. I just didn’t want to be in the same room as her.”

Henrik gave me a smile. “I didn’t know you were the jealous type.”

“I’m not jealous. I’m just..” Was that the emotion I was feeling? I was feeling angry, but was I jealous, too?

Henrik pulled me close. “That’s okay. We can skip to the second part of the date, instead.”

He turned up, taking us down a pathway. I could hear water moving as we walked past the waterfall. I took it in and smiled. We continued to follow the path for a while and headed deeper into the trees. “Where are we even going?”

“There is a meadow back here,” he said with a chuckle. “And oftentimes, people forget about it. No one will be around.”

We broke through the trees to a huge open meadow. The flowers and grass were in full bloom and quiet, minus a few crickets chirping in the distance. It was stunning, and my mouth hung open.

“But that’s not the best part.”