Page 9 of Midnight Whispers (Forbidden Entanglements #1)

Chapter Nine

R iley couldn’t believe how great Cass was. An hour after lunch, Riley was still thinking about him. His gentleness when he helped Riley hide the mating mark on his hand was the stuff of dreams. Maybe he’d be gentle in other ways, too. He also smiled a lot. And when he smiled, his expression softened, especially his eyes. It didn’t seem to matter that they were canine.

When Riley had first seen Cass, he’d had on dark brown pants. They were part of his deputy uniform. But at the diner, he had on worn denim that hugged his ass. The gun holstered on his belt made him look badass. Not that Riley liked guns, but Cass was a hot guy with a badge on his chest. He totally pulled it off.

The main takeaway was the way the jeans made Cass’s ass look. Riley’s physical reaction to it made him feel like he might be a normal twenty-four-year-old man after all. For the first time in his life, the mental strain didn’t restrict his other needs. Maybe he’d finally gotten out of survival mode.

And he very much did need to touch Cass’s ass. As well as other parts of him.

Griffin sighed so loud it took Riley out of his thoughts. “Wrench. Riley. Come on.”

Riley rolled his eyes and handed over the wrench.

Griffin smirked at him before turning back to the furnace he was fixing. “Why are you so distracted? I can’t even venture a guess.”

Riley chuckled. “Shut up.”

“Not once in my life have I looked at Cass like you do.”

Riley pushed Griffin on the shoulder, which made Griffin laugh. “Don’t start now.”

“He’s more like an uncle. He and Dad have been friends for what? Five years now.” Griffin waved his hand as if dismissing a part of what he’d said. “Well, when Cass joined the sheriff’s department. However long that has been.”

“Well, I’ve never met him before coming to live with Dad.” Riley didn’t have familial feelings for Cass. His feelings were definitely on the more jumping-his-bones side of things. “He should scare me. I mean, he turns into a wolf. At least his eyes do. That alone is enough. But also, he’s way out of my league.”

“I don’t know much about shifters, but from what I’ve seen of Cass when he shifts—”

Riley sucked in a breath. “You’ve seen him shift.”

“Yeah. A couple of times.”

“What does he look like?”

Griffin chuckled. “If you’re going to keep your relationship on the down low, you are definitely going to need to control your face. It says everything you’re thinking.”

“I don’t know why we’re keeping it a secret. Cass seems to think we should, so I’m following his lead.” Riley took the wrench back from Griffin, putting it back into the toolbox he carried for Griffin. Following Griffin around and handing him tools should bore him, but he’d had a lot of fun. Griffin was easy to talk to and funny, even when he teased Riley about Cass. “Do you think Dad will freak out?”

Griffin snorted. “Oh yeah. And it will land all over Cass. Cass knows that. That’s why he’s being secretive. There’s also something going on with the local pack. Cass seems stressed, and it isn’t just about the murder east of town. Cass might want to keep you out of all that shit too.”

Riley didn’t want to cause Cass problems. “What’s happening with Cass’s pack?”

“It’s your pack now, too. Or will be when you bond.” Griffin shrugged. “Anyway, all I know is Cass has been stressed since the new alpha took over.”

It sounded as though Cass had a lot going on in his life. Did he even have room for Riley?

“What does bonding mean?”

“All the good stuff. Sex. And then you’ll leave your marks on each other.” Sex with Cass would be next-level hot. Full on three-alarm fire.

“Marks?” But Riley knew it had something to do with his glowing hand.

“You better let Cass explain about mating marks.”

They headed up the stairs from the basement of the inn. When they arrived, Zinnie had been nowhere in sight, but as soon as they made their way upstairs, she stood with her arms open, staring right at him.

Riley smiled upon seeing her. He set the toolbox down and hugged her. She smelled like she’d been sitting in a garden surrounded by flowers, eating cookies and drinking coffee.

Griffin resembled her more than he did their dad. She had soft, dark curls that hung down her back. Her hair had a few gray strands through it, but nothing else suggested time was catching up to her. Griffin had her curls. He’d covered them with a cap advertising the Dinsmore’s hockey team, the Lumberjacks.

He had her green eyes. When she held him by his shoulders and studied him, it was as though she were looking directly into his soul. He had an urge to bear his soul as if it were judgment day. Griffin had the same effect on him.

When she smiled and nodded, he took that as a good sign.

“Iven’s letting you rest, I see. That’s good.” He’d sat around doing nothing but sleeping, eating, and talking to his dad. It had been great until they had argued. But that was mostly Riley trying to work through his emotions. It turned out that grieving was hard.

“I did nothing but let him feed me. It was great. But lying around like a sloth for that long was too much of a good thing.” Riley smirked at Griffin. “So far, my day with Griffin has been less than.”

Griffin flipped him off. “Lunch was good.”

Riley’s face heated thinking about Cass, but he chose not to focus too much on that. He wasn’t sure who he could tell about their connection, which neither of them had asked for, but the universe, Fate, or whoever had a hand in making them mates. They couldn’t deny it, at least not to each other. “The whole day has been great. Not just lunch.”

“But lunch was the best part. Admit it.” Griffin chuckled when Riley’s face heated even more.

“Stop teasing each other.” Zinnie patted his cheek and smiled. “I missed you.”

Riley missed her mothering instinct. His mother hadn’t been like Zinnie. At least, not that he remembered. Perhaps she had it when he was a baby.

Zinnie had been the only person who had ever felt like his parent. His relationship with his dad had consisted of a back-and-forth argument that never seemed to end. His dad wanted to help, but Riley refused. That was only just starting to change.

Riley hugged her again. “I really missed you, Zinnie. A lot.”

“Well, now you’re here. We don’t have to miss each other anymore.” Zinnie rubbed his back. “I’m here, honey.”

He met Griffin’s gaze over Zinnie’s shoulder. Griffin winked as if to say connecting them was the day's ultimate goal.

“Mom, do you need help around the inn today?” Griffin asked. He really was a good brother. Riley couldn’t have asked for anyone better. Not only that, but Griffin was his best friend since Riley hadn’t spent much time making friends.

They ended the hug, but Zinnie kept an arm around Riley’s shoulders. “I could put Riley to work.”

Riley would take any excuse to spend time with Zinnie. “I’d love that.” He met Griffin’s gaze. “I was only joking about having a bad day. I’m having fun, I promise.”

Griffin waved off the comment. “You need time with Mom. Let her baby you.”

“Dinner with Dad later?” Riley met Zinnie’s gaze. “What about you? Will you come?”

“I’ll be there. It’s been a while since I’ve given Iven hell.”

“A whole five minutes, mom?”

“More like a week. Far too long.”

Riley chuckled. Griffin shared a similar humor with Zinnie.

Life had been too serious. He hadn’t had time to laugh. He didn’t know how much he needed it until he was with Zinnie and Griffin.