Days went by, not enough to make the boys comfortable after the events of the werewolf assault—Gray never stopped thinking about the next possible attack, and Jesse almost ate away his nails—but it was enough to spark a few buried feelings.

Gray hated the fact that he was grateful for what led to this moment, ashamed that he allowed himself to be 'happy' that the universe awarded him, after all this time apart, to be together at last. He liked the end result but despised the path that made his darling Jesse be under his wing, to seek his protection, to need him.

That need was a wolf's ultimate opportunity to show his love to his partner.

The boys relaxed by the pool, enjoying some beers under a moonlit sky. The evening was peaceful, so refreshing and healing it made them forget about their worries for a change. Kentucky on summer nights had that beautiful worry-free weather.

"You know," Gray said. "I really missed this."

"Missed what exactly?" Jesse chuckled. "Two college losers still living with their families."

"No. Us hanging out in this house."

"Oh."

Jesse tensed. He sipped his beer and attempted to avoid Gray's piercing stare.

Dang it, Jesse cursed in his thoughts. Here it comes.

"Why did you stop coming to this house?" Gray leaned over, trying to get Jesse to look at him. "Especially after we moved here. It's like you're avoiding me for some reason."

"What?" Jesse snapped back to Gray's face. "No, never! Why would you even think that?"

That little confession under Jesse's tone gave Gray a surge of dopamine. That high-pitched voice that came out of his best friend was sincere. That brief reaction meant the world to Gray, he couldn't help but smile.

Jesse cares about me.

Gray was once again content in his thoughts. He needed that reminder from time to time. He would be like a lost puppy without having to pull those words out of Jesse every once and a while. It was hard to do; Jesse wasn't exactly keen on expressing his love to anyone but his mother. Despite jumping from one relationship to another, Jesse never confessed his love to any of his girlfriends, or boyfriends, as Gray deduced over the years.

Gray learned to accept that much out of Jesse. However, he still wondered about what was keeping Jesse away from this house.

If it wasn't because of me, then...

He opened his mouth to ask when the doorbell rang, they heard it through the open living room windows.

Jesse sighed, saved by the bell. He didn't want this conversation to surface ever again. He didn't want to relive all his buried memories about this place, never ever.

The boys looked behind them and then gave each other a curious look. They left their seats and went inside to see who could have visited them at this time of night.

At the door, there was Brad, standing still, completely mesmerized. In his hand was a small cage that Jesse immediately recognized.

"Dee Dee!"

Jesse grabbed the cage to check on their old grumpy cat. He was expecting a purr but instead received a hiss.

Jesse turned to Gray and said, "I don't think she likes you."

Gray looked frightened and seemed to be backing away.

"Dude, relax." Jesse bumped him. "She does that to me too lately."

"Jesse."

Jesse turned to the person on the other side of the door.

It was Emma, wearing tight jeans and a revealing top. A vintage amulet hung down her cleavage.

"Hey." Jesse gave her a hug.

"Oh, my Lord!" Emma squeezed him then let go to take a good look at him. "I'm so glad to see you all better. How are you doing?"

Jesse shrugged. "OK, I guess." Then he turned to give Brad a pat on his broad shoulders, "I see you met this big guy."

"Yeah," she said with a bashful flip of her hair. "Nice to see you after all these years, Brad."

Brad kept staring until Jesse poked his side.

"Oh." Brad blinked out of his trance. "Oh, y-yeah. Same. S-so glad to see you."

Emma let out the most beautiful little giggle Brad had ever heard.

"And this is Gr—" Jesse turned to introduce Gray "—ay. Hey." His brows narrowed as he inspected left and right. "He was here a second ago."

"That's strange." Emma took a peek inside. "I don't think I've seen him with you."

Brad snapped his fingers. "I bet it's the cat."

"What about the cat?" Emma questioned with eyes piercing curiously at Brad. "Is he allergic or something?"

Brad bit his tongue, careful not to spill out anything leading to Gray's secret. He had to keep his little brother safe from the normal world. In all his time working as a lawyer, Brad found lying to be an easy job, but when he was staring at those stunning pair of greens, he felt weakness spreading through him. A wave of red colors flushed his cheeks.

This beautiful woman was gazing straight into his eyes, talking to him, and—he dared to think—interested even.

"Um." His Adam's apple moved up and down as he swallowed. "Would you like to have dinner with me—us!" He flinched and blinked rapidly. "Dinner with us this evening?"

Why was it so difficult to ask this woman out?

There was something about her. A sense of power. A unique strength radiated through her confident posture and piercing stare. She frightened Brad, yet also made him desire her even more.

Emma wasn't the type of girl who easily got swept off her feet. She was the independent kind, moving around all her life, living alone minus some family visits every now and then. She wasn't waiting for a prince charming, nor did she need him to come. Yet she liked to have fun, loved the relationships she had, enjoyed every minute of her exciting wildlife, and was nowhere near settling any time soon.

She was the type of girl who would come over, put you under her spell, then leave with a trail of broken hearts.

Her wild nature and Brad's classic family-man nature collided, but you know what they say, opposites attract.

This man with all his muscles and shredded abs crumbled down in front of this woman's mere presence.

"I would love to, but..."

Brad winced under a facade of a macho look.

"I told you I'm leaving for a few days." She chuckled at how quickly he forgot. "That's why I brought Dee Dee."

"Oh. Right." A nervous chuckle escaped Brad's lips.

"But."

Oh, Brad's eyes widened. Another but. 'But' is good.

"Here's my number." She took her phone out and started dialing with a smile tugging her red lips. "In case you still want to have dinner after I come back."

Brad's phone rang. He nervously searched for it in his pockets and when he pulled it out, the name on the screen appeared, 'Flat As a Board.' He quickly clicked 'Decline' and then hugged the living out of it with an awkward laugh.

"Got it." He waved the phone. "I'll give ya a call, for sure."

"Hm." Emma squinted her eyes at him. "Why do I have a feeling that you're hiding something?"

"No, no! Nothing."

A moment of silence went by with Brad visibly sweating until Emma decided to give the poor guy a break.

"Anyway." Emma leaned to say goodbye to Dee Dee. "I'll miss you, girl."

She touched the cage and Dee Dee purred, making Jesse feel a weeny bit jealous.

Before she left, she hugged Jesse and said, "Give Natalie a kiss, will ya?"

"I will." Jesse patted her back in a loving manner. "Stay safe."

"Always."

When Brad closed the door after her, he sighed deeply, as if he forgot to breathe when Emma was around. He leaned on the wall with his chest heaving, heat filling his lungs. That was one of the most stressful moments of his life, seeing little Emma all grown up after all these years, fully matured and... sexy.

He flinched when Jesse poked him.

"Dude. If that's your attempt at flirting, I feel sorry for you." Jesse snorted. "So embarrassing."

"Oh, my Lord!" Brad straightened up and cupped his chest. "Did you see the melons on that body?"

"Ew. Stop." Jesse scrunched his nose and backed away. "That's my cousin."

"But how?"

"I'm not gonna talk about it, you sicko."

Jesse continued to walk away with Brad in his footsteps, trying to figure out one of the biggest mysteries in his life.

"I'm serious! I never saw it coming. She was flat as a board!"

"For the love of everything holy, stop talking!"

LOL. I love those weirdoes XD

But I wonder why Gray left? Hmm 🤔