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I bolted upright in bed. “It was just sort of something that happened. I didn’t plan it. It wasn’t like he came onto me or anything.”
He sat up with me. “Hudson didn’t come onto you? Doesn’t sound much like him.”
I sighed. “Can you leave the jokes to Hudson? This is serious. I kissed another man, Dean. You’re not upset about that?”
He shrugged. “Do you care about him?”
“Well, yeah, but--.”
“No,” he said as he reached out and took my hand, “I mean, do you care about him the way you care about me?”
I didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”
He brought my hand to his lips and kissed it softly. “Then, all is well. As long as you care about him, that’s all that matters.”
The shock of his statement took me a second to get over. “So, you’re not upset?”
He feathered his lips along my knuckles. “You’d be surprised what does and doesn’t upset me.”
I narrowed my eyes. “You know something I don’t.”
He barked with laughter. “I know plenty that you don’t.”
I got onto my hands and knees, crawling back toward him. “What do you know that I don’t?”
He leaned back, spreading his legs wide for me. “Enough to know that right now is not the time to have that discussion.”
I perched on my haunches between his legs. “You’re really not upset with me?”
He shrugged. “It’s not unheard of for a female shifter to take more than one partner at a time. It’s commonplace here.”
“Huh.”
He leaned forward, his hot breath pulsing against my lips. “Now, duty is still calling. Are you ready to go deal with the outside world?”
I dropped my head to his shoulder. “No.”
He chuckled as he wrapped me up tightly. “I know you’re not. But, I’ll be right there with you every step of the way.”
I curled into him, pulling my knees to my chest. “Thank you, Dean.”
He kissed my forehead. “Always, Raven.”
And after I stole his company for a few more minutes, I could no longer deny the urgency sitting just outside the door.
“All right,” I said as I crawled out of Dean’s lap, “I need a shower, and you need to be watching over Brody.”
“See? I knew you needed help somewhere.”
I stood to my feet. “There’s something off about Brody. Something that I can’t put my finger on. I need someone watching over him at all times until I can figure out why I feel this way.”
“Glad I’m not the only one that senses it.”
I shuffled my way into the bathroom, climbed in, and reached for my shampoo. “You feel it, too?”
I heard Dean come in behind me, and I was thankful for a bit more time as just us. “Yeah. I can’t put my finger on it, but it’s just… I don’t know. It’s not angry, and it’s not evil. Or mean. Or bad. It’s just…”
“Off.”
