She was sitting back in her chair, leaning against where her mate had draped his arm over her shoulders. “So it seems like you made a friend while we were at the Bureau. I was wondering what you were doing,” she said, her smile mysterious. “Could it be that—”
Her words cut off as my head snapped in the direction of the succulent scent of my mate. All of my focus was suddenly, abruptly pulled to her.
Fuck me, she’s gorgeous.
“So I was right,” I heard Zara say in a pleased tone, but I had no idea what she was talking about.
All I could see was my female. Her long dark hair was pulled back at the base of her neck with a tie and she’d changed into a white shirt and apron with a black skirt that was short enough for me to see the thick, delectable thighs that had been hidden under her clothes before. I licked my suddenly dry lips as I took another, swift inhale, trying to capture her scent in my nostrils and keep it inside me.
It’s been too long.
Even the short time away from her felt like hours.The members of the table around me had begun whispering to each other, and if I tried, I knew I’d be able to hear them, but I didn’t want to.
“Please tell me you didn’t think it was a good idea to stalk your mate at her place of work,” Rudgar leaned closer to murmur to me and I shook my head.
The male breathed a sigh of relief before I told him, “I asked her friend about her and she gave me all of her details. It’s not technically stalking.” The slap of skin to skin told me that he must have facepalmed, but I couldn’t look away from where my mate was bent over the edge of the front desk.
Gods, that ass should be illegal.
“You can’t follow her around, Krusk,” Enka said in a low voice. “Tasia told me that that’s a terrible idea.”
“It worked for you,” I responded, biting back a groan as she leaned forward a little more, that tight skirt shimmying up a little higher, baring soft skin that I wanted to touch and bite into.
“That was a different situation,” Enka groused, his voice defensive. “My mate was in danger and needed protection.”
“I don’t know that sheisn’tin danger,” I sniffed, waving off the rest of his argument to stare with awe and greed at where my female was straightening and tugging down her skirt, her arms filled with menus.
Her breasts pushed against the front of her shirt, and Iprayedthat one of the buttons would give up the fight to keep them contained. Licking my lips again, I released a long, dreamy sigh and ignored everyone around the table as they shook their heads at me.
“This is better than him trying to kidnap her,” Savla said with a shrug and I slapped him across his back without looking at him.
“Thanks, Sav,” I said, watching as Emma juggled menus as she made her way closer to our table. Her little black shoes lookedcomfortable, but worn. In fact, her clothes now—as well as her clothes from earlier—seemed older. Tighter. As if her breasts and hips hadn’t had the chance to grow to their optimum size when she’d bought them.
Strange.
“I don’t thinknot kidnapping heris the gold standard you think it is,” Rudgar argued, and I ignored him completely, sitting straighter in my chair and pasting a friendly smile on my face as Emma got closer. When she did, she frowned as she looked around the table, but when her whiskey-brown eyes met mine, they widened for a split second in recognition.
She knows me.
That thought sent a jolt of pleasure through my chest. Stronger than anything I’d ever felt before. I rubbed at the area of my heart.
Fuck. This mating business is the real deal.
If something as simple as her remembering me was enough for this kind of reaction, I couldn’t wait to see what else was in store for me.
CHAPTER 5
Emma
Everything screeched to a stop when I saw the orc that I had been avoiding at the Bureau sitting at one of my tables.
Fuck, fuck,FUCK.
What was I supposed to do? My first instinct was to run the other way, but then I would look like a complete lunatic and I was hoping to keep this job. The tips were great, and I just couldn’t afford to lose it.
Ignoring the adrenalin that had rushed into my limbs, I took cautious steps to the table, pasting a fake smile on my face. Everyone else was looking between me and the orc and with a mix of confusion and satisfaction.
It looked like that same group that he’d been at the Bureau with and I cursed myself that I couldn’t look away from him long enough to study them properly. Instead, I handed him the stack of menus like a completeidiotand stared at him, allowing thesilence to effectively swallow us.
