Page 139 of Poet & Protector

“Nev—”

“You need to go, Mason,” he said.

My heart was full of broken, jagged glass. “I don’t want to.”

“I know.”

He was quiet as I buttoned and tucked in my shirt, refastened my jeans, and buckled my belt. Drawing a sudden, shaky breath, he darted forward and swiftly buttoned my vest for me, smoothed my shirt, then leaned in and kissed me gently. Before I could react, he was out of my reach again, watching me from the opposite side of the closet. It was a small space, he was only a few feet away, but the distance between us felt immense.

“I love you,” I said.

He nodded.

I left the supply closet in a fog of residual lust and sadness. Logan was definitely wondering where I was by this point, but I had to make a quick stop in the bathroom. I couldn’t go out there without making sure I wasn’t too disheveled and I needed to splash cold water on my face to clear my head.

My bathroom stop was longer than I wanted because it took a few minutes for me to steady myself until I was certain I could put coherent sentences together. Fortunately my clothes hadn’t gotten wrinkled, and on inspection I couldn’t find any signs that I’d been mauled—in the best way—by my mate.

When I reached the parking lot, Logan was leaning against the hood of his Range Rover.

“I’m sorry I’m late.” My nerves kicked to life again. “I forgot something in my locker and had to go back for it.”

Logan offered me a lazy smile. “Not a problem. Shall we?”

I climbed into the passenger seat and turned to throw my bag in the back. Logan caught me off guard when suddenly he leaned over and kissed me on the cheek.

On instinct I went still, but so did he. The corners of his mouth turned down and he slowly drew back. I assumed it was due to my awkward reaction.

“Sorry,” I said quickly, buckling my seat belt. “You surprised me.”

“Did I?” Logan started the car. His fingers wrapped tightly around the steering wheel.

I wasn’t sure how to respond, and Logan didn’t say anything else as he put the car into gear and drove out of the parking lot.

He continued to not say anything as we traveled through Vail. Rather than speak to me, he lit a cigarette and smoked, not so much as acknowledging my presence during the ride. Him not smoking during my previous visit must have been a one-time thing.

I was expecting a repeat of last week’s ‘date,’ where Keeper Logan was replaced by the much nicer boyfriend Logan. He’d signaled as much when he kissed me on the cheek, but now he seemed withdrawn and sullen.

I grew increasingly agitated as the drive went on. Not only was Logan silent, but his scent had changed subtly. Amid his usual cloves and mahogany, I caught something else: a bright metallic tang that I didn’t recognize. I didn’t know what it was or why it was suddenly there.

“I don’t have too much homework,” I said, trying to make conversation. “Maybe we could watch a movie tonight?”

Watching a movie seemed like it would up the odds of me falling asleep on the couch and staying there.

“Perhaps.”

Okay. He’d reverted to his formal style of speaking. Something was off.

“Is everything okay, Logan?” I risked asking. “You seem unhappy.”

He spared me a glance that revealed nothing.

I tried again. “If you’re not in the mood to hang out, we can reschedule. I won’t be offended or anything.”

“No, I’m certain you wouldn’t.” He huffed out an icy laugh.

Damn. He was pissed off at me about something. Was it just the kiss? His response seemed overblown for something so small. Then again, Logan could be touchy. I didn’t know what to do to fix it. No way was I kissing him on the cheek like kissed me or trying to hold his hand, even if it would improve his mood.

Maybe it wasn’t me and I was just catching the crossfire of something else that was bothering him.