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Gary didn’tsmelllike any supe Finn had met before. Granted, most of his experience had been with other weres, and with the medimagical staff of St. Stupid’s, which included not only werewolves but also witches, demons, an eight-tailed kitsune, and a team of achubyddion, the reclusive Welsh healers who’d emerged from hiding specifically to treat Hrodgar’s Syndrome.
Finn had assumed Gary was just a really… fragrant human. Sweet and savory, wrapped together.
“Say, Gary?”
“Hmmm?”
“I never asked you. Whose wedding is this, anyway?”
“Oh. Heh. I never said, did I? I’ve only spoken to Del, who’s one of the nearlyweds. Although, come to think of it, I never got a last name for them. Their fiancée is… Crap, I’ve got it written down somewhere.” There was a low murmur and the sound of paper rustling. “Oh. Thanks, Peyton! Her name’s Annemiek—wow, what a cool name! Annemiek Bakker.”
Finn held his phone away and stared at it for a moment before gingerly pressing it to his ear. “TheAnnemiek Bakker?”
“You know who she is?”
“She’s one of the most famous ballerinas in the world.” And also a swan shifter. Fuck, this was asupewedding. Del was probably involved because this was their own wedding and they wanted it to go off without a hitch, not because Gary was a supe. Fuck, Gary hadtoldhim the referral had come from Peyton. Supes used human businesses all the time without revealing themselves, and Peyton would know better than anybody how gifted Gary was with baked goods. “Where’s this taking place?”
“At a resort called Wildwood? I’m not exactly sure of its location. Do you know it?”
Finn gulped. He knew it, all right. His father had shot him within half a mile of the place. Wildwood was owned by a grizzly shifter and his incubus husband—hisvery protectiveincubus husband, and the grizzly had been an early victim of Hrodgar’s Syndrome.
“Finn? Are you still there?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m still… Listen, I—” Finn’s throat closed as though he were still suffering from smoke inhalation.
Wildwood, where he’d have to face a whole ballroom full of supes, was the last place Finn wanted to be. The looks on their faces, the revulsion, the accusation, and when it came to the incubus, the fury. He couldn’t face it. He couldn’t—
“Finn? Is something wrong?”
The concern in Gary’s voice nearly did him in. Concern forFinn, not for the cake or the job. The job Finn hadpromisedto help with.
Fuck, he couldn’t bail now. No way could Finn betray him by walking away when Gary needed him most.
Finn knew way too much about that kind of betrayal.
“No,” he croaked, then cleared his throat and tried again. “Not a thing. When will you be home?”
“I’ve got everything frosted. Once I’ve added everything except the final decorations, I’ll be home.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
There was a silence on the other end of the phone. Finn winced. Did that sound too creepy? Maybe he should—
“I’m glad,” Gary said softly. “I’ll see you in a bit.”
Finn sighed, hands trembling as he disconnected the call. Somehow, he’d have to pull up his big boy briefs tomorrow and face the wreckage of his past.
He stared down at the phone in his hand.Maybe I need to face the hardest part first.
Was it cowardly to leave the message on a voicemail? Maybe he should text. Somehow, this kind of apology over text seemed… low. A face-to-face meeting would be best, but voice-to-voice was the next best option. Well, voice-to-voicemail.
Finn took a deep breath and dialed Tanner’s number, ready to grovel after the beep.
“Finn?”
Finn almost dropped the phone. “T-Tanner? Shit, sorry man. It’s like the middle of the night. I didn’t mean to wake you. I thought I could just leave a message and you could decide when or if you wanted to get back to me.”
Tanner chuckled. “It’s okay. I’ve been awake for a while. I’m in Savannah right now and I need to leave for the airport in about twenty minutes. What can I do for you?”
