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“Sure, if that’s what you want.”
I frowned. “It’s about whatyouwant.”
His smile dropped. “Is it?”
I swallowed, unsettled by the intensity of his stare, but I shrugged it off. “Of course, it is. Now all you need to do is get me a list of who you want to attend the date, and I’ll handle it from there.” I forced another smile. “That’s it. I’ll leave you alone now.”
I turned, hurrying back toward the door.
“Jessica…”
The sound of sheets rustling stopped me in my tracks, and my throat went dry.
“Yes?” I croaked.
I heard him sigh, but I didn’t dare look back over my shoulder. “Have a good morning. I’ll see you later.”
“See you later,” I echoed, rushing from the room and back to my office, ready to throw myself into my next task with abandon. Anything to get Garrett Kingsman and his chiseled body out of my mind.
11
GARRETT
The large industrial kitchen—big enough to prepare banquets for hundreds of shifters—wasn’t the most romantic setting for a group date, but I wasn’t complaining. Romance was the furthest thing from my mind, even if it was the point of this Contention.
Is it really, though?It was a way to pacify the alphas and make them more amenable to the upcoming changes. I was certain some of the women had applied because they hoped for some kind of fairytale ending, but those would be sorely disappointed. This wasn’t just about finding a mate. It was also about finding good candidates to add to the council. It was a careful balance of finding skilled, qualified, intelligent women who would serve well on the council, offset by the need for them not to be too controlled by the alphas who’d sent them. I definitely had my job cut out for me.
“Does everyone understand how the date will proceed?” Jessica’s voice pulled me from my thoughts. She was carefully avoiding eye contact with me, and I wondered what she was thinking. Was it uncomfortable for her to be around me after I’d kissed her in the hallway earlier this week? She’d certainly seemed out of sorts in my bedroom yesterday. I’d probably confused her. Hell, I was pretty confused myself.
I didn’t want to be here tonight, even if I’d finally come to accept why I was doing it. The pack came first.
“I think we’ve got it,” I responded, hoping Jess would at least look my way, but she simply nodded and turned to one of her assistants, murmuring something I couldn’t quite make out before they headed to a far corner of the kitchen to sit on some barstools.
“Have any of you made sushi before?” I asked the five women I’d selected for this initial group date. It had mostly been a random selection since none of the contestants had really stood out to me yet. Then again, I’d only engaged in surface-level conversations during the meals. Something I should attempt to remedy tonight.
Elizabeth, the redhead with a smattering of freckles across her nose, spoke up first. “I’ve attempted to, though I’m no expert.”
I smiled then added a wink for good measure, remembering my role here. I was supposed to be charming, enjoying this date. “You have more experience than I do, then. Maybe you should go first. Show the rest of us a thing or two.”
Elizabeth laughed. It was a pleasant enough sound, but it didn’t quite make me light up the way Jessica’s did.
“Sure. I’ll be the guinea pig,” she said, no nonsense as she stepped forward and joined me at one of the many long, silver prep stations. She rubbed her hands together. “I watched pretty closely.”
A chef from a nearby restaurant had given us a short tutorial, but now we were on our own to figuring out the intricacies of making sushi rolls. It looked simple enough.
“I’ll help you,” I offered. “Do the rest of you ladies want to watch or go ahead and make an attempt as well?”
Reagan and Casey decided to make their own, moving away to the other station that had been set up—there were five so that I’d have a chance to be alone with each girl—while Taylor and Hannah stood on the other side of the station.
“I think I’ll just watch for a minute…” Taylor said “… then I’ll get some practice before you join me.” She flashed me a flirty grin, her green eyes sparkling.
“Me, too.” Hannah fidgeted nervously with her hair, twirling the brown strands streaked with blonde highlights around her finger. With that hair, and her petite frame, she kind of reminded me of Jessica. Was that why I’d chosen her to come tonight?
What the hell, dude?I shook my head, hoping that wasn’t reason. Not only was it not fair to Hannah, but getting distracted by a woman I couldn’t be with wasn’t wise. The sooner I stopped thinking about Jessica and focused on why I was here, the better.
Elizabeth and I fumbled our way through making a basic recipe, the rice getting everywhere, and the fish and vegetables constantly falling out as we tried to roll it all up. This was a lot harder than it looked.
She laughed again. “Well, you wouldn’t think I’ve tried this before.”
