by Selena Scott
He turned and crossed his arms over his chest, leaning one shoulder into the wall. “It’s nice to know you care.”
“Of course I care. I—” She cut herself off like she’d just admitted way, way more than she’d wanted to. She took a deep breath. “I care about all my clients.”
He pursed his lips and raised an eyebrow, daring her to leave that statement dangling there, the rest unsaid.
She rolled her eyes at him. “And, sure, over the past year you’ve become more than a client.” She cleared her throat and pulled her shoulders back. “You’re my friend, too.”
Friend.
He was equally elated and deflated by the word. He ignored the deflated part and jumped on the elated part. “We’re friends? I always thought you saw me as more of a pest. A really, unbelievably attractive pest.”
Her lips quirked and she rolled her eyes again. “Someone can be a pest and a friend at the same time. The world is a complicated place, Orion. Or haven’t I taught you that yet?”
He smiled at her and tried out her choice of words. “Friend. I like that. What kind of stuff do friends do for each other?”
She eyed him, her eyes narrowing, obviously knowing him well enough to know that he was going to milk every bit out of this situation that he could. “Friends continue to be nice to Carl.”
He laughed. “Easy peasy. Carl’s a peach.”
Now she really looked like she was trying not to laugh. “Friends don’t make paperwork for each other. Or mess up federal grants.”
“Well, I didn’t know I was doing either of those things for you, so you’ll have to tell me if I start doing them again, but sure. Done and done. Friends answer each other’s phone calls,” he volunteered one of his own rules.
“But they don’t call at weird times,” she amended. “Like right when you think the other person is waking up or going to bed.”
He sucked his teeth, conceding the point, knowing he needed to take what he could get. “Fair enough. They talk to each other, though. Real conversation. On the phone and in person.”
“But they do it at prearranged times. You can’t just waltz into my office and expect a tea party. And no more waiting at my car. It’s weird.”
“It’s the only place I know you’ll be!”
She eyed him for a second. “Fine. Well, friends make times that they hang out together. And they get all their talking done then. We could do that.”
Orion attempted not to choke on his tongue. He’d have to check with Ida and Wren, of course, but what she’d just described sounded suspiciously like a date to him. Something he’d never really done with anyone and was deadly curious about. He liked the idea of getting dressed with Diana in mind, eating a meal with her, a meal he paid for. He wanted to see what she’d wear on a date, what kind of food she liked, what topics of conversation she’d bring up.
“I’d like that,” he said, completely sincerely.
“Something told me you might be into that idea,” she said, pursing her lips against the smile that was threatening at the corners of her mouth.
“Tonight?” he asked. “We could hang out tonight?”
She sighed. “No one has tried to talk to you about pushing your luck, have they?”
He shook his head.
“All right,” she conceded. “Tonight. We’ll grab a sandwich and chat. As friends.”
“I love sandwiches,” he said immediately. And I love you.
He was very proud of himself for keeping the last part inside. God only knew how many ways he could botch this potential arrangement between them.
“All right. You know that place about four blocks over?” She pointed.
“The one with the turkey reuben that everyone talks about?”
“Yes. Meet me there at seven.” She glanced at her watch and grimaced. “Better make it 7:30.”
“Deal.”
She nodded, let out a long breath and then her eyes just kind of got caught on him. He couldn’t have interpreted her thoughts then even if someone had paid him a million dollars to do it. After a moment she shook her head and started smoothing back the tendrils of hair that had come loose when she’d wrestled around with him.
“See you tonight.”
She was just turning when he caught her elbow, just two fingers to the knobby bone, stilling her. “You know, this morning, when Carl was talking my ear off about how to apply for health insurance through my new job, I really thought this day was shot, the whole thing down the tubes. But here I am, about to eat sandwiches with you.”
She gave him a droll look. “The world is a magical place.”
And then she was striding away, leaving him to wonder if she actually believed that.
CHAPTER FIVE
It wasn’t a date, Diana reminded herself. So there was no reason to be nervous. And there was also no reason to dress up. She’d intentionally chosen a place that was closer to work than it was to her house so that she wouldn’t even consider the option of running home to change her clothes.
Yet, here she was, a quarter to seven, standing in her closet and trying to figure out what the heck to wear on a friend date with Orion Wolf.
In some ways, she begrudgingly admitted, this would be a lot easier if it were a real date. Because she dated occasionally, she knew how to do that. Maybe four times a year, she said yes to someone who asked her and found herself at some restaurant or another, often pleasantly surprised by how enjoyable the experience was. She liked flowers, which men often brought, she liked wine, which men often bought, and -sue her- she liked the effect she seemed to have on men. She knew that when she was dressed up and makeup-ed up and the lighting was right and the mood was right she was often fairly spellbinding. She’d gotten it from her mother.
Toni had had the same indescribable something that Diana had. Unfortunately, Toni’s had been the ruination of her reputation. Even after Robert had come along. Diana wasn’t about to let that happen to her. So, about four times a year, Diana indulged it that special something with a date with some attractive man who admired her.
But this, she reminded herself again, was not a date. That’s why she’d chosen sandwiches after work. Not sipping red wine at Mucca Osteria. Because the last thing she needed was a date with a client. The rumor mill would love that. And even more than that, the last thing she needed was a date with a man like Orion Wolf. She liked her men more predictable, tamer, and only looking for one night of commitment. She couldn’t exactly say that any of those criteria fit Orion.
Friend. Sandwiches. Casual.
She stripped out of her work clothes and stood barefoot in her closet. She could do this. If he didn’t still want to be friends with her with no makeup and sandals and jeans and T, her typical weekend wear, then honestly, she could stop worrying about this whole thing. Because then maybe his fascination with her would wane and she’d stop having to factor him into her each and every move.
She made her way to the restaurant, wondering what he was going to be wearing. She wondered if he’d try to make this into a romantic date somehow. What would she do if he showed up in a suit? Or even a button down. Yowza. She thought back to the first time she’d ever met him. He’d been just processed by one of the government run shifter integration services that dealt with shifters who had no license or identification. Basically, shifters who’d been in hiding their entire lives. His brother was still in deep recovery-mode from the wildfire and Dawn wasn’t speaking a word to anyone. She’d walked in to the small, windowless room where they were waiting to meet with her and there he’d been. Rising up from his chair, bigger than almost any other man she’d seen in real life, a scruffy beard that reached to his neck, clean but bushy hair, a face blunter than the broad side of a swinging shovel, and a tight, pink T-shirt reading “Malibu”. There’d been palm trees over each pec.
She’d known that it was because the government program dressed its clients in lost and found clothing, for the most part, and that shirt and his torn up jeans were lik
ely some of the only clothes that this giant could fit into.
As funny as he’d looked, like a mixture between an NFL draft pic, a caveman, and Malibu Ken, she’d still felt a rocking quake of attraction for him. A live wire electricity that she’d never felt before. It must have been his eyes. Or his expression. Which basically said that he’d felt the exact same thing when he’d first seen her.
She’d catalogued all the changes to his appearance over the year. And she’d attempted to do it in an appropriate way, the way she would for any client. Trimmed beard and a haircut implied that he was learning to groom well. Clothes that fit well and started to reflect a certain casual style meant that he was taking pride in the way he looked. These were all good signs, from a client perspective.
But from a man perspective, these were all difficult signs for Diana. Because Orion Wolf was unbelievably hot. And she couldn’t ignore it.
Which was why, as she stepped into the sandwich shop, she dreaded seeing him in a button down. Button down shirts were kind of her kryptonite and she didn’t think she could handle—
The bastard wasn’t even here yet! She glanced at her watch. She’d arrived five minutes late and had been certain that he would be there waiting. He’d been trying to get her to spend time with him outside of the center for an entire year and now, his big chance he was late!?
Diana chose a seat near the window and sat down. Maybe he was late because he’d spent time getting himself together for this friend date. She pictured a new haircut and a beard trim.
“Excuse me,” a voice said next to her. She blinked up into the face of a very attractive man. “You’re not here alone, are you? Because that would be a shame.”
He was mid-thirties, dark hair, instagram-pretty. One of his hands fiddled with the back of the chair across from her.
Uh Oh. Diana didn’t think that Orion would like this if he walked in right now. Some pretty boy angling to get in on their time together. She pictured a spit-shined Orion, all spiffy and pumped up to woo her, grabbing this guy by the collar and promptly removing him from the premises.
“Hi, hi. Sorry I’m late. I got caught up at work. Oh, hello. Do you two know each other?”
Diana stared at Orion as he strode up to the table. He looked… awful. He wore torn jeans, boots, and a very sweaty T-shirt that read “Fisher’s moving” across the chest. He had beads of sweat on his forehead, his brown hair was sticking out every which way, and honestly she could smell him from across the table.
It wasn’t a terrible smell. In fact, in another circumstance, she might have thought it was an incredibly alluring scent. But right now, she could only gape at him.
“Are you bleeding?” she asked him, taking in the back of one of his hands.
“What? Oh, crap. Yeah. I banged my knuckles on a doorjamb at work. Hold on, I’ll go clean up in the bathroom.” He turned to the pretty boy who was gaping at him as much as Diana was. “Didn’t catch your name, but you’re welcome to eat with us if you’d like. I think there’s some extra chairs over there.”
And then he was striding away toward the bathrooms and Pretty Boy was staring down at Diana again.
“Tell me this isn’t a blind date,” he said with something like mystified fascination crossing his face.
“No, no,” Diana waved her hand through the air, hoping it would help some of the mystification that she herself was feeling. “We’re just friends. Meeting for a sandwich after work.”
“Right,” the guy said, still looking like he couldn’t possibly believe that Diana was there to meet the sweaty guy who’d just walked in. “Okay, well, I’ll leave you two to it.”
A minute or so later, Orion was back. His hair was wet and slicked back and dark with water from the sink, the collar of his red shirt a dark maroon with all the dripping water from his beard. He’d obviously just dunked his head under the water.
She blinked at him. “Here.” She dug through her purse and pulled out a bandaid.
“Thanks.” He took it, slapped it on his bleeding knuckle and then leaned back in his chair and just grinned at her. “Hi.”
She couldn’t help but just blink back. “Hi.”
She was going to have to take a second to recalibrate here. She’d been so certain that he’d cross every friend line in the book. Wine and dine her. She’d been so sure that she’d have to remind him that they were only friends and it didn’t matter if he dressed up for her or scared away other men. They were just friends.
But yeah. Looked like he’d gotten the memo on that one.
“Is that guy not gonna join us?” Orion asked, peering around the restaurant and then waving at Pretty Boy, who was still studying them from a far corner.
“I don’t know him,” Diana said simply.
“Oh. Okay. Sandwiches, then? I’ll go order for us.”
“Turkey reuben, please. And an iced tea.”
He nodded and was up at the counter, ordering for them. A few moments later he was back, carefully setting up their numbered plaque so that the servers could see where to deliver their food.
“So,” he said, leaning back in his chair. “How was the rest of your day?”
Diana cleared the cobwebs from her throat. “Busy. But maybe not as busy as yours? Looks like you had a lot going on?”
He waved one hand. “Not more than usual. The boss called me in this afternoon for a last minute moving job. Which I’m always grateful for because he pays more money if you come in without being on the schedule. Usually most of our jobs are on the weekends, so it was kind of nice to have something to do on a Friday afternoon.”
“Are you liking it? The moving gig?” She herself had been the person to get him that job. She knew the owner and had placed other shifters with him before. She knew that Cory, Orion’s boss, wasn’t bigoted toward shifters, which was kind of a rarity in this town. She’d hoped that Orion wouldn’t shirk the job the way he’d shirked all of his other mentors, but so far it had been four months and he was still holding strong.
“I really like it. Gives me something to do with my time. And I get to see people’s houses, which is interesting to me. Besides, the money is nice. Means I can buy a friend a sandwich if I want.” He smiled at her, nothing suggestive about it. It was just a true, genuine grin.
Her stomach flipped. She wished he were in fancy clothes and had brought her flowers. She’d be letting him down gently right about now and all this would have been so much easier. Instead he was smiling at her in a sweaty shirt, his eyes staying firmly above her shoulders.
“All right,” the waiter said as he brought a tray of food over for them. “I’ve got two iced teas, a turkey reuben and a tempeh reuben with vegan cheese.”
He put the turkey sandwich in front of Orion and the tempeh in front of Diana. As soon as he left, they switched their plates.
She couldn’t not ask. “You ordered a vegan sandwich?”
He already was two-handing the gigantic sandwich, a quarter of it chewed up in his mouth. “Yeah.”
She blinked at him and couldn’t stop herself from wondering if maybe he didn’t know what tempeh was? Or what vegan meant? He’d only been in the human world for a year, after all. “Why? You’re partial to the flavor or something?”
“No,” he laughed, shaking his head and swallowing. He set the sandwich down and drained half of his iced tea in one big gulp. “I’m vegan.”
The bite of turkey sandwich in her mouth froze. She quickly chewed and swallowed, positive her eyes were the size of chicken eggs. “What?”
He laughed at whatever expression her face was making and didn’t bother repeating himself. Instead he drew a little design over his fries with the ketchup and started in on them.
She simply couldn’t go on from this new information. Could barely process it. “Orion, you’re a shifter. A wolf shifter. What do you mean you’re vegan?”
He wiped his hands on his napkin and leaned back, looking out the window, trying to gather his thoughts. “I spent every day sin
ce our parents died hunting food for Phoenix and Dawn. I was better at it than they were. Bigger. Better sense of smell. Though they’re both faster than I am and Dawn is better at sneaking up on prey. But I was always the one who actually brought the meat home.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I’m not sure why the task always fell to me. Maybe it’s because I’m the oldest. Or I’m just the only one who could really do it. But yeah. When you kill living, breathing creatures every day for the survival of you and your family, you start to have a certain respect for life. For other creatures.”
“So, you don’t eat animals.”
“I don’t eat animals that I haven’t killed. And I don’t kill animals anymore. And luckily tempeh reubens really get the job done.”
“And dairy? You don’t do that either?”
He shrugged. “We’ve got neighbors who bring eggs over that their chickens lay. Sometimes I’ll eat those. But no. Cheese, milk, yogurt, all that comes from animals that I’ll never see or know and have anything to do with besides the money I spend on them. Something about that doesn’t sit right with me. I’d prefer to eat plants, I guess.”
Diana felt a fluttering in her chest that she couldn’t explain. She quietly ate her sandwich and he ate his.
“You eat faster than I thought you might,” he observed, already having polished his plate clean using his last remaining fries. She was just finishing up her sandwich and poking around at her fries.
“What did you imagine?”
He did this thing where he pulled his face into a rather imperious expression and pretended to pick lightly at an imaginary bite of food. He used two fingers, and then pretended to daintily wipe his mouth with his napkin.
Diana watched him with a wry smile on her face that she couldn’t contain. “Life is too short to eat slowly. Besides, who do I need to have manners for right now? You? You polished off your food in about six minutes while wearing a shirt so sweaty I could practically see through it. Something tells me that neither of us care if I dispense with the manners.”