Chapter 21

People talk to me, I reply, and a second later, I don’t know what I’ve said. Kyle steps in and takes over, and I sink behind my desk and stare at my laptop as my shoulders grow tighter and tighter. The button at my collar pops and flies onto the carpet.

I’m bulking up in anticipation of the rut, aggression surging in my veins. My colleagues are jumpy. The air is thick with musk. A Powell tries to crack a window, but they weren’t designed to open.

Nevaeh wasn’t afraid of me.

She was scared to approach my table, yeah, and she was intimidated, but she didn’t look...