“Oh, I’ve missed you! I haven’t seen you in weeks! How’s your brother?”
“Doing much better, picked him up last week,” Zayn replies, his voice softening.
“Who is this lovely young lady?” Andrea asks, her gaze shifting to me. Her expression is warm and welcoming.
“This is…” Zayn begins when Andrea interrupts him.
“Gosh, you look like your mother,” says the woman, her eyes lighting up. “Hello, Cleo, I’m Andrea, Zayn’s mother’s twin sister,” she tells me.
“You knew my mother, too?” I ask, always eager to meet someone who knew her. Back home, hardly anyone mentions her and when I do, I always get told not to bring up the past, or not to upset Linda by speaking of his previous marriage.
“Of course, honey. Your mother and I were close friends,” Andrea says warmly, her gaze softening as she gazes at me.
I swallow hard, trying to keep my emotions in check. No one has ever spoken so openly about my mother before, and it feels both thrilling and forbidden. Last time I heard anyone speak of her I was eleven years old, then Linda got upset, rarely does anyone mention her now.
“I was devastated to learn she passed. Many regrets. I should have intervened earlier, I did warn her, but…” Andrea’s voice trails off under Zayn’s disapproving gaze, changing the topic swiftly.
“I take it you need clothes,” she laughs, switching subjects with skill and pulling clothes from the shelves. I glance at Zayn, wanting to know what she was going to say, when he nods for me to follow her.
“Really? You already gave me a phone, showered me, healed me, and now you’re dressing me?”
He chuckles. “At this rate, you might as well move in with me,” he mocks, then laughs and nudges me to follow his aunt.
I comply, and Andrea hands me a long, flowy dress. I avoid glancing at the price tag, instead turning toward Zayn for reassurance.
“Go on, this place was my mother’s. Pick what you want,” he shrugs, and the ease of his generosity baffles me, especially since I am from a rival pack. Why is he being so nice?
I slip into the fitting room and change into the dress, admiring how it hugs my curves and finally feeling better in clothes that fit me. I don’t have to worry about them falling to my ankles when I am walking.
“Looks like you’re ready for breakfast,” Andrea says, her eyes twinkling with approval as she takes in my appearance. “Go on, Zayn’s waiting for you at the café next door.”
Heading next door into the café, I spot Zayn seated at the back. When we arrived at the boutique store, this place had been bustling with people. Now I find we’re the only ones here. I peer around, wondering if I drove them off, being that I am not from here.
Zayn notices me, sets his phone down, and rises from his seat, coming over to me.
“You found something you like?” he asks, eyeing me up and down with approval. I nod, still peering around at all the empty tables.
“Yes, thank you,” I tell him, and he places a hand on my lower back. “Where did everyone go?” I ask as he leads me toward the table he was sitting at.
“Patrols, home, we have the place to ourselves besides the staff.”
My eyes narrow at him. “I scared them off, didn’t I? They don’t like rival packs around,” I frown, feeling terrible when Zayn pulls out my chair. I reluctantly sit in it.“I would hardly call you a threat to my pack,” he chuckles.
“I never said a threat, just that I’m not from here and it’s obvious,” I tell him.
Zayn grips my shoulders, making me look up at him, only to find his face barely an inch off mine. His lips are so close, my eyes dart to them, and his scent floods me, making me instinctively lean in.
“I asked them to leave, you didn’t scare them off,” he whispers. My face heats at his answer.
“You didn’t have to do that,” I blurt, horrified. “Your pack doesn’t bother me, this is their territory,” I tell him, and he smirks.
“You were worried about people seeing you, so I asked them to leave. Stop stressing. Besides, most had duties to attend to, anyway.” He squeezes my shoulders before sitting across from me. “You don’t like being alone with me,” he softly laughs.
“It’s not that; I’m just worried about being seen with you,” I admit.
“Here? Your father wouldn’t dare, besides my pack won’t snitch on you,” he adds.
I chew my lip.
