I know it. Zio cleared his throat. “How many soldiers am I taking to the border?”
Varian let his palm drop. “Your unit and the ground company—fifty-six of you, in total, while Gale’s unit will target the hospital.”
“Fifty-six? That’s bad maths, boss. Me plus my unit, plus fifty squadies is fifty-five.”
“Plus our resident healer.”
“Devan?”
Varian nodded. “Yes. For some reason, my gut won’t allow me to separate you.”
* * *
Zio left Varian’s house at sundown. He jogged through the trees, eager to link up with Gale so he could search out Devan and go home.
Home. It was a strange concept that after weeks of avoiding it, there was presently nowhere he’d rather be.
Right, cos it’s all about the bungalow. The shit hot-water tank and the broken springs in your mattress.
Zio let his mind drift as he emerged from the wooded area and circled the compound to where Gale lived. As ever, there seemed to be a separate place in his brain reserved for Devan and a fuzziness to his memories of the moments leading up to encounters he could recall with crystal clarity. He remembered every second he’d been naked in bed with Devan, but not entirely how it came to be. How his sensibilities had led him to believe it was a good idea. Away from Devan, he could think clearly, but the trouble was, he didn’t want to. Because thinking clearly would bring regret, and he wasn’t in the mood for that shit. Nah. Been there, done that, and what had it changed?
Fuck all. Devan was still living in his house, and for whatever messed up reason, Zio still wanted him.But he’s not a wolf.Not a wolf. Not a wolf. Not a wolf. Three words that haunted Zio when he let them. But did it truly matter?Shit, we’re just hooking up. It’s not like I’m marrying the guy.
Huh. Perhaps that was it. Varian was always advising them to embrace their human nature. Maybe, just maybe, this was about men, not a wolf and whatever mutant creature Devan was—
Zio crashed into a warm, solid body. “The fuck?”
Devan steadied him, his grin as supernatural as anything Zio had ever seen from him. “You should pay attention to your surroundings better, even on the compound. Complacency is a bad habit.”
“Yeah? Well, so is creeping up on people like a stalker. Again. How do youdothat? Do you have a shield?”
“Nope. I took advantage of your distraction again, hence my advice to be more self-aware.”
Zio glared.
Devan grinned some more.
“You’re not funny,” Zio snapped.
“I’m not laughing.”
“Liar.”
“No. I’m not a liar, Zio. Ask me anything, and I’ll always tell you the truth.”
Zio rolled his eyes. “Damn. Is this what you snuck up on me for? Deep and meaningful conversation?”
“I came to say hello. I haven’t seen you since last night.”
Oh. Mollified, Zio relaxed his stance. “Well, hello then. Where’ve you been all this time? Varian said you’d been called out for a human emergency, but he didn’t elaborate.”
“Childbirth.” Devan motioned for Zio to keep walking. “I’m sure you don’t want the details, but the baby was stuck. The human doctors could save the mother, but not the baby, so I assisted them.”
“The baby lived?”
“Yes, and I was able to heal the damage done by the compression on the placenta.”
Zio winced. “That sounds painful.”