“Bailey?” she answers.
“Hey, Stace,” I greet.
“How could you!”
“Huh?”
“How could you use Malachi to make Jase jealous? You’re gonna get him killed!”
“That’s not what I was doing,” I defend, my face flaming hot.
Shit. She shouted at me. Stacy shouted at me!
“Oh, my stars, Bailey! How could you do that? What are you thinking?”
My shoulders slump. Because she’s right. My heart is sinking. Malachi isn’t under a special spell that means Jase can’t touch him. This could’ve gone very wrong. Jase could’ve hurt him. In fact, I think he did hurt him a little by the way he stopped him with a hand to his chest.
I explain myself in a frenzied flurry. “He asked me on a date just before I left for Italy and I told him I’d think about it. I was thinking before all this stuff started with Jase that I would maybe do that, get some practice.”
“I remember, but things have obviously changed.”
“I was planning to tell him it couldn’t become anything serious since they’re all getting ready to move and there’s no way I want to leave the village permanently. He clearly didn’t hear about Jase so he asked again and Jase was here being all… all… Jase. Straight outta BookTok. Doing that book boyfriend BookTok lean over the library shelves while I’m trying to ignore him and setting my underwear on fire with the way he talks about what he’s gonna do to me and then Mal showed up and was being sweet and shy asking me out and I was like… sure, why shouldn’t I go on a date? Sorry, but I’m not in a relationship. I’ve never even been on a date in my whole life. I should be dating, shouldn’t I? I’m twenty-five years old for heaven’s sake!”
“But youarein a relationship!” she exclaims. “With a scary super alpha who could crush Mal to dust for just looking at his mate!”
“I’m not, though. I told Jase I reject him, so why shouldn’t I go on a date? It’s only to Roxy’s, not like anything would’ve even happened.”
“Why shouldn’t you go on a date?” she repeats like it’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever said.
Then she says, “Jase is a super alpha who has been prevented from claiming his fated mate for days, Bailey. Grey said he’s sleeping on your bedroom floor. He’s following you to work. And that Grey has never seen him this frazzled and angry in his whole life. He’s right there! This means he’d follow you to the restaurant, too. Do you really think he’d sit there and watch you have a date with someone?”
Clearly, I didn’t think that far ahead.
Her voice goes up even higher as she breathlessly exclaims, “You wouldn’t get to eat dinner with Malachi, Bailey, because Jase would eat Malachifordinner!”
Yikes.
Shit.
I gulp down a swallow and press my head against the wall. She’s right.
She adds, “I wasn’t here but I heard about how Tyson almost killed Mason for just looking at Ivy, never mind them going on a date together.”
“Okay, okay. You’re right. Shit. Shit, I’m so frustrated. I wish I could shift so I could run all this frustration out. Does it really help?”
“Yeah, it does,” she says, her voice gentling a little.
“I’ll phone Mal and apologize,” I say, straightening up, but unable to stomach my own reflection right now.
“He probably won’t take your call. He’s scared out of his mind! Caroline messaged me and told me she heard him asking Brody just now if they could move up the move date to get to the new land because you agreed to go on a date with him and that now Jase wants to break his legs. Mal wants out of here as fast as possible because he thinks he’s got two council alphas who want to see him dead.”
“Two?”
“Grey knew Mal was trying to get… with me. Grey gives Mal stink eye every time they’re in the same space.”
“I’ll send him a text,” I say. “I wasn’t trying to start problems for Mal. I’m not thinking clearly.”
“Obviously not,” she mutters.