“Hmm? Oh! Shit. I’m sorry, Julian. Am I doing it again? I thought I was gleaming.”
Julian ground his teeth together. “Dreaming, sweetie. And no, you’re not. Could you pull back? Remind me when I visit tomorrow, we need to work on your control some more.”
The problems with her hand and taking over his sight were the least of his concerns. Chloe kept confusing words, often with hysterical—or disastrous—results. The other day she’d told her physical therapist not to let the floor blob hit him in the ass on the way out. It had taken them five minutes to figure out she’d meant doorknob.
For someone who’d worked damn hard to earn a degree in veterinary medicine, the fact that she couldn’t keep her words straight or use her left hand properly meant her career was dead before it even started. Not one of the doctors knew if the damage was permanent.
Julian did, and the knowledge hurt both of them, because, due to their bond, Chloe knew too.
“Julian!”
He snapped his attention back to Cyn, his double vision fading as Chloe left him. He grinned weakly up at his mate. “Hey.”
She was tapping her foot. Not a good sign. “Are you ready to go?”
He got to his feet and wiped his pants off in quick, jerky movements. Please, let Chloe keep her thoughts to herself while I drive. “Whenever you are.”
She held up her purse as if that said it all.
Julian, not being an idiot, held open the door for his future mate and prayed his dinner for two didn’t get crashed by a needy, unhappy Fox.
Cyn studied Julian out of the corner of her eye as he maneuvered the quiet, dark streets of Halle. Something about the way he’d zoned out in her shop had her worried. It was like he wasn’t there anymore; his dark brown eyes had taken on that gray-speckled look; his hair had grown a thin, white strip near his face. He was using his freaky-ass powers, but doing what she had no clue.
They pulled up outside Frank’s Diner and Cyn grinned. “Oh God. How did you guess I’d kill for a burger tonight?”
Julian’s stomach grumbled loud enough to startle a laugh out of her. “I could eat a cow or two myself.” He grinned sheepishly and got out of the car.
Not waiting for him to open her door she hopped out too, smirking when he rolled his eyes. “You hungry?”
“I’ve got two words for you. Star. Ving.” He managed to open the diner’s front door before she could get to it.
She shook her head and headed into her favorite burger joint. Frank’s had the best damn burgers in the whole damn town, possibly the whole damn state. She snagged a booth and settled in, waving hello to several people she recognized.
Julian was also exchanging greetings, but his were a little more personal. Cyn hid her grin behind a plastic-coated menu as the entire Bunsun-Williams family descended on her date en masse. For once, Julian looked like the hunted instead of the hunter, surrounded by a family chock full of Grizzlies and Foxes.
“Hey.”
Cyn smiled a greeting at the shy Fox female who plunked herself into the booth across from her. The eighteen-year-old had made it a point to seek Cyn out whenever they were in the same place. “Hey yourself.”
Heather Allen, Ryan and Alex’s youngest cousin, bit her plump bottom lip and stared at Cyn’s hair like a starving kitten. She twirled a lock of her own bright red hair between her fingers. “You changed it.”
Cyn preened. She’d done the dye job just two days ago, and she loved it. “You like?”
Heather nodded so vigorously Cyn was afraid she’d snap her own neck. “I like the blend of blonde, black and pink.”
Cyn pushed her hair back over her shoulders. The hair on top was white-blonde, the middle layer cotton-candy pink and the bottom layer that rested on her shoulders was midnight black. It was striking, and she got looks everywhere she went. Cyn gave a mental finger to everyone who disapproved and smiled at everyone who did. “Thanks. Want me to do yours sometime?”
“No, she doesn’t.” Eric, Alex’s little brother, plucked the girl from the booth and scowled at Cyn. “She likes her hair red, thank you.”