Tempting Fate (Monsters of London)

Chapter One

Jamie

I’m not stalking him.

No, really. Just because I know Patch has taken over all of Dax’s shifts at the pub now that Dax has moved into Kieran’s pack, and just because I know that once the pub has closed, on Wednesdays, Patch always takes the rubbish out to the bins and it’s the perfect opportunity to get him alone…

It’s not stalking. I’m being observant, that’s all.

Besides, it’s not like he doesn’t know I’m doing it. He’s seen me in the pub. He sees me at dinner, sometimes, when we all go to Kieran’s pack, too many of us piling into one little flat to eat everything in sight.

And he knows I’m here, too, the moment he steps out of the back of the pub, black bag in hand. He tips his head up slightly, nostrils flaring, then lets out a heavy sigh.

“There are safer places to wait. I’d have let you stay inside if you couldn’t catch a lift home.”

I push off from my position against the wall, my gaze running boldly over him. It’s been months since everything. Months since my ex, Tim, attacked me in the house I shared with Vince and Nick. Tim’s long gone. Vince, too—in that he’s moved in with Dax, who happens to be Patch’s best friend.

They also both happen to be werewolves. Or wolf shifters. I don’t really know if there’s a difference.

“I wanted to talk to you.”

Patch grunts and lifts the bin lid, chucking the bag easily over the side. Thick muscles in his arms flex and I swallow hard, not sure if I’ve already started drooling.

I noticed him right away, of course. Don’t know if he noticed me. But I’ve felt his eyes on me, more than once, and I know what the look in them means.

If he’s not going to make a move, then I will. I’m not at all afraid to put myself out there like that.

“Could’ve talked inside, too.”

“Seems like you’re avoiding me.”

“Seems like you could take a hint.”

He doesn’t look mad, though, when he steps back from the bin and puts his hands on his hips. The dark T-shirt he’s wearing stretches across his shoulders, and I take another step closer.

I try not to think about Tim. Not that I’m scared of him—not anymore—but because I don’t want my life defined by one shitty guy who happened to exist in it for a couple of years.

Still, I can’t help it as I look Patch over.

He and Tim might be about the same height, but Patch is built solid, smooth, tanned skin stretching over muscles I want to dig my fingers into.

He’s got half a foot on me, easily. I take another step closer, and he lets out a heavy breath through his nose. He doesn’t scare me. The wolves go out of their way not to, but Patch never has scared me, and he’s never treated me like glass, either.

I like that. It’s interesting. He’s interesting. And gorgeous, and we already get along at least fine if not well, so I don’t see why offering something a little more fun would be a bad idea.

“Wanna fuck?” I ask because I might have planned for a discussion, but here and now, being blunt seems like my best option.

Patch’s eyebrows fly upwards. He’s surprised? I frown. He shouldn’t be. Vince told me wolves can smell our emotions, though they try not to, and don’t mention it if they do. Surely he’s been able to smell the horny on me for weeks.

“That’s not a good idea,” Patch says, voice gruff, and heads for the door.

I grab his arm before I can think twice about it. He doesn’t fight me when I spin him back around, but when I move closer, he takes a step back. I back him up until he’s against the wall, studying his face the entire time.

“Why not?”

“Does it matter? If it were a good idea, you wouldn’t ambush me after work.”

“Hardly an ambush. You saw me in there earlier.”

“I thought you went home.”

“Really?”

Patch glances away and I scoff. “No,” he grinds out. “But it’s not a good idea. You know that.”

“No, I don’t. You’re hot. You’re interested. We’re not Vince and Dax. It doesn’t have to be more than that.”

He flinches when I mention Vince and Dax, and I can’t quite work out why.

I know he and Vince got off to a frosty start—Vince lost his shit at Dax once he realised they were mates, and Patch is protective of his best friend—but now they’re friendly, at least, and I know Patch is happy for Dax, anyway.

“You found your mate?” I ask softly. Maybe he did. Maybe he’s keeping his cards close to his chest. The thought hurts in some abstract way, even if I have no ownership over him at all.

“No,” Patch says, but the set of his mouth tells me there’s something of a lie about that, too. “I don’t want anything complicated.”

“I’m not offering complicated.” I lean in until our faces are close, until my lips are hovering over his.

Patch tips his head back a little, posture going lax and easy, and heat flares in my stomach.

Does he know he’s doing that? Giving in to me like that?

The rush of power goes to my head. Tim never wanted to play like this. It’s been a long time.

“It would—” Patch’s voice comes out breathless, and he clears his throat before he tries again. His pupils are wide, making his dark eyes even darker. “It would be complicated. If anyone found out, it would be.”

“I won’t tell if you don’t.”

“Jamie…”

I let out a frustrated sigh and drop back onto my heels. Seduction is fun, but now I feel like I’m pushing, and I don’t want that. Patch blinks rapidly, and for a second, his face falls, the expression so… lost.

I swallow hard. Is his heart beating the same way mine is? I can’t tell. Maybe he can hear mine.

“I’m sorry,” I mutter. “I should never have—Sorry.”

Patch frowns. He doesn’t push off from the wall, doesn’t come any closer. “It’s not you,” he says.

I snort. “I’d hope it was. Don’t see anyone else out here—” I pause, a bitter taste flooding my mouth. “It’s not because of what happened, is it?”

Patch wasn’t there the afternoon Tim got into the house. Only Vince was with me. Vince pulled him off me while he was strangling me. Vince told me to get to safety. Vince beat the absolute shit out of him.

I don’t know what happened to Tim after Kieran took him from the house. I’ve never asked, and when I feel the urge to, it passes quickly. Kieran told me, after, that I’ll always be safe from him. That’s all I need to know.

“I—” Guilt flashes over Patch’s face, and I spin away from him with a growl. Well, this was a brilliant fucking plan, wasn’t it?

“So, what? You think a hook-up will be too complicated for me now?”

“Have you been with anyone else since him?”

“What?”

“Have you?”

Patch’s jaw is set, eyes flashing with stubbornness, and I like him much less than I did two minutes ago.

“That’s none of your business.”

“This is why it’s a bad idea. You need care. Time. And I… I’m not looking for a relationship. Not right now.”

His words cut deep. Not that I’m looking for a relationship either, but being written off before we get to anything—being viewed as nothing more than someone to fuck, because clearly he could be into that under different circumstances—is not exactly flattering.

“I don’t need you to look out for me. That’s not what I’m asking for.”

“No?”

My face heats. It isn’t. I get enough of that from Vince. From Nick. From my fucking boss and my co-workers and Kieran and his pack and the wolves—

I’m fine. Wholly, truly. It’s been months, and sure, there’ll be things to unpack down the road, but here and now I’m working through it, getting over it, and most of all, I don’t need anyone else telling me what I need, what I want, when I know those things myself.

“Fuck you, Patch,” I mutter and turn on my heel, stalking off down the alley.

He might frame himself as a would-be protector, but he doesn’t chase me when I leave.