“I think you’re being obstinate. You are pretty stubborn.”
Jenna sat up. “Whose side are you on?”
Tessa laughed. “The side of love.”
“Oh, shut up. It’s not happening.”
Tessa let out a frustrated sigh. “I know you had your heart broken, but—”
Jenna stiffened. “This conversation is over. You know where I am and why I’m not home or at work. That’s all I really called to tell you.”
“Jenna, you have to know that Titus is not Eric.”
Just the mention of that name made Jenna’s vision go red around the edges. “I don’t want to talk about him.”
“Well, you should. You’re obviously not over what he did to you.”
Jenna’s jaw went so tight she swore she heard something pop. “You know what he did to me. How he betrayed me. And with…her. That’s not something that just goes away.”
“I know, but—oh, I think I know now why you don’t like Titus.”
Jenna shook her head. “I don’t want to talk about—”
“Yep, it all makes sense. It’s because he has a broken engagement in his past, too, isn’t it?”
A shudder went through Jenna, and painful memories washed over her, leaving her as numb and hurt as if they’d just happened yesterday. “Please,” she whispered. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Okay,” Tessa said, her voice softened by sympathy. “I’m sorry. But just know that there are good men out there. Sebastian is proof of that. And a good man can erase the damage of a bad one.”
“Yeah. Thanks.” But Jenna’s head was elsewhere. Lost in the past and the pain that had been dealt to her. “I need to go.”
“Call if you need anything.”
“I will.” Jenna hung up and tossed the phone on the bed, then stood and walked to the window. The forest beyond was deep and inviting. A run sounded pretty good right now. Maybe it would clear Eric from her head.
At least temporarily. Because she wasn’t sure anything could remove him forever. Not after his lies and the way he’d humiliated her. Any man who could betray the woman he supposedly loved was not the kind of man she could ever be interested in.
And that included Titus. She didn’t know the details of his past, just that he’d had a fiancée and that the relationship had dissolved. It was possible the woman had left him, she knew that, but it was a rare story that didn’t have two sides.
So much as she might truly be attracted to him, she refused to allow herself to fall for another man who would break her heart.
She’d be celibate the rest of her life before that happened.
She sighed and tipped her head back. She hadn’t let Eric into her head in a long time. Not like this. She’d really thought she was over him, but Tessa was right. Jenna was lumping Titus into the same category as her ex because of his past. She was allowing the results of her broken engagement to Eric to influence her perception of Titus.
It wasn’t a fair thing to do. But protecting her heart was more important. Maybe she was protecting her pride a little too. She never again wanted to be as vulnerable as she had been with Eric. That’s what love did. Made you vulnerable. And when love went wrong, it left you humiliated. She didn’t need it.
She had her job. Her family. Her friends.
She didn’t need love to be happy. Was she happy? What did that mean, anyway?
She was…content. And that was fine. That was safe.
But just thinking that way made her die a little inside. She was a valkyrie. Safe shouldn’t be what she settled for.
And yet the pain of Eric’s betrayal still lingered, making her accept safe as good enough.
Eric hadn’t just broken her heart. He’d broken her spirit.
There was nothing okay about that.
After a quick call to Alice, Titus took a long, hot shower, then put on jeans and a Howler’s T-shirt and went barefoot onto the back deck to fire up the grill. He stretched, enjoying the sunshine and breezes of the early summer evening. The fresh, earthy scent of the forest behind his house filled the air, along with the subtle buzz of insects.
Life was good, other than the current crazy spells he was under. And even then, there were worse people to be stuck in those spells with. For all her bluster and attitude, Jenna was beautiful and smart and never dull.
There were definitely worse choices.
He leaned on the railing and inhaled, filling his lungs with the clean air. Nocturne Falls was a great place to live. Especially up here in the hills. He couldn’t imagine living anywhere else, really.
Tonight’s run would be new and different with Jenna along. He hoped she would be able to enjoy herself. He needed this run. Needed to let his wolf burn off some energy.
He cranked up the grill, then went back inside to season the steaks. Bridget might wonder where he was when he didn’t show up at Howler’s, but then again, she knew what had happened today. She might just figure he went home to rest.
He sent her a quick text anyway. Eating at home tonight. Then he put his phone away and got to work on the steaks, sprinkling them with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Jenna walked in wearing dragon-scale-print leggings and an NFSD T-shirt. Her hair was in a messy knot on top of her head, nothing like the perfect bun she wore for work. This was casual Jenna. Not a side of her he’d seen before.
He approved very much. “Hey.”
“Hey. You have the grill going?”
“I do.” He studied her. She looked…defeated somehow. Was the spell getting to her? “I put salt and pepper on the steaks. You good with that?”
“Yep. That’s how I do them at home. Simple.” She took a seat at the island, her lips pursed like she was struggling to find words. After a moment, she said,
