His mate.
Leaving.
He just couldn’t think about it.
He spotted her across the street, walking out of the shop. Anna stood with Lionel. The older woman laughed at something he said, patting his arm with affection.
Even Poppy looked entertained.
She couldn’t leave him, but he didn’t have a clue what to do to keep her around. This was a nightmare.
“Are you okay, Klaus?” Greg asked.
“Yeah, fine. Totally fine.”
They walked toward his mate, and she looked up, presenting Greg with a smile, and then turned to him. Did her smile dim a little when she looked at him?
He couldn’t handle this shit. His wolf wanted to claim her. To fuck her so freaking hard. To cover her in his scent, but he fought that battle.
She couldn’t leave. There was no way he could let her.
Chapter Seven
Poppy stared at her reflection in the mirror. She wore a beautiful dress. Pastel pink, with flutter sleeves, and it ended at just below her knee. A button-up bodice and a flared skirt. Her mother had bought it for her.
She also kept her hair down. Running a brush through her long locks that curled down to her back, she stared at her reflection, and nerves struck her.
Her mother only ever trimmed off the split ends. She tried to never have it cut. After dropping the brush, she grabbed a band and pulled her hair all together. She didn’t wrap it up, and she let it go, staring at her reflection.
Up or down?
To put it up felt like she was annoying Klaus.
Leaving it down, giving in to him.
“Why does Klaus even matter?” she asked, mumbling to her reflection. “He’s a stupid boy. A stupid, stupid, idiot boy.”
Even as she said the words, they didn’t actually have any meaning.
“Screw him.” She was wearing her hair down for herself.
Without another glance at the mirror, she toed some sneakers onto her feet and headed downstairs.
Her mother was already gone. Lionel had picked her up an hour ago.
Greg was busy changing, and Poppy had decided to take a nice long bath before getting ready.
There was going to be dancing and fun. A party. It had been a few months since the last one. She hadn’t really joined in. Humming to herself, she headed downstairs and came to a stop when she saw Greg waiting at the front door.
He was in jeans and a white shirt that seemed to be a little too tight across his chest.
There was no hum. No thrill. Nothing.
He was a good-looking man. Kind, sweet, caring. A true alpha’s son. But, even with all of his flirting, she didn’t feel anything. There was no arousal.
Unlike Klaus.
The long bath had also allowed her to take care of her pesky arousal. How he could even make her aroused was beyond her.