A predawn gray showed through a gap in the curtains as Rowan awoke. She instantly recalled the events of the previous evening, groaning with embarrassment. A gentle snore from beside her assured her that Kai was still sleeping deeply with one arm thrown over her almost casually. Gingerly, she began to make her way toward the edge of the bed, hoping that she would not wake him as she made her escape. After about five minutes of silently wiggling liberally interspersed with lying completely still and checking for signs that Kai was stirring, she was free. Grabbing what she could find of her clothes, she tip toed out the door and almost ran to the elevator, praying that Annabelle wouldn't ask too many questions when Rowan asked her to pick her up.
For the second time in a week, Kai woke up knowing that he was alone. At least this time, he didn't have a headache. "Crap," he mumbled to himself, feeling his disappointment keenly, "I guess I shouldn't be surprised". Already, he was making plans to find her again; there was no way he was going to let any length of time pass before their next encounter. But first, he had to find some coffee.
Annabelle was livid on the ride across town from Kai's hotel. At first, she had been surprised and delighted when Rowan had called and asked to be picked up from a swanky hotel in a strange part of town, but as Rowan told her and Greg about everything that had happened after she left the club, Annabelle's mood grew steadily darker until she was staring out the window muttering profanities.
"Are you sure you don't want to talk to the cops honey?" Greg asked, smiling comfortingly at Rowan from the driver's seat.
"Yeah," she responded weakly, "I don't really remember much. Besides, if I talk to the police, they'll want to talk to him." She gestured vaguely behind herself, indicating Kai. This just served to redouble Annabelle's expletive monologue. Finally, she burst out,
"I can't fucking believe he took advantage of you like that! Who does that? Who the fuck does that? Who looks at a girl bleeding in an alley and drags her to a strange hotel room? Psychos! That's who does that, fucking psychos! Shit!" Rowan responded sheepishly, afraid of bringing her friends wrath onto herself,
"To be fair, I came on to him..."
"You were in shock. He should have known better," Rowan remained silent; knowing that there was no way that she'd be able to explain the strange dynamic between her and Kai. To her great relief, they were pulling up to the bakery. Without waiting for them to say anything further, she said
"Thanks so much for coming to get me, I'll see you guys tonight," but before she could open her door, Annabelle was stepping out of the car and heading toward the bakery. "Umm, Anna? Where are you going?" she called out, rushing to catch up with her friend.
"Upstairs. There is no way I'm leaving you alone today,"
It was a long morning with Annabelle in the cramped apartment. She was always right on top of Rowan, constantly trying to do things for her, and incessantly asking if she was ok. She had even tried to follow Rowan into the bathroom when Rowan went to take a shower. Rowan stood under the warm deluge, having barely convinced Annabelle not to keep her company, and collected her thoughts. She was surprised at how little she felt any sense of violation from the whole experience. Even her encounters with the men from the club seemed like a distant memory, wiped clean by Kai's touch. Her thoughts lingered on that touch, the feel of him. She had just started to dwell on the more pleasant memories from the previous evening, when there was a knock on the bathroom door.
"You okay in there, Sweetie?" Rowan turned off the water with a sigh. Maybe it was time to get some breakfast.
Kai was surprised at how much he enjoyed hanging out in Rowan's neighborhood, and by how little his enjoyment was dependent on its being Rowan's neighborhood. So far, he had visited the bookstore and a coffee shop, and found both to be awesome. And, as an added bonus, no one from his pack ever came down here. He took another sip of his coffee; his thoughts, as usual, were on finding Rowan and getting to know her under circumstances that would not leave her traumatized. His eyes scanned the room. This was the exact type of place he had had in mind for his and Rowan's first real conversation: laid back, neutral, and non-threatening. So, of course she would choose this moment to walk in with a friend and make him look like a stalker. He groaned in frustration, and sank low in his chair. He hoped that he could get out of there before she noticed him and ran off. Again. Fortunately, her friend (who looked vaguely familiar) seemed to be keeping her occupied with a steady stream of chatter. Kai was just about to make his escape when the heat kicked on and the vent next to Rowan's table blew her scent in his direction. His wolf stirred, demanding that Kai stay put and wait for a chance to be alone with Rowan. He knew he shouldn't run from this. He watched the pair subtlety, doing his best not to garner attention from Rowan's friend whose chair was facing him.
Suddenly, as if she felt him willing her away, the friend got up and, after what seemed to be an apology, walked into the ladies room. Kai took his chance. He quickly crossed the room and stood next to Rowan's table. "Hi," he said as her eyes flicked up to look at his face. He looked deeply into her eyes, trying to gauge her reaction to his presence. He was relieved to see only surprise registered there, no fear, anger, or suspicion. This was a good start.
"Hi," she responded, waiting for him to continue.
