“Get out,” Gabby said as soon as she woke.

Her less than charitable tone let me know she wasn’t as close to coming around as I’d hoped. With a quiet sigh, I hopped off the bed and exited the room. The house was quiet since Rachel had already left. That woman barely slept.

I settled on the couch to wait for Gabby and whatever she had planned for the day.

When Gabby emerged, she passed me without acknowledgment then wandered around the house for a bit. She’d seemed bored, a state of existence I understood well, so I stayed out of her way. After only a few minutes, she shut herself in her room again, which I found odd.

Inside her room, I heard the faint sound of a zipper and the rustle of clothes. I hopped off the couch and moved closer to the door, trying to listen. She was changing? She’d just gotten dressed.

I’d barely sat down to wait when the door swung open. Gabby, wearing her swimsuit, stood within the doorway. My gut clenched at the sight of her pale limbs and smooth stomach, and I thanked whatever thought had inspired her to change. My mouth went dry as I studied every inch of her. I itched to touch her again, to hold her in my arms.

With effort, I lifted my gaze. Did she know how much I loved that suit? Had she changed just for me? Her wide eyes and the livid blush that stained her cheeks gave me my answer. She hadn’t.

She stepped back and slammed the door. Too late, I realized I’d screwed up by openly showing my interest in her. I wanted to yowl my frustration, but I kept quiet. We were learning each other. We were bound to make mistakes. Patience. I just needed patience.

When she reemerged wearing shorts and a bitty top, she ignored me and marched out the back door. I followed cautiously and watched her disappear into the garage. A minute later, she pushed the lawn mower out.

She bent to check a few things and push a button. I only gave what she did half my attention. The rest of my focus remained on the curve of her backside.

She yanked back on a cord, and the mower started with an annoying roar. Too soon, the air filled with its stink. But the view of Gabby’s legs as she pushed the machine back and forth made the smell endurable.

When she finished, she cast an annoyed glance my direction. She didn’t like me eyeing her in her suit; now, she didn’t like me watching her mow the lawn. What did she expect me to do? Frustrated, I ducked into the house and took another shower to cool off and to wash the exhaust from my skin.

I dried myself, correctly draped the towel over the edge of the tub, then opened the door a crack. Shifting to my fur, I nudged the door open further and wandered out to look for her.

She sat on the couch reading again. I padded across the room and jumped up next to her. This time, I didn’t earn a sniff. Disappointed, I settled in for another long, hungry morning and afternoon.

She barely moved or acknowledged me the entire time. The only highlight to the day was the end of it...and the memory of her in her swimsuit. Yeah, that image wasn’t ever going to leave me.

Gabby went to bed, and I waited again, unsure of my welcome. But I found her door unlatched and sighed in relief. How could I feel so hopeful and dejected at the same time?

I hopped up on the bed and stared down at her.

The need to touch her clawed at me. Quietly, I shifted into my human skin and shivered slightly as I moved from the end of the bed to lie beside her. Carefully, I eased myself onto my side. I didn’t dare slide under the covers. Face to face, I watched her sleep; ever so carefully, I brushed a fingertip along her cheek. Her soft skin begged for more, but I withdrew my hand.

She confused me and seemed cold at times, but she was mine. Eventually, she’d come to terms with that.

I inhaled deeply, breathing in her scent, and closed my eyes.

A change in her breathing woke me. I quickly shifted to my fur before she caught me in her bed without clothes on. That wouldn’t end well for me.

Her eyes snapped open and locked onto me.

“Now, just hold on,” she said. “You’re a dog. Act like one. Fur stays at the foot of the bed.”

I pretended to mind as I moved to the end of the bed, staring at her the whole time, but I didn’t. I was too grateful she hadn’t caught me sleeping naked next to her.

“Don’t give me your doleful eyes. This is your choice, not mine.”

Wait. Did that mean—

“Not that you’d get to sleep next to me in your skin, either. So, don’t even think about it.”

We were starting to think alike, I thought with a grin.

“If you don’t like the end of the bed, you can always sleep on the floor.”

The floor? No. My spot was beside her. I just needed to help her figure that out.

After she kicked me out so she could dress, she joined me in the kitchen and spent a lot of time staring at the newspaper. While she did that, I considered what I could do to help her see me as her Mate. An unlocked door at night was a good start. I wanted more than that. I wanted to be the one she talked to when she was upset, the one she came to for comfort, the one to hold her for the rest of her life—

She stood suddenly, jarring me from my thoughts. When she moved to get her house key and her bag, I quickly got to my feet and waited by the door.

She scowled down at me but I didn’t flinch away from her gaze. I wore the degrading collar. She wouldn’t be leaving without me. For good measure, I shook my neck to jingle my tags.

Sighing, she reached for the leash and clipped it on. I gloated. On the inside.

As soon as we were outside, she pulled a phone from her pocket and dialed a number. I listened to her conversation and found out she wanted to go see a car.

I agreed she needed one. That forty-minute walk to those brick buildings, where she planned to take classes, was too long for her to make each day. There were too many men along the way. Plus, it would get colder. A car would help keep her away from men and out of the cold.

Side by side, we made our way to the address the man had given her. The place wasn’t hard to find. An old car sat parked on the front lawn. Gabby paused on the sidewalk, studying the vehicle. It wasn’t any worse than what I often saw at the Compound.

“Hello,” a man called from the garage.

I swung my gaze to the man as he stepped out and walked toward us. He seemed average height for a human. Middle aged and carrying a bit of extra weight, as they tended to do. He barely glanced at me as he approached. His fixated stare at Gabby made my fur bristle.

“I’m Howard. You called about the car?”

“I did,” she said, and without giving her name, she turned toward the car before he could offer his hand. Smart girl.

I lingered, watching her back as she moved away.

“It’s a decent car for the price,” he said, moving past her and popping the hood. She peeked inside, and he moved close to her. Too close.

I nudged him aside and jumped up, bracing my paws on the front end. The man yipped like a startled pup but backed away as I wanted. Ignoring him, I stared at the engine, comparing what I saw to Sam’s truck. I nodded to myself. It looked similar.

“I’ll take it,” Gabby said.

Just like that? She had too much trust in people. He hadn’t even told her much about the car. It didn’t seem to matter to her, though.

“Do you have the title ready to sign over?”

“Sure. Let me run inside.”

A few minutes later, I contorted myself to sit in the very cramped passenger seat as we drove away.

The car needed a good cleaning. It reeked of stale smoke.

The rest of the week followed a very similar pattern. She read a lot, made a trip to purchase more books—I rode along and dutifully waited in the car—then she started to read those, too.