Chapter 199
I don’t know what I’m doing,” I whispered.
“That makes two of us.”
He didn’t ask for more. Just stood there beside me, hands still in his pockets, looking out at the river like it held answers we were both afraid to reach for.
CASSANDRA
The tailor’s bell chimed softly overhead as I stepped inside, the scent of pressed wool and lemon polish washing over me like
memory.
Logan stood on a small raised platform near the far mirror, arms slightly extended, the dark gray tuxedo jacket draped over his shoulders, unbuttoned. The tailor–a thin, balding man with spectacles perched on the end of his nose- -was fussing with the hem of the jacket sleeve, muttering to himself about quarter inches and shoulder slope.
I let the door swing shut behind me and crossed the quiet showroom with slow, deliberate steps. My heels clicked against the wood floor, echoing once–twice–before I came to a stop just beside the row of plush chairs across from the mirror. I didn’t announce myself.
I didn’t need to.
Logan saw me in the glass and didn’t flinch.
He simply raised an eyebrow.
“I hope I’m not interrupting,” I said smoothly, taking a seat without waiting for an invitation.
“You are,” he replied, voice flat. “But not in a way that can’t be undone.”
The tailor glanced between us, mildly confused.
I crossed one leg over the other and gestured to Logan’s reflection with a small smile. “Sharp suit. But let’s not pretend it’s for your own wedding.”
He tilted his head, expression unreadable. “No, let’s not.”
“You’re a hard man to find,” I continued, ignoring the subtle edge in his voice. “I don’t suppose that was intentional?”
“Call it instinct.”
I smiled faintly. “Smart instinct.”
The tailor cleared his throat awkwardly, holding up a measuring tape. “Do you want me to finish the cuff now or-”
Logan’s gaze didn’t leave mine. “Give us the room. Ten minutes,”
The man hesitated, clearly unsure whether it was appropriate to leave his client mid–fitting.
“I promise I won’t destroy the integrity of your tailoring,” I said, flashing him a sugary smile.
That did it. The tailor sighed and stepped down from the platform, disappearing through the curtain behind the counter.
Logan rolled his shoulders and stepped down, the tuxedo jacket moving like liquid over his frame. He walked to the mirror and began buttoning it slowly, precisely.
I watched him in the reflection. “You and I have something in common.”
“That so?”
“We’re both from smaller packs. Ones who’ve had to kneel at the knee of stronger ones to get what we needed.”
1/2
Chapter 199
Logan didn’t respond.
+25 BONUS
Ismoothed the hem of my skirt. “Silverclaw. Moonstone. They get the credit. The attention. The legacy. We get what they’re willing to share, if they’re in the mood to share it.”
His gaze lifted in the mirror. “Is that why you’re here? To recite a political grievance?”
I gave a quiet laugh. “I’m here because I think you’re tired of being underestimated. And so am I.”
He turned then, fully facing me, arms at his sides.
“Spit it out,” he said.
I tapped my fingers gently against the armrest. “There was a short article in Wolf Whistle this morning. Very small. Easy to miss.”
Logan didn’t blink.
“Something about how your engagement to Elena has officially ended.”
Silence.
A muscle in his jaw shifted, just barely. “What of it?”
I stood slowly, crossing to him, my heels clicking across the floor. I didn’t get too close. Just enough to meet his eyes without the buffer of reflection.
“We might never have them for ourselves,” I said, voice dropping “Not really. Not fully. But don’t think I’m not petty enough to still hate the idea of seeing them together.”
His expression didn’t change.
But I saw the flicker.
I leaned in slightly. “Do you?”
He stared at me, then shook his head once. “No.”
I smiled then. A slow, deliberate thing. “What if,” I said, tilting my head, “we team up?”
Logan’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Team up to what?”
I let the smile curl wickedly at the edges. “To keep them apart.”
He didn’t say anything.
But he didn’t walk away either.
And that was all the answer I needed.
