He nodded at my now very full plate. “You eating in here, or joining us for Mated by Fate?”

I sucked in a deep breath. Let it out. “Joining you.”

Jim quickly dished up a plate from the vegetarian options. “Good timing. It’s the first episode of the season.”

I followed him out, taking a spot on the floor. I wasn’t quite brave enough to sit near Lou, but I felt like eating in the same room was a good step. Repeated exposure would help me relax, right? I watched quietly, though everyone else kept a running commentary, despite Jim’s earlier warning.

I’d caught the show a few times before—Zoey loved it, even though she knew it was scripted. The odds of going on TV with thirty strangers and discovering one of them was actually your mate seemed pretty low. Finding someone to date? Sure, though that seemed almost as unlikely. But mating? That meant my wolf and I would both have to agree on the person in question. It was a conscious choice, and once the bond was made, only death broke it. It was literally magic, and I had a hard time picturing that happening on television.

After my fourth helping, I was finally full, and now without the food as distraction, very aware that I was in the room with an animal mage. I wasn’t on edge, exactly, but I was definitely alert. I didn’t even make it until the end of the episode before I mumbled an excuse and went to my room. By the time I closed my door, I was sweating and a fine tremor shook my hands. Not a huge leap by any means, but I’d taken a baby step in the right direction. And I felt, at least for tonight, like I really could do this.

I could make this my home.

Chapter Six

Declan

I wasn’t sure what I’d been expecting with my new living situation, but weasels hadn’t even made the list of possibilities. I especially hadn’t expected them on my pillow first thing in the morning, like a strange version of hotel pillow mints.

They were staring at me. Solid black beady little eyes staring right into mine.

So I yelled.

To be honest, it was more of a scream. In my defense, I hadn’t had coffee yet, and also weasels.

There was a thunder of feet and my door swung open.

Lou made it through the door first, still in her pajama shorts and a thin tank top. Her shorts were short, the material soft-looking. Her skin looked soft, too—I shut that thought down immediately. Crushing on Lou would be disastrous. And yet, I couldn’t look away. I blinked and realized she was carrying a baseball bat, obviously ready to rumble, and I hadn’t even noticed it.

Van stood behind her, bleary-eyed. She’d inexplicably brought the half-full french press with her to my room instead of leaving it behind in the kitchen. Trick sauntered up last, peeking over their shoulders, casually sipping his coffee. An adorable fledgling phoenix perched on a thick leather pad strapped to his shoulder, otherwise Trick wasn’t wearing a shirt. He nudged his way into the room and I caught sight of the arcane symbols tattooed in blacks and grays decorating the insides of both of his lower arms.