Tanya blinks, her eyes extra shiny. But then she sits up abruptly. “I don’t want her exiled, but she can’t do what she did to you!” The girl leaps off the bed and starts pacing. “That was super messed up. Especially when you see the way Warner looks at you.”

“What way?”

Tanya smirks. “Warner is friendly to everyone. This whole town, even the human half, loves him. You’d think he’d date more. Girls are always after Warner because he’s the best kind of guy.”

The thought of girls being after my werewolf makes me want to growl possessively. Some of my jealousy must show on my face because

Tanya points at me and gives a triumphant laugh. “Look at you! You’re all about him. He deserves that. And he’s all about you. And he never has been before. All the girls walked away with smiles on their faces, but moping on the inside because Warner never wanted anything from them. But you … hell, he’s ready to piss on your leg—he’s so possessive.” Her smile fades into an angry scowl that she directs at the window. “And Mom was going to ruin it all.”

“I wouldn’t have let her.”

No matter what the wolf woman threw at me, I would’ve taken it. Because Warner is worth fighting for.

“But you shouldn’t have to deal with her weirdness! And neither should Carlos! Or anyone I decide to date!” Tanya collapses back beside me. “You want to know why I’m not pissed at you? There it is. I want my brother to be happy, and I want to be happy. No matter who we choose to love, it’s our choice. Not hers. I don’t want her to be exiled,” the girl repeats for the third time, “but I think she needs to be. At least until she understands what she did wrong. Until she agrees not to torment the people we date.”

Tanya’s logic chips away at the guilt I feel. As her declaration sinks in, I don’t feel as horrible about the choices I’ve made. Our relationship has caused a rift in their family, but maybe with time, that gash will heal, and it might shape the Jamesons into something different. Something a little bit better.

“I’m glad you’re not mad at me.”

We lie side by side until the door to the apartment creaks again.

“Zoey?” Warner’s voice carries back to me.

“We’re in here!” I call out, sitting up, Tanya following my lead.

“We?” he asks, then appears a second later, eyes widening. “What are you doing here?”