His phone went to voicemail on the third ring, and I hung up without leaving a message. He was probably working. So I tried Drew next. His phone went to voicemail on the first ring.

“Hey, Drew, it’s me. I have a hospital question for Spence, but I can’t get through to him. Can you have him give me a call if he checks in with you?”

By the time I’d finished my first coffee, I could hear Robyn moving around, so I took a still-steaming paper cup into Justus’s room for her.

The bed was empty, but the bathroom door was open. Robyn stood in front of the mirror, brushing her teeth. Wearing my too-big-for-her shirt and nothing else, that I could see.

Memories from the night before washed over me. Her soft flesh in my hands. The taste of her on my lips. The sight of her riding me, eyes closed, hands in her own hair…

Robyn turned, her toothbrush dripping in one hand. “Guess who didn’t have any nightmares last—?” She laughed with a pointed glance at the bulge in my pants. “You are an early riser, huh?”

“And you are the most confident, least inhibited woman I’ve ever met.”

She spat toothpaste into the sink, then frowned at me in the mirror. “I can’t tell whether that’s a compliment or a criticism.”

I pulled her close and pressed myself against her bare leg. “Now can you tell?”

“Mmm…” she murmured, her minty breath warm against my ear. “Men’s bodies are sometimes easier to interpret than their words.”

“I’d say the reverse is true. Women are usually more comfortable showing you what they want than telling you. But you’re the exception.”

“You’re saying I talk too much?”

I laughed. “Nope. It’s nice to know where I stand with a woman for a change.”

“I’m pretty sure no one has ever had to wonder what I’m thinking for very long.” She rinsed her toothbrush and set it on the bathroom counter, next to Justus’s hair…goop. And his toothbrush.

Huh. Justus didn’t take his toothbrush. Nor did he pack anything, from what I could tell. Which meant he couldn’t be planning to stay away too long. Or maybe he wasn’t planning to stay away at all. What if he was stuck in feline form somewhere, like Blum had been, with no idea that he could shift, much less how to do it?

“Speaking of speaking my mind, I’m hungry,” Robyn ran her fingers through her hair, then went up on her toes to kiss me. “Let’s find something to eat.”

“For once, I’m a step ahead of you.” I held up the coffee. “And there’s food in the kitchen.”

While she rewarmed two of the burritos, I called Spencer again. And again, his line went straight to voicemail. “Damn it.”

“What’s wrong?” Robyn cradled her cup in both hands, as if for warmth.

“I keep calling Spencer, hoping he can get Justus’s record from the ER, but his phone goes straight to voicemail.”

The microwave beeped, and she pulled out our breakfast. “Why don’t you try Drew?”

“I did.” I removed the lid from the extra coffee and dumped in a packet of sugar. “I got his voicemail too.”

“Here.” She set the plate of burritos on the coffee table. “You take one of these, and I’ll try Drew. He has to answer my call.”

I peeled back the paper wrapping from one of the burritos. “In case you’re in danger from the big bad rogue Alpha?” If anything, the opposite was true. At least, once the council found out that I had no intention of returning her.

“Exactly.” She read aloud as she typed a text. “Hey Drew, it’s Robyn. Call me as soon as you can, please.” She turned to me with a mischievous grin. “What emoji best conveys fake fear for one’s life, from the big bad Alpha? Screaming emoji, or frowny face with raised brows?”

“You need the poop emoji, because that is bullshit.”

Robyn laughed. Then she unwrapped her burrito and took a big bite.

“You’ve got some…right…there.” I leaned forward and kissed a dab of cheese from her nose.

Her brows rose, and I knew she was going to say something dirty before her mouth even opened. “Would you lick that off, no matter where I smear it?”

“Yes.” I glanced at my bare wrist, as if I wore a watch. “In fact, we probably have time…”

“Don’t you want some specifics?” she said. “What if I smear it on the bathroom floor?”

“I trust you.”

“I—” Robyn’s cell rang. She dropped the burrito onto her plate, then grabbed her phone. “It’s Drew.” She answered the call and held the phone to her ear. “Hello?”

“Hey, Robyn, what happened?” the new Alpha of my Pride asked, from over the line. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Titus was trying to call you earlier, and he said he couldn’t get through.”

“Is he there with you?” Drew asked.

Robyn glanced at me, brows raised, and I shook my head, then mimed zipping my lips. “He went out for breakfast,” she said. “Why?”

“I don’t want to make things worse, but I got tossed into this with no warning. Trial by fire. And I’ll never be able to lead this Pride to the best of my ability if they still think of him as the Alpha. So I’ve asked the guys not to communicate with Titus until further notice.”

Anger shot through me, like lightning shooting along every nerve in my body. My eyes narrowed, and my jaw clenched. I understood what Drew was doing, and I probably would have done the same thing in his position. Still…

“You cut him off?” Robyn stood, irritation sparking behind her eyes. “You’re living in his house, spending his money.” Her heartbeat quickened until it synced with mine, and some nearly imperceptible change in her pheromones seemed to be feeding my own anger.

She was angry because I was angry. Not because of what Drew was doing, but because of how I felt about it.

That had never happened to me with another shifter, not even those who recognized my authority. Not with my enforcers, and not even with Drew, who’d been with me from the beginning.

Was this about more than the relationship of an Alpha to his men? Er…people? Could this mean that I had become as important to Robyn as she had to me?