The hand drags me into another room and the change of scenery is enough to somehow knock much of the dizzying scent away from me. I take a deep breath, and then become hyperaware of the strong grip on my wrist.

I jerk my hand free and look up to find Ranveer.

“What the fuck is your problem?” He’s glaring at me, and I can’t help but rub my wrist. It almost feels like the skin is burning where he touched me. “We’re at Samuel’s wake! What are you even doing?”

That’s a good question, actually…

I still feel odd. Not quite woozy, or dizzy, but sort of…turned around, maybe? Confused?

There is definitely confusion.

Ranveer is still staring at me, but the edges of his anger have faded into something else. Confusion of his own, maybe. And it’s this confusion, matching mine, that causes me to blurt out, “I don’t know what the hell is going on…”

I regret the words almost immediately and snap my mouth shut. My head still feels twisty from that damned scent, which is doing its best to try to regain its hold on me. There’s a strange buzzing sound, too. Like a TV left on static, or maybe a hive of bees…

Can he hear it too?

I take a step closer to him but then stop.

Why did I do that? I should be leaving… I’m trying to leave…

And yet, I’m not. Ranveer is standing so close to me now and he’s watching me, that strange look in his eyes, and for some reason I find myself lifting my hand and pressing it against his chest.

I can feel his heartbeat under the heat of his body. It’s strong and steady and it makes me swallow against my dry throat.

Ranveer looks down at my hand, and then back up to my face. His gaze is darker now, almost predatory. “What are you doing, Solus?”

I don’t know. I don’t know what’s going on…

I think I say these words out loud, but inside me my wolf is stretching, reaching out for him, and I’m having a hard time telling what’s really happening and what’s in my mind. My wolf is rarely so aggressive, but when she is, I know to listen. Just like I know right now that the only way to stop this horrible buzzing sound, to stop this burning feeling in my stomach, is to be as close to Ranveer as possible.

My palm tightens against his chest, my fingers digging into the silk of his shirt, wrapping tightly around the fabric until I’ve got a good grip.

And then I yank him down and press my lips against his.

He gasps in surprise, and I take advantage, slipping my tongue inside his mouth. He tastes like spearmint and something heavier, darker, that makes the burning in my stomach twist into something lighter, but no less insistent.

I’ve never kissed anyone like this before. I’ve never kissed another werewolf before. But something takes over in me, so I seem to know what I’m doing. I’m not sure if it’s my wolf or something else. In this moment, it doesn’t matter.

I press against him, feeling the warmth and strength of his body seeping into mine. For a moment he does nothing, just stands there, solid like a tree, until suddenly his arm wraps around my waist and he tugs me closer. He’s tall, so much taller and bigger than me, but somehow we seem to fit together almost perfectly. My hand is trapped between our two bodies and he practically feels like he’s on fire.

And then Ranveer’s returning the kiss. His own tongue slides against mine, tasting me, and that sweet twist in my stomach comes alive, sinking lower between my legs. I groan against his mouth, and that seems only to excite him further.

He kisses me harder, his mouth that so often only brings me pain now in service to bringing so much pleasure.

He pulls back, and his teeth gently grip my bottom lip and tug before we’re kissing again. I can’t seem to get enough of him.

There’s a loud knock on the door.

It breaks whatever spell I’m under and I have a shocking realization that I’m kissing Ranveer before I gasp and shove him away from me. He stumbles but manages to remain on his feet.

“What the fuck?” I’m panting, trying to catch my breath. The hand that held his shirt and pulled him against me is trembling, and it spreads to my whole body.

He’s looking at me, eyes wide, top buttons on his shirt popped open from my grip showing a hint of golden skinned collarbone. I have an urge to run my teeth along the bone before settling my lips against the pulse in his throat.

He rubs his mouth with the back of his hand before opening it to say something.

I don’t wait. I run.

I’m out the door and down the hall before my brain even has a chance to catch up. But when it does, it’s spinning nearly as much as my stomach.

You kissed him! You kissed Ranveer Mehra! What the hell were you thinking?!

But that’s just it! I wasn’t thinking! My body just acted on its own, and for some reason it decided I needed to be with him. And even now, it’s taking effort not to turn around and go back to that stupid asshole with the incredible mouth.

He kissed you back, though, right? What’s up with that? He hates you. Doesn’t he?

It didn’t feel like hate, though. It felt an awful lot like something completely opposite of that… I gently touch my lips with the tip of my fingers before jerking them away.

I make it back to the main room with the rest of the pack, bursting through the door. Luckily the pack has started drinking and drifting toward the celebration-of-life portion of the day and no one seems to notice a flustered Margot back in their midst. But I can’t be here. I can’t be in this crowd.

Across the room is the door to the kitchen, and I scurry in that direction, dodging pack members until the door is right there—

Sloane steps in front of me. “Margot!”

I stumble to a stop before her and notice that Vallie is standing at her side. Vallie is staring at me in disgust. “Just had to call attention to yourself, huh?” she says to me. “Couldn’t keep it together on the day we’re supposed to be mourning our Alpha? So disrespectful.”

Sloane gives me a pitying smile, but just like at the party before, it doesn’t reach her eyes. She’s so fake, and it’s so obvious.

I take a step back, and Vallie uses the opportunity to take a step forward. “And on top of everything, Ranveer had to go and deal with your fucking mess. Don’t you think he’s going through enough without having to deal with you?”

Even just hearing his name spoken aloud sends shivers down my arms. I can’t take my eyes off the kitchen door and the escape it might give me. “I need to go help in the kitchen…”

I push past them and shove open the door. Luckily, they don’t follow me.

The kitchen is empty. I was hoping Odette would be in here and that maybe she’d be able to distract me from whatever is going on, but no such luck. Instead, I start to grab trays of food to clean them up, trying to keep my hands busy and my thoughts focused on the task before me.

So I don’t have to think about whatever the fuck happened in that room with Ranveer.

You mean when you and Ranveer kissed? And not just kissed, but full-on tried to devour each other? And how you practically wanted to crawl into his beautiful golden skin and how it seemed like he wanted to let you?

I shake my head. Why is this happening to me?

The kitchen door slams open. I look up, sure it’ll be Odette and she’ll save me from this horrible spiral I’m stuck in, but instead I’m met with the perfectly chiseled cheekbones of Leo Moreno standing across the counter from me. His unsettling blue eyes, focusing on me for a change, looked pissed.

“What the fuck is this game you’re playing, Marge?” he growls, and he’s definitely fixating on me and not some other random person named who’s actually named Marge.

But then Leo knows I hate it when he calls me by something other than Margot. And even in his clear anger at me, he sticks with the tried-and-true tricks, it seems.

“Did you hear me?” he adds.

He wants to know what game I’m playing… Does he know somehow what happened with Ranveer? Or is this about the funeral? I feel so confused, I’m not even sure what he’s talking about.

I close my eyes and immediately think back to Ranveer and the taste of his mouth against mine.

I really fucking wish I knew what was going on.