Emma met Clem surveying the master bedroom, his two hands tucked into the back pockets of his denim jeans. His back was toward her, and she had to admit—he was really a fine specimen, with a nice ass.

She knew that he liked her already. His eyes had looked dreamy when he brushed the dirt off her face.

Emma thought she liked him too. She felt comfortable around him, unlike someone with eyes, the deepest blue shade of blue she had ever seen. 

Derek made her insides tingle. She felt nervous whenever she was around him, her body temperature rising each time. And she didn’t want that.

“Hey!” she moved toward Clem, pushing thoughts of Derek aside.

“Hey…” he replied, turning around to face her.

“What are you doing?” 

“Just looking around,” he smiled. “You have a good place here.”

Emma laughed outrightly. He surely had a sense of humor.

She didn’t think of this place as good—it was ugly for fudge’s sake. Or was he taunting her? 

This unknown factor made Emma fold her arms across her chest, a frown in place, her posture ready to kick him out if her suspicion was right.

“You know, frowning is not healthy for your face…” Clem stated, now laughing. He had understood the reason for her sudden change in demeanor.

But he had meant what he said. The house was a good one, just neglected for too long. He wouldn’t say otherwise even if it had been a slaughterhouse. The architectural design was just beautiful.

“Why are you laughing?” Emma was rather curious this time.

“Nothing actually, just that your face looks funny as it switches sides.”

“Oh…” Emma muttered, biting her lower lip as she tried to remember what had brought her into the room in the first place. Looking around, she saw her purse on the box, ruffling her hair as she remembered. She wanted her purse since she had decided earlier to go for a stroll to clear her head.

Clem, already entranced by her unconscious lip-biting, watched her walk toward the box by the wall. He saw her bend to retrieve a purse from its top, and sighed.

Her behind was all curves, he thought. The ripped jeans she wore molded it perfectly. He wasn’t sure if she was his mate—he would know in less than three weeks’ time. But damn, she really caught his attention. This human was surely beautiful with her deep red hair.

“Are you going somewhere?” he asked when she turned to face him.

“Yeah, for a stroll perhaps. I don’t want to be an obstruction to the work you guys will be doing here,” she dusted off imaginary dirt from her jeans.

“No, stay. You wouldn’t be obstructing anything I do. I think your presence will strengthen me, actually,” Clem said, pouting. He wanted her here as he worked, though he would try not to do anything out of the ordinary, like carrying the master bed by himself.

The look on Clem’s face made Emma laugh out loud, however. She thought he was really cute, but she wasn’t going to say that.

“Are you trying to manipulate me into staying with a puppy face?” 

“Yeah. Is it working?” he queried, still pouting.

“Well, if this is a puppy face, I wouldn’t want to have a puppy,” 

Clem burst into laughter. She sure had a way with words, he thought, placing his hands on his chest dramatically, faking heartbreak.

“What are you guys doing?”

Derek’s voice cut into the atmosphere of humor, shattering it. 

Emma jerked back, feeling guilty, although for the life of her, she couldn’t understand why she felt like she had just done something wrong.

“Aren’t you going for the stroll again?” he looked at her intensely, negligent of the fun he had just interrupted.

“I was about heading out,” she replied, gripping her purse tight, before walking out of the room with her head held high. She wasn’t going to allow herself to skimper under his gaze. 

Clem watched Derek stare after Emma even after she had gone, and sighed. It seemed his friend also liked the new girl, but Clem wasn’t letting go of the human anytime soon. He liked her.

He had always watched Derek get even the girls he liked, but he had overlooked it without really complaining. Maybe because he hadn’t been truly interested—after all, it was just to satisfy their urges until their mates came around. Teen fun, they called it.

But Emma… she was different. He didn’t know how, but he felt it strongly. He had to have her, at least before he got his mate.

It’s not wrong to have the most beautiful girl on the block for once. Derek always gets them, he thought.

Though, for a moment, he wondered whether his friend could also see through walls, considering the intensity of the latter’s stare.

He already knew Derek was more gifted than them all,  and could communicate with his wolf since turning sixteen. His father had told him last summer, though he also warned him to keep it a secret.

“…the pack shouldn’t know about it,” his father had said.

Although Clem had been a little jealous then, he got over it—after all, he was the beta.

“Where are you cleaning?” he asked Derek, finally breaking the weird silence.

“Here,” Derek said monotonously, surveying the room.

“Here? But I already picked it. I thought you agreed to clean up the kitc—”

He couldn’t finish his statement. Derek’s glare hushed him up.

“I’m cleaning here now.”

“Okay then, suit yourself.” Clem walked out, fuming.