“Hello?” Tana’s snappy voice, a bit breathless, came through the receiver. “Owyn?”
He sighed. “Yeah, it’s me.”
“What’s wrong?” He could practically picture the crease forming between her dark eyebrows as she asked the question.
“Nothing exactly. I was just looking for some uh, female input.”
“Oh.” An awkward silence filled the space. “Owyn, are things okay over there? Have you guys had anymore trouble from Gash’s old clan?”
“No, no. There’s been nothing else from those assholes.”
“What about hunters?”
“No, Tana. It’s nothing like that.”
“It’s just… it’s not like you to call like this.”
Owyn frowned. “I call you all the time.”
“Yeah, but not like this. Not all apprehensive and shit. Tell me what’s wrong.”
“It’s Doc,” he blurted.
“What about her?”
He could hear the fear in Tana’s voice. She and Doc were close, being females taken into the clan at the same time. Not to mention that Doc had saved her life and helped her through the trauma of being infertile because of the bastard who’d attacked her.
But it wasn’t whatever Tana might be thinking.
Owyn tipped his head back to stare at the ceiling. Shit. He was fucking this up.
“I need to know how to win her over.”
The line was quiet for so long he had to check the screen to make sure they weren’t been disconnected.
“What do you mean, win her over? What the hell, Owyn?”
“Exactly what I said. I need to know how to… to… win her. How to make her love me.”
More silence. He was starting to get annoyed by it. If Tana thought he was crazy, she could just say it. She’d never hid her true feelings about him before.
“You know what, never mind,” he rushed out. “I’ll just—”
“Did I miss something? Are you and Doc… are you…? When did you two…?”
Well, fuck. He’d really jammed her up this time.
“Look, can you just give me some pointers here? I need her to, you know, feel something when she looks at me.”
“Owyn, I…”
He waited. It wasn’t easy, asking Tana for help with his love life, and he could imagine it wasn’t easy for her to know the right thing to say. It was a rushed swing at a bad ball that could end in a strike out.
Her long sigh registered over the line. “The only thing I know to do is… is what worked for me and Surge. You gotta let her see more of you.”
Owyn’s shoulders sank. This wasn’t the advice he was looking for.
“You mean like, physically more of me? Like, be around her more? Spend more time together? What are we talking about here, Tana?”
“Yes, that. But also let her see more of your heart. Show her who you are inside.”
Owyn considered Tana’s words. Show her who you are. That’s what his panther told him so many years ago. And he’d tried that.
But he’d been a different person back then and so had Doc. Maybe their time was now. Maybe who he was in this moment was exactly what she needed.
He just had to show her.
“Owyn? You there?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m here. I think I can do this, Tana. I think I can show her the real me. I’m at least going to try.”
She was quiet for several beats. “You and Doc,” she said, sounding awestruck. “I doubt a union could make me happier. I know she’d be good for you. And Owyn?”
“Yeah?”
“You’d be good for her too.”
He stared at the hardwood floor beneath his feet while emotion clogged his throat. He wanted to believe that. And it meant the world to him hearing it come from Tana’s lips. But most of all he wanted Doc to believe it.
“Thank you.” He forced the words past the lump in his throat.
She cleared hers, like maybe she was getting emotional too. And with that, it was time to go. He and Tana didn’t do the mushy stuff, even if they’d each give their life for the other.
“Catch ya later, Romeo,” she said. “And good luck. It’s almost Valentine’s Day. Maybe good ‘ol Cupid can help you out.”
Owyn smiled to himself. He was going to need all the luck he could get.
***
Doc entered her alarm code to arm the door to the spa and then shut it, checking to make sure it latched.
Her short shift hadn’t been busy. She’d only had one massage appointment and an acupuncture procedure. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t bomb-ass starving.
Bad day to skip lunch.
She hurried down the corridor to the kitchen. It wasn’t too late. Eagan or Bailey would still be around doing the after dinner clean up. And there were always leftovers. She’d just grab a little—or a lot—and take it back to her cabin. Eating alone in the dining room sucked. Too big and open.