I laughed as I set a stack of small, shallow dishes on the counter to the left of the sink.

“What’s so funny?” he demanded, as he ran a soapy cloth around the inside of a soup bowl.

“I didn’t expect to find dishwashing in your skill set.”

He blew a damp lock of dark hair off his forehead. “I’ll admit, it’s a relatively recent acquisition.”

“So I see. You should rinse in hot water, not cold. It dries faster and leaves fewer streaks.” I flipped the faucet lever to the left and reached into the soapy water for the bowl he’d just washed, and my fingers bumped his. I went still, reluctant to end the accidental touch.

His gray-eyed gaze found mine. He took my hand beneath the bubbles, and for one brief moment that neither of us knew how to acknowledge, we were not Alpha and tabby, embroiled in a political shitstorm. We were not lawbreakers, or revolutionaries, or rebels. We were only a man and a woman, holding hands. Wishing for a little more.

“Hey, Robyn, I set this phone up for you,” Naveen said as he stepped into the kitchen. “I’ve programmed all of our numbers into it, and you should have plenty of data to get you through the next two weeks.”

Titus let go of my hand as Naveen set the new cell phone on the counter next to the large wire dish drainer.

“Thanks.” I dragged my gaze from Titus to find the enforcer watching us with a quiet, knowing smile.

“No problem. Enjoy,” he added on his way out of the room, and I wasn’t entirely sure he was talking about the new phone.

Titus held the bowl under the hot rinse water and cleared his throat. “You know how to dry them even faster?” he asked as he reached past me to set the bowl in the drainer.

“How?”

“With this.” He pulled out a drawer next to the sink and plucked a dishtowel from inside, then tossed it over my face.

I laughed as I removed the towel with my wet hand and ran my dry one through my messy hair. “Does the guest of honor traditionally help with the dishes after a formal dinner?”

“No. But neither does the host. As with everything else in the former free zone, we’re forging new territory here.” His gaze caught on mine again, and we suddenly seemed to be talking about something else.

I stared up into his gray eyes, lingering in another small moment. “How could I possibly argue with that?”

Titus washed, and I dried, then stacked the clean dishes carefully on the white granite countertop. “You’re pretty good at that,” he observed after a moment of quiet so profound I realized the other guys must have retired to the guest house to avoid being recruited.

I rolled my eyes at him. “This is not a recently acquired skill for me. Nor is it complicated.” Yet I was never called upon to help at the Di Carlos’. Donna seemed to think that would have been taking advantage of my non-voluntary resident status.

“So your childhood was full of dirty dishes?” Titus asked.

I lifted one eyebrow at him as I slid my new phone into my pocket. “Was yours full of silver spoons?”

“I—”

The kitchen door suddenly flew open and smacked into the wall. Spencer appeared in the doorway, carrying the sturdy paper platter still full of Corey Morris’s dinner.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, clutching a wet plate to be sure I wouldn’t drop it.

Spencer set the platter on the nearest counter top. “The basement is empty. The stray is gone.”

TEN

Titus

“Okay, Lochlan, you and Naveen start at the property boundary and head west into the woods, one on two legs, one on four. Drew, you and Knox go east. Same instructions. If you haven’t found any trace within a mile of the property, call in for new directions. He’s hardly over scratch fever and he doesn’t yet know how to control his urge to shift. That means he should be easy to find, but his behavior will be unpredictable and possibly irrational.” And dangerous, of course.

“What about me?” Brandt shifted his weight from one foot to the other on the wood floor of the office, visibly eager to help. Or rather, to be included.

“I appreciate all your help around here,” I told him. “But you know I can’t send you into the field. You’re too young and too new. You’re not an enforcer.”

“So I’m good enough to set the table, but not good enough to help where it really matters?”

“Of course you’re good enough. You’re just not experienced enough.” But my explanation only seemed to frustrate him further.

“I’m not trained as an enforcer either,” Spencer said from his seat on the edge of the leather couch. “But I’d like to help. Why don’t Brandt and I team up and take a look around the grounds. It’s possible that Morris hasn’t made it off the property yet.”

I hesitated, trying to phrase a careful explanation. “He’s obviously confused and possibly scared,” I said. “And he might still have a low fever. He could lash out without even realizing what he’s doing.”

“We’ll stay in human form,” Brandt said, hope riding high in his voice. “And we won’t approach him if we find him. We’ll call it in. Come on, Titus. Let us help.”

“Fine,” I said at last. “But you stay together, and keep your phones handy. Call me if you find any sign of him.”

“We will!” Brandt took off toward the foyer, his jacket in hand. Spencer signaled his thanks to me as he followed the kid toward the front door.

As soon as they were gone, I sank onto my desk chair with a sigh. Then I moved the mouse around to wake up my computer monitor and began pulling up aerial shots of the property, so I could start marking up a search grid.

When Robyn sank onto the couch in front of my desk, I glanced up, startled. “Now who’s stealthy?” I asked, trying to force a smile when I saw how worried she looked.

“I want to help.”

“I appreciate that, but there isn’t much you can do. You don’t know the property.”

“But I know Corey Morris. As much as any of you do, at least. And I may know his thought process even better, being a recently infected stray myself.”

I nodded. “Valid point. But I can’t send you out there on your own.”

“Then come with me.” She stood, and the determination drawn in the line of her jaw told me she would not be refused.