Free A Werewolf in Manhattan by Vicki Lewis Thompson Page A

sometimes.”
    “The other night I thought you were interested in me, but then I decided you weren’t. Now you seem interested again. I’m getting whiplash.”
    Aidan grabbed the first lifeline he could think of. “You said you had a boyfriend.”
    “So that’s why you didn’t come up the other night?”
    When he looked into those blue eyes of hers, he had a hard time lying. “No, not really.”
    “I didn’t think so.”
    He could tell her some of the truth, at least. “The fact is, I tend to have a one-track mind, and I was focused on tracing that e-mail. I knew if I came up to your loft, I’d lose focus.”
    “You’re quite the dedicated guy, aren’t you?”
    “Guess so.”
    “I admire that, Aidan.” She looked past him toward the aisle. “Thank God. My coffee’s here.”
    “Your first cup?” He helped the flight attendant pass the steaming cup over to her.
    “ ’Fraid so. I was a little rushed this morning.”
    He started to say that explained a lot about her quick temper, but stopped himself.
    “Ah, manna from heaven.” She closed her eyes and breathed in the vapors before taking a long, slow sip. “I think I’ll live now.”
    He couldn’t resist. “In coach they won’t get coffee until we reach altitude and level off.”
    “Smart-ass.” She smiled. “I understand the appeal of sitting up here. Maybe I’m afraid I’ll get used to it. You know, get spoiled.”
    “Would that be so terrible?”
    She studied him. “I think so. The money’s coming in now, but I’m a self-employed writer. There’s no guarantee the money will always be there. At this point, I haven’t made enough to keep me in first-class seats for the rest of my life.”
    He stated what she had to be thinking. “Whereas I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth.”
    “Pretty much.”
    He nodded. “I’ll own that. I’m probably spoiled.” He thought about the house where he’d grown up, a ten-bedroom mansion filled with original art. Maids, cooks, chauffeurs. His father was an investment genius, and the family had weathered a couple of recessions without suffering.
    “Don’t get me wrong,” she said. “I’ve noticed that the people you employ are treated with respect and consideration. I’ve heard that the Wallace family supports a whole raft of charities. I’m not dissing your situation. But it’s different from mine.”
    She had no idea how different.
    “My dad abandoned my mom when I was a baby, and she managed to raise me and keep a roof over our heads, but it was never easy.”
    “I met your mom at the signing. She seems like an intelligent woman.”
    Emma’s eyes lit up. “She is. She mentioned that she’d stopped to say hello. Listen, about Doug, my boyfriend, I—”
    The plane’s engines revved up, cutting off the rest of what she’d been about to say. Knowing he’d have to shut down her BlackBerry any second, Aidan quickly glanced over Theo’s two e-mails.
    Hear you’re coming to Chi-town, sweet thing. Looking forward to making that special connection, if you know what I mean. I’m still ...
    Ready Fur U
    Aidan scrolled to the next one.
    Hey, there! Weres do it on all fours! Think about it. I’m always ...
    Ready Fur U
    Aidan ground some enamel off his back molars. Sure, Theo was just a kid, but even a kid could get himself and his fellow Weres into deep trouble. That was Aidan’s intellectual evaluation.
    But the e-mails affected him at a deeper level. Emma was not his mate, would never be his mate. And yet any sexual interest from another male aroused every possessive instinct he had. Maybe that wasn’t a bad thing for the short term.
    Theo might not cower before someone sent as Em-ma’s bodyguard. But he would cringe in fear if Aidan presented himself as Emma’s mate, a Were ready to defend her to the death. Aidan wasn’t certain he could play that role and then abandon it again on Sunday. Doing so could end the problem with Theo, though. He’d have to think about