Free Mind Mates (Pull of the Moon Book 2) by Mary Hughes

let the rest of the chips fall where they may. Hopefully it won’t be longer than a day or so before I get back. But don’t take a bus to Matinsfield. Why, when I can drive you? That’s where I’m headed.”
    Now it was her turn to blink. “Your sister lives in little Matinsfield?” The town was the equivalent of Nowheresville—the reason the then-Scauth-now-Blackwood wolf pack loved it. When he nodded, she said, “Well…a ride would save me money.” Which would be a problem until she could get another job. “That would help. Thanks.”
    “So you forgive me for dragging you here?” He smiled, held out a hand. “Friends?”
    “Friends.” She put her hand in his.
    His engulfed hers, emanating heat and precisely controlled power.
    This time she was the one who retreated first, pulling her hand from his the soonest it was appropriate, her cheeks warm and her body tingling with awareness.
    Friends was a start toward more…
    Except with a big-assed lake between us, more will never get to happen.
    The thought made her inexplicably sad.
    “Why the long face?”
    He’d put down coffee and food and his total attention was on her, the stars in his eyes intensifying, blue-green irises shading toward that piercing silver.
    He really cares.
    It was achingly sweet, all the more so because no one had truly paid attention in a long time, not since her dad died. “I’m hoping things have changed at home, so that maybe I can stay, but I-I don’t want to leave you. I mean, leave the Choice Buy.” Blushing hard, she grabbed a chip to cover.
    “Why did you leave home in the first place?”
    She tried to explain. “I had to find work. Because my brother…he left us.” Shame engulfed her at the memory, her brother’s hands cuffed together, being led away.
    “Emma, I’m sorry.” Gabriel brushed the pad of one finger over the back of her hand. “It’s hard to lose family.”
    She peeked at him from beneath her lashes. His face held nothing but sympathy. She wondered how much sympathy would be left if he knew her brother was in prison.
    She dug her chip restlessly into the cheese. “Thanks. The local economy has started to pick back up, and well…” She sighed and gave him the bad news. “I’ll probably look for work. If I find something, I’ll stay there.” Leave you.
    Brightly, he said, “You won’t have any trouble finding a tech job right away—you’re outstanding, both on the bench and with customer service. Any Choice Buy would be lucky to have you. I’d be happy to give you a glowing recommendation.”
    She blinked, a bit shocked at his response. On the one hand, his praise was so gushing she wanted to preen. On the other, he jumped on the idea of her leaving so enthusiastically she wondered if he was as eager to get rid of her as she was reluctant to leave. She’d thought he liked her work and would want her to stay.
    “Thanks.” I think. “But little Matinsfield isn’t like Muskegon. The big tech store in my town is the hardware store, because they have wire.”
    Muskegon and Matinsfield were as different as…as him and her. She had to remember they were total opposites. No future. Alpha geek and iota wolf, gentle giant and tiny piglet.
    He had a tab and she had a slot.
    “Muskegon isn’t that big,” he said. “It’s not like we’re Silicon Valley.”
    “It’s ten times the size of Matinsfield.” No, it wouldn’t work. How could she mate anyone who wasn’t furry? He was big town, she was small, and they really were not very much alike at all. “If my town had a computer store, it would feature the latest in eight-bit graphics.”
    He laughed. “Nothing but moving pixels and one-note sound? And game consoles the size of a lawn mower?”
    “Ha. Yes. And plate-size game cartridges.” Her spirits lifted. At least in this one area, they weren’t so different after all. “The kind you have to blow to get ’em to go.” She cupped her hands as if holding a cartridge and demonstrated,