Page 6 of Pack End Game

“You sweet, legendary icon,” I say as I examine the claws of chaos.

It’s time.

Piece by piece, I become the heart of a world-renowned brand.

In here, I step into the stadium’s pulse. The hype on the sidelines. The one who gets the crowd on their feet, who dances in the end zone, who riles up fifty thousand strangers without saying a single word.

I step into the padded legs, tugging them up with practiced ease.

“Let’s give them a show.”

I reach for the head last, settling it carefully over my own.

The world narrows to meshed, obstructed vision and muffled sound.

And just like that..

I am Simon the Sloth.

Chapter Two

Mia

"Wow. How did you know lychee martinis are my favorite?"

I take the offered drink and lean back against the soft cushion of the sunbed, stretching my legs to show them off in the short, colorful sarong that matches the tropical flowers growing in the distance. Over the salty scent of ocean water and sand, I catch a whiff of something familiar.

I eye the other drinks on the waiter's tray. "What's that delicious smell?"

"What smell?" he asks in a low, raspy voice that I strain to hear.

Realizing none of the fruit-colored drinks on the tray could possibly be making such a wood-based scent, I know that smell must be the waiter. My eyes travel up beyond the tray, taking in muscular arms with veins that flex as I stare. In a few more seconds, I'll reach his face and finally see who that delicious scent belongs to.

"I knew I would find you," I tell him, batting my eyelashes. Just a little higher and–

A blaring ringtone rouses me from the best nap of my life, and I let out an emotion-laden groan. Dream me couldn't possibly know who that scent belongs to, but I can't help feeling like I missed out by being woken up before the big reveal.

The face in my dreams could have been the real deal, for all I know. A little helpful hint from fate to help me find the mystery man I've been pining over nonstop for days.

I rub my cheek against the coat I’ve been using as a pillow. My boss, Quinn, recently suggested taking the coat to The Scent Vault to see if they could replicate the coat’s scent since it’s been steadily fading over the past months, despite my efforts to preserve the coat in protective plastic until recently. I knew the idea was a long shot, but that didn’t stop me from being heartbroken when it didn’t work.

Why did I wait so long to tell anyone the full story about the coat in the first place?

Oh, that's right, because I didn't want to admit to everyone what a complete psychopath I am. I told my bestie, Belle, the gist of the mix-up with Jason as soon as she was willing to hear me out, but I left out some key details.

Like the part where I went on a hysterical rant, promising to curse Jason for eternity for stealing a coat that didn't belong to him.

Jason remained impressively calm while explaining over and over that the coat was left behind from a different flight than the one he piloted, and that a flight attendant insisted he wear it upon realizing he had no coat of his own that night, as a surprise snowstorm raged. A somewhat reasonable explanation that only left me even more worked up at the time.

When a bouncer showed up to intervene, I finally made a mature choice to stop yelling... and snatch the coat up for myself.

That's right. I stole the stolen coat, running off into the night with the delicious-smelling garment, and leaving Mr. Pilot Face with no coat yet again. As a scent-match for the coat's mystery owner, the coat definitely belonged more to me than to Jason. So, I justified that it made complete sense that the coat should go home with me and remain under my jurisdiction until I could come up with a plan to find the rightful owner.

Yes. Yes, I am still mildly embarrassed.

I can never show my face in that bar again.

Luckily, Quinn is now out of town for a personal matter, which means I've gotten away with claiming I'm working from home the past few days. My email inbox is probably bursting at the seams by now. I'm too scared to check. All I've been able to do since coming home from The Scent Vault is wallow on the couch with my face buried in my beloved coat.