Chapter 93

Summer’s POV

I blinked at him—twice, like I was buffering. “Why?”

Jared slid his hand off my thigh, grabbed my wrist, and steered my palm right to his chest. My fingers landed squarely on a heartbeat so fast it felt like a jackhammer. “I’ve got the same sensation here,” he said, voice low. “It’s supposed to chill out once our bond’s locked in.”

“Why?” My curiosity was a catapult—I couldn’t tear my hand away.

“It’s the part of us that aches for a pack. Not a massive group like my friends’—Sigmas don’t roll that way. We crave one person. One permanent companion.”

My ribs felt like they were auditioning for a straightjacket. “I don’t trust men.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “If you *did* trust me, I’d worry about your judgment.”

I snorted, nearly spitting out a laugh. “I thought you’d fucked every drop-dead-gorgeous woman in the country.”

He chuckled, finally releasing my wrist, and let his palm settle back on my thigh. “Nope.”

I ch