Mira's POV
I was carrying a basket of fresh bread back from Mrs. Hollis's stall, weaving through the marketplace's midday crowd, when one of the younger pack girls fell into step beside me without warning.
I recognized her vaguely, one of the children who occasionally trailed after Toby during his relentless campaign to learn everything about Blackwood, though I couldn't immediately place her name.
"Can I ask you something?" she said, entirely too casual for whatever question she was clearly building toward.
"Sure."
"Did the Alpha smile because of you?"
I nearly dropped the entire basket.
Bread scattered dangerously close to the edge before I managed to catch it properly, heat flooding my face immediately, and the girl watched my flustered recovery with obvious delight, apparently h
