I smiled sweetly at him and swam to the far end. I was almost at the bank when he grabbed my ankle and dragged me back in. I popped up to face him, my hands crossed over my chest, and he was smiling devilishly at me as I fought to blink the water out of my eyes.

I adjusted and pointed at him the best I could considering the situation. “Back off, bucko.”

He smiled wider. “But I thought you were challenging me. An alpha never backs down from a challenge. Even from a tiny predator.”

I gave him a dirty look. “What challenge are you talking about?”

“Didn’t you say I needed to work on my wooing skills?” He leaned in close and nuzzled the side of my face with his nose, whispering, “You said something about that right?”

I wasn’t sure. Had I said something about that?

I took a half a step back until I was up against the bank. He took another step towards me closing any distance between us.

“I’ll drop you, wolf,” I said with a confidence I didn’t feel.

“No, you won’t.”

“How do you know I won’t? I’ve got the Kung Fu grip, remember?”

“Because you’re an empath. You feel emotions and mirror them.” He reached up and pushed a curl of wet hair back behind my ear. “You feel happiness, excitement, and pain… There are only a few races of people that truly are, and you’re the strongest one I’ve ever met. You’re also the only one I’ve ever met that can take the pain away.”

“How do you know that?” I was genuinely curious at this point.

“Because if you didn’t you wouldn’t be as good at your job as you are. I know you’re an empath because you wouldn’t have let me get this close to you. I don’t even need to woo you, Jasmine. I just have to want you.”