Redhawk Caldera (M) Don’t click play.

She opened her eyes but she couldn’t see anything much; the water was very nearly black. Towhee hovered just below the surface until she couldn’t hold her breath any longer, resurfacing with a gasp that was only a little quieter than the first. Her orange eyes popped open and almost immediately narrowed on a dark shape skulking along the shore.

They widened when she recognized Cinar. What the hell was he doing here? Into GILFs, after all? her inner voice quipped. Intrigued—and nudged by the chemical warfare her body waged on her—Towhee paddled back toward the bank. She didn’t fully emerge, instead floating like a sphinx in the shallows.

You’re playing with fire, the Elder rumbled in warning.

Inside her, there were two wolves. One was a mature woman with plenty of life experience and good sense. She identified more as a (great!) grandmother these days than a mother, though she would always be all of the above. The other was lusting after anything with the proper parts, a drive that threatened to overrule logic and reason. If her body said she was good to go, then… well, it knew what it was doing, right?

For the moment, the Redhawk was in possession of her faculties as she said, If there’s even the remotest possibility there’s something between you and Livi, tell me now. Better yet, leave now.