One thing Juniper knew for certain: her heart and thoughts were somehow being pulled together by some kind of gravitational force, leveraging upon her like a fine-point black hole at the pit of the energy well pumps she had just driven past. It was a force she couldn’t resist, a pull that drew her closer to Daniel with each passing moment, even as her mind screamed for her to run.

She took a deep breath, steeling herself for whatever came next. The car door opened with a soft click, and she stepped out into the rain, the cool drops a welcome relief against her engorged skin. Daniel followed suit, his posterior chain opening from the passenger seat with a grace that belied his size.

They stood there for a moment, facing each other across the rain-slicked bitumen, the city lights casting a hazy glow around them. Juniper’s heart raced, her pulse pounding in her ears as she met Daniel’s gaze, his blue eyes dark with an emotion she couldn’t quite name.