Cole
She’s beenin there too long. It’s too quiet.
I’m not the only one pacing right now, my concern growing by the second. I feel the wolf in my head. He’s restless, demanding I go after our mate.Ours to protect. Ours to protect.Those words repeat in my head like a song I can’t get rid of until I finally stop fighting and go to the door. “Nora?” I knock gently so she won’t be startled, but there’s no answer. It doesn’t make me feel much better. Knocking again, I raise my voice a little. “Nora, are you all right?”
Fuck this. I want her to know she has space, but I can only go so far. She didn’t lock the door, and the knob turns freely under my hand.
Still, I ease it open so she doesn’t get spooked. I don’t know what I expect to find—her hair floating on the surface of the water with her body underneath? Maybe long gashes down her arms?
Instead, her head rests against the back of the tub, eyes closed, lips parted to allow her soft, slow breathing. She’s asleep. NowI’m glad I came in when I did. What if she slid under the water?
She’s the steel, and I’m the magnet being drawn to it. I couldn’t help it if I tried, not that I want to try. I would much rather kneel down next to the tub, moving slowly and silently, watching her. So peaceful. She can’t hate me when she’s asleep. Maybe that’s what gives me the balls to reach for her, to take her face in my hands. How is her skin this soft? There’s so much about her I was never able to discover. Too many layers of hate stood between us.
Now, there’s nothing but tenderness. Protectiveness. All I want is to take care of her. The question is, will she ever let me?
I would swear she hears my silent question, since she turns her face toward one of my palms and nuzzles it in her sleep. The part of her that knows this is inevitable is reaching out, trying to make contact. All I can do is soak it in, filled with gratitude. That’s new for me. Gratitude has never been a big part of my life.
That’s all that fills my soul as she accepts my touch and even leans into it. It’s humbling, being trusted. It’s more than I deserve after what I put her through.
My wolf insists on more, not that I have to be convinced. Nothing in the world could stop me from leaning in now, touching my lips to hers. Rose pink and full. Like they’re waiting for my kiss.
And sweet. So sweet. For a moment, this is enough. Frozen this way, feeling the way her lips yield under mine. The air crackles around us, charged with pure magic. The bond hums between us.
She’s kissing me back.My heart swells, ready to burst. My breath catches in my chest as the kiss deepens, my tongue parting her lips, testing the warmth inside her mouth. Stroking her tongue until a soft moan stirs in her throat and gets me hard in an instant.
I see myself doing this for the rest of my life. Kissing only these lips. Sharing breath with one person and one person alone. If this is all I have—this sweetness, this completeness—that’s fine with me. I can’t imagine ever wanting anything more.
It’s perfect… until it isn’t.
I feel it when she wakes up and realizes what’s happening. The instant she goes still. Her moan turns into a gasp, and an invisible wall between us drops into place before she breaks the kiss. “What are you doing?” Her voice is thick with sleep and confusion, but she’s aware enough to shove me away.
Her smooth, pale skin isn’t so pale anymore. It goes red all at once, and her big, blue eyes flash fire that I would swear singes my hair. “What is wrong with you? What gives you the right? I was sleeping!”
I would tell her what gives me the right—my wolf, and hers, the bond we share—but I don’t think she wants to hear it. That means having to ignore the indignation that flares in my chest, but I manage to murmur, “Sorry.” I think that might be the biggest lie I’ve ever told. I’ve never been less sorry for anything as I get up and reach for a towel.
“I don’t need your help,” she mutters, remaining in the tub, as she crosses her arms over her chest, covering her perky tits.
“Don’t be stubborn. I’ve already seen you naked, remember.”
She rolls her eyes, an annoyed huff falls from her lips before she pushes herself up to stand. The sight of her perfect bodysweeps away every thought, every need but the singular desire to mate with her again. To feel her body under mine, to find pleasure and release in her. That union. I need it the way I need air and water. I envy the water running over her bare skin as I help her out of the tub, the towel wrapped tightly around her.
Close. So close. The temptation is all-consuming. I’m trembling, covered in a sheen of sweat as my heart pounds almost painfully and my wolf whines, frustrated and yearning.
Ours. Ours.I need her. I can’t believe how much I need her. And she’s so close, and her scent is so strong, and she belongs to me. She always will.
There is no resisting the pull she has over me. Not until she turns and glares up at me. “Excuse me.” Her small hands press against my chest before shoving me away. She might use all the strength in her body, but all she manages to do is move me a few inches. That’s enough, though. It snaps me out of this fog she puts me in and gets me moving back to the bedroom so I can resume my pacing while she gets dressed.
I don’t know how long I’ll be able to live like this. Being rejected by my mate. I’m just as surprised by all of this as she is. Instead of trying to get through it together, it’s like we’re on opposite sides in a war. Eventually, she’ll have to come around. Fate won’t let it go any other way.
It feels like an eternity before she almost tiptoes out of the bathroom. “How are your feet?” It seems like the safest question, and I do care.
“I think they’ll be okay,” she mumbles, lifting one to show me the sole. “I guess I won’t be dancing at the ballet anytime soon.”
She’s funny, though I get the feeling laughing would be the worst thing to do right now. Still, that would probably be safer than staring at her in a pair of shorts and a T-shirt so worn, so thin, I can almost see her skin through it. She needs better clothes. She needs her own toiletries. She needs so much.
She also needs to get out of this room. This is her home now. I want her to get used to it. “Why don’t we go downstairs and watch a movie?” I ask.
The energy in the room changes all at once, crackling with uncomfortable tension. “I don’t think that would be a good idea, do you?” she asks before her bottom lip disappears under her teeth. Her taste lingers in my memory, and I have to look away or else risk losing myself to the temptation.
