"Easier?" He crossed the room in three strides, stopping just short of touching her. "You were going to leave? Without talking to me?"
"I heard what Stan said last night," she said quietly. "And then while you were gone, he found me outside and?—"
"What did he say to you?" The words came out as a growl.
She flinched, and he forced himself to take a breath. To soften his tone. But his wolf was clawing at his skin, furious that someone had scared her, terrified that she was about to walk out of his life.
"He said I was causing problems. That I was a distraction." Her voice wavered. "That if I was really your mate, you would have claimed me by now."
Lex went very still.
Behind him, he heard Faye usher Adam toward the door. "We'll just... give you two some privacy."
"Call me!" Faye called.
The door closed. They were alone.
"Is that what you think?" he asked quietly. "That I don't want you? That I haven't claimed you because you don't matter to me?"
"I don't know what to think." Tears spilled down her cheeks, and each one felt like a knife to his chest. "You left this morning without saying goodbye or explaining anything. You've had every opportunity to... to be with me, and you haven't. And now your whole pack is fighting because of me, and I just—" Her voice broke. "I can't be the reason you lose everything, Lex. I won't."
"Jules." He reached out, gently taking the succulent from her hands and setting it on the nearby dresser. Then he cupped her face, tilting it up until she had no choice but to look at him. "I haven't claimed you because I wanted you to have a choice. A real choice. Not one made in the heat of the moment, or because you were trapped here with me, or because my wolf was pushing too hard."
"But—"
"I left this morning because Riko called an emergency meeting and I didn't want to wake you. I should have left a note. I should have done a lot of things differently." He stroked his thumbs over her cheekbones, wiping away tears. "But I have never, not for one second, doubted that you're mine. Not since the first time I ever saw you. And I stood in front of my entire pack today and told them exactly that."
Her breath hitched. "Adam said you called me your mate."
"Because you are." He rested his forehead against hers. "You've been mine since the moment you walked into that garage babbling about your car. Hell, you've been mine since before that. Since the first time I saw you locking up your shop, singing to yourself thinking no one was watching." His voice dropped. "I've just been too scared to do anything about it."
"You? Scared?" A watery laugh escaped her. "You're the least scared person I've ever met."
"But I am. I'm terrified of you." The admission cost him, but she deserved the truth. "Terrified of wanting you this much. Terrified of what happens if I let myself have you. Terrified that my world will hurt you, that the pack won't accept you, that you'll wake up one day and realize you made a mistake."
"Lex—"
"But I'm more terrified of losing you." He pulled back just enough to look into her eyes. "So if you want to leave, I won't stop you. But I need you to know that if you stay... if you choose me... I will spend every day of my life making sure you never regret it."
She stared at him for a long moment, emotions flickering across her face too fast to track. Then her hands came up to grip the front of his shirt.
"I don't want to leave," she whispered. "I never wanted to leave. I just didn't want to be the reason your life fell apart."
"You're not the reason anything falls apart. You're the reason everything finally makes sense." He covered her hands with his. "Stay. Please. Not because you're trapped or because you have nowhere else to go, but because you want to be here. With me."
"I want to be here." The words came out fierce, certain. "I want you. All of you. Wolf and grumpy mechanic and everything in between."
Something in his chest cracked open. "Jules?—"
"But I need you to stop holding back." She released his shirt and slid her hands up to his shoulders. "I need you to stop trying to protect me from yourself. I'm not fragile. I'm not going to break."
Heat flooded through him, his wolf surging forward with a possessive growl. "You don't know what you're asking for."
"Then show me."
Three words. Three simple words that destroyed the last of his restraint.
He kissed her. Not gentle, not careful. He kissed her like he'd been dying to kiss her for months. Like she was air and he'd been drowning. She made a sound against his mouth, something between a gasp and a moan, and her fingers dug into his shoulders as she pressed closer.
