The wolf roared inside.Mate, mine, finally claimed in this raw way.
We stayed that way for a long moment, panting, foreheads pressed together. My pulse thundered, muscles loose and spent. I’d just creamed my pants like some kid, and it was the best damn thing I’d ever felt.
“Well,” Riley said finally, a breathless laugh bubbling up. “That was...”
“Pathetic?” I offered, smirking despite the haze.
“I was going to say ‘incredible,’ but sure.”
“We didn’t even take our clothes off.”
“No.”
“And we both...”
“Like teenagers.”
“Exactly.”
We were both grinning. I’d never been this happy in my life. Never felt this light, this free.
“Do you want to come to my apartment?” she asked, biting her lip, the bond betraying her nervousness.
“Yes.” I grunted. The word came out way too fast and loud. She laughed, and the sound made my chest ache with how much I loved her.
I didn’t care how eager I sounded.
***
We practically ran out of the wine bar, but the moment we were outside, the sky opened up and rain began to pour, soaking us within seconds. We didn’t care about that. We couldn’t keep our hands off each other. Every few steps, one of us pulled the other into another kiss. Against the wall of the wine bar, under a streetlight, in the middle of the sidewalk while rain cascaded around us.
I pressed her against a brick wall and kissed her until she was gasping, my body covering hers, sheltering her from the rain even as I devoured her mouth. She pulled me into an alley and shoved her hands under my shirt just to feel my skin, her fingers tracing the muscles of my stomach, making me groan.
The fifteen-minute walk took approximately an hour. We were soaking wet and laughing and absolutely ridiculous.
I kissed raindrops off her eyelashes. She licked water from my jaw. We were both insane and neither of us wanted to be sane ever again.
“You’re crazy,” she said at one point, laughing as I spun her around in the middle of the street.
“For you,” I agreed.
“That’s so cheesy.”
I kissed her again to shut her up, and she melted into me. The rain kept falling, and I’d never felt this light in my entire existence.
When we finally reached her building, we stumbled up the stairs, giggling, giddy, ridiculous. Riley’s keys took three attempts to find in her soaking wet purse, then two more attempts to get into the lock because I kept distracting her with my mouth on her neck.
“You’re not helping,” she gasped.
“I’m helping myself.” I bit gently at the spot behind her ear. “Very different.”
“Caelan...”
“I like it when you say my name.”
“Caelan, I swear to god...”
“Keep saying it.”
