“How many years?”
“Five. Or seven. Hard to say.”
“So you’ve been nesting for five to seven years, and we’re dodging a mate bond with mirrored sunglasses, but you think your wolf wouldprobablywalk away from me willingly.”
Ethan nodded. “Yup.”
“You are so full of it.” I shook my head, opening my door and taking the driver’s seat. “Go home with your pack.”
He waited for me to close the door, and leaned his forearms against the curve of metal above the window until I rolled the window down. “What if we go to my place and I make you dinner?”
“We just ate dinner.”
“Right.” He paused. “How about I let you raid my snacks. You think they’re yours anyway, right?”
“Do you eat them when you get hungry?”
His forehead wrinkled. “No. That would be wrong.”
“Then yes, I think it’s mine.”
“Okay, final offer,” Ethan said, his expression growing serious. “I will let you open as many of the bags of gummy candy in my stash as you want, and you can let them start hardening.”
“So it’s not a nesting stash, and it’s not for me, but I’m the only one who’s allowed to eat the candy in it?”
“Yup.” He didn’t bat an eye at the question.
“Bye, Ethan.” I started rolling up the window.
“Fine, I’ll admit whatever you want.” He stuck his hand through the window, basically forcing me to stop rolling it up.
I rolled it down.
“What do you want me to say, Muffin?”
“Just tell the truth.”
His arms rested on the window’s opening again, and he leaned his head inside the vehicle until our faces were only a few inches apart.
“The nesting stash is for you,” he said seriously. “I’m not ready to be alone right now. My wolf is driving me crazy. I’d rather watch you empty the hoard than go home by myself. Hell, I’d rather have my wolf sleep on your doorstep than go home alone.”
I let out a long breath.
I shouldn’t give in, but fuck, how was I supposed to argue? I didn’t want to go home alone either, and I didn’t want him to be in pain just because the universe decided he should be stuck with me.
I waved him toward me. “Get in, Cupcake.”
His whole face lit up. I wished I could see his eyes.
He was in the passenger seat in record time, and I pulled out of the parking lot with an inward sigh.
I was a sucker.
Ethan directedme toward his house, asking questions about the dress fitting and how it had gone.
He was so easy to talk to, it was ridiculous.
We were in the middle of a heated disagreement about whether Red Hots actually counted as candy when he unlocked the front door of his house and tugged me inside.
