Then why was it so difficult to bring up the topic of his wolf DNA?
They ate in comfortable silence for a little while before Trey got a pensive look on his face. Suddenly worried she’d gotten too mushy too fast, Samantha quickly stood and began to collect the scattered food containers.
“Sit and finish your beer,” she said when Trey started to stand to help. “It’ll only take me a second to get this stuff put away in the fridge.”
He ignored her of course, grabbing the rest of the takeout boxes and following her into the kitchen, chuckling as Sam stood on her tiptoes to try to reach into the back of one of her upper cabinets for the plastic containers.
“Good thing I came in here to help,” Trey said, moving closer to reach over her head, his warm, firm body pressing against hers in the most delicious way. “How would you have ever gotten these out?”
“I’m sure I would have figured it out,” Samantha murmured, nudging her butt back playfully against his crotch, smiling to herself when she felt the bulge in his jeans. “How hard could it be?”
Trey snorted as he took down a few of the plastic containers and spread them out on the counter. “Seems pretty hard from where I’m standing. But I’m sure you already knew that.”
Samantha bit her lip to keep from laughing, enjoying how easy it was for them to flirt with each other. As they stood side by side putting away the leftovers, their arms and hips touching occasionally, she could almost forget all the secrets they were keeping from each other.
“You up for dessert?” She turned to face him after finding a place in her crowded fridge for the containers. “I always keep some cookies around in case of emergency.”
Grinning, Trey reached out to snag the waist of her shorts and tug her closer. “If we’re talking about dessert, I can think of something I’d like even more than cookies.”
Samantha opened her mouth to tell him that had to be the cheesiest line she’d ever heard, but then Trey was pulling her into his arms and kissing her, and suddenly she had a difficult time thinking about anything other than his lips on hers.
One moment, Trey’s big hands were resting casually on her hips, his fingers sliding under her T-shirt to tease the sensitive skin above the top of her shorts; the next second, he was picking her up and setting her butt down on the counter. She automatically spread her knees to make room for him to slip between them, then wrapped her legs around his waist like it was the most natural thing in the world.
He slid one hand into her hair, tugging just the way she liked, while his other slipped down to her bare thigh, fingers tracing up and down her skin, electric tingles chasing his touch.
“Maybe we should do this somewhere else?” he murmured against her mouth. “The last time we tried to make out in here, you attacked me with a coffee mug.”
Samantha laughed, refusing to think about the fact that she couldn’t even see the scar on his hand now. “I promise to stay away from coffee mugs from now on, but if you want to take this somewhere else, like my bedroom, let’s say, I’m not going to complain.”
Trey pulled back and stared down into her eyes, his gaze intense. “I wasn’t implying we have to rush anything if you aren’t ready for that.”
Samantha caught her breath, pretty sure her heart had never beaten this hard in her life. “And if I am ready?”
Gaze never leaving hers, Trey slipped his hands under her butt, picking her up easily. She instinctively locked her ankles together behind his back, wrapping her arms tightly around his broad shoulders and holding on like a koala bear even though she knew in her heart that he’d never let her fall.
Samantha expected Trey to make a beeline straight down the hallway to her bedroom, but it turned out he was in no hurry, slowing when he was halfway across the living room to gently set her butt on the back of the couch. She kept her legs wrapped around him as he kissed her again, his tongue teasing hers, the taste of him enough to nearly drive her crazy. When she felt his jean-covered hard-on pressing against the sensitive area between her thighs, her hips started rolling as if they had a mind of their own.
She slid her hands under Trey’s T-shirt, letting her fingers trace their way up his muscular abs as she pushed the soft material up his chest. She did her very best not to gasp out loud, but as he moved back so she could get the garment over his head, she found herself hypnotized by the tattoo of a wolf head on the left side of his chest.
She’d seen it before, when he flashed it briefly at the restaurant on their first date, but now it took on a whole new meaning. She was surprised he’d so blatantly put his wolf secret out there for the whole world to see. Then again, maybe it was his way of dealing with something so overwhelming—tattooing the truth of it right on his chest was the only possible way for him to deal with it.
Reaching out, she glided her fingertips across his heavily muscled chest, up from the deep divide between his pecs, slowly tracing the outline of the wolf. The work was exquisite, the exposed fangs making the creature appear both savage and protective at the same time. She could easily spend hours staring at the tattoo, memorizing every single line and curve of it.
“Do you like tattoos?” he asked softly, the deep rumble of his voice seeming to vibrate up from deep in his chest. The lights from the lamp beside the couch reflected off his eyes in that crazy way it seemed to do with him, making his irises almost glow with a yellow-gold glimmer. It had to be the most amazing, arousing thing she’d ever seen.
“I likethistattoo.”
She scraped her nails down the figure like she was running her fingers through the creature’s fur. The wolf gazed at her, the intensity in those eyes making it seem like the animal could see into her soul, and she caught her breath. She couldn’t wait any longer. She had to tell Trey the truth. Right now.
She lifted her head to look at him. “I have to tell you something.”
“Later,” he said, the words almost sounding like a growl as he said them. “Much later.”
Trey moved so fast Samantha barely had time to do more than yelp before he was slipping one arm under her knees and the other behind her back, scooping her off the couch and heading for the bedroom. She’d never realized she was the type of woman interested in being swept off her feet, but she had to admit, when Trey was the one doing it, she could get used to it.
She hit the light switch on the wall as they stepped through the door and into her bedroom, laughing as he tossed her casually on the bed, kicking off his shoes before reaching forward to grab the hem of her T-shirt, pulling it slowly over her head, leaving her lying there in her shorts and bra. The way Trey’s eyes roamed over her partially nude body at that moment felt like a caress.
“Well?” she prompted softly as he continued to gaze down at her like she was something he desperately wanted to devour. “Were you planning on joining me?”
