He was quiet a long time, but at last he said, “You’re right. It’s only right.”
He stepped back from her and, in a single smooth motion, removed his shirt. He held it in one hand and stood before her, silent, watching her study his bare torso. His sheer muscle mass distracted her for a few seconds, but then she focused. Examined. Counted.
One. Two. Three. A triangle in his upper left chest, the target clearly his heart, though each shot had hit too high for that.
Four. The only raised scar, its edges jagged, on the left side of his abdomen just above the waist of his jeans.
Five. Six. Two scars close together in his right chest, directly across from his heart.
Seven. An indented scar between two of his right ribs.
Eight. A scar on the right side just below his last rib.
She closed her eyes. Nine. The one she couldn’t see, covered by the right leg of his jeans. She opened her eyes and walked up to him. He stood still while she brushed her fingers over each scar. She hated the memories of what they had looked like before, but these pale marks on her wolf’s body…she did not hate these. They were proof he had lived.
She walked around him and looked at the exit-wound scars on his back, every one of them jagged and raised. She touched them too. Then she stepped around again to face her dear wolf.
“Thank you,” she said.
She stood on her tiptoes, took his face in her hands, and kissed him. He was slow, careful with her. He let her choose how long. She drew back after a few seconds, but she wanted to be able to give him more than this. She wanted to be able toenjoymore than this. And she needed to hold him, to taste and prove he was hers. She’d been good at it before. She could press a man, bring him to the point of losing himself. She used to revel in knowing she could give this to Nik, do this to Nik.
She rested her forehead against Malachi’s chest.My wolf. I want to enjoy my wolf.
“April?”
“Yes.”
She lifted her head and kissed him again. She brushed her fingers up into his hair, then trailed them down his neck to set her hands on his shoulders. She stood as tall as she could on tiptoe as her lips explored his. Malachi seemed to stop breathing for a moment; then his arms wrapped around her, and he leaned into the kiss with a low growl that let her know he was enjoying her too.
When she pulled back to catch her breath, he instantly opened his embrace, which was disappointing. She stepped close and wrapped her arms around him instead.
“I don’t want to crowd you,” he said, a quiet rumble under the words.
“If you do, I’m pretty sure you’ll smell my nervous system glitching out.”
Another growl, and then he rested his chin on top of her head.
“I’m okay, Mal.”
She nearly squealed when his arms closed around her and lifted her up against his bare chest. One of his arms cradled her back, and her legs draped over the other.
“All right?” he said.
“Yes.”
He smiled, his eyes blazing with their own light. “My mate.”
“My wolf.” She rested her head on his shoulder. “It’s probably going to happen at some point, you know. Me glitching out when we…get close.”
“Then we’ll deal with it together. You can always tell me, April, and you can always have whatever space you need.”
“I don’t want you to feel teased though, or led on, or…”
“I know you better than that.”
April wrapped her arms around his neck and nestled herself against him. “What you called me earlier…”
“My mate,” he said with a triumphant growl.
