Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 85616 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85616 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
I ran harder but the scent didn’t diminish. It reminded me of the most intoxicating brandy. Sweet and manly and powerful. Stronger, stronger… Was I chasing it? I slowed down as I entered a clearing. A very familiar clearing. Flashbacks to the night I first met Miles here crossed my mind, to the morning when he fucked me against a tree and made me see the heavens.
Great. I’d been trying to run from him and ended up in the one place that reminded me most of him. I shook off some of the water that had soaked into my dense fur. The rain had slowed to a drizzle. I turned, about to call it and just go home.
That’s when I saw him run out into the clearing. His sleek gray and white fur shone. His big yellow eyes glowed equally as bright. He slowed as he entered the clearing and spotted me. He drew toward me. His tail was down between his legs and his head was bowed in a way that read as apologetic. My ears went up. I stepped forward slowly. Body language was a wolf’s natural way of speaking, and his was saying a lot.
He came over to me and turned his neck to the side. I didn’t nuzzle into him. He gave a small whine and went down to the floor, rolling over, exposing his belly. He was being submissive. If he were to do this in front of a wolf he didn’t know, he risked exposing his most vulnerable parts to a nasty and life-threatening bite. But he knew I’d never do that to him.
Trust. There was so much between us.
I dropped my head, sniffed at his neck. Rubbed my face against his.
Home. No need to run. No need to hide or deny or doubt.
Why had I ever allowed myself to think otherwise?
We both shifted back into our human forms, stood on our two feet, and embraced under the rain. I kissed his neck, was more than relieved that he’d come to find me. I was ecstatic. This was just another sign that Miles was serious about what he said to me. I held his head in my hands, rain streaking down his forehead, flattening some of his dark brown hair. I could see in his eyes that he hurt as badly as I did. I kissed him.
“Sorry,” I said. The words spilled out of me. “I reacted because of my anxiety. It won’t happen again. Promise.” It wasn’t often that I let my impulses get the best of me. I had been getting a better handle on my anxiety over the years, but the stakes with Miles just felt so astronomically high. It made my fight-or-flight instincts kick in and unfortunately, I had chosen flight. Like a damn coward. I tried to ice him out in a feeble attempt at protecting us both.
But from what? Having a happy ending?
Miles shook his head. The gold band at the top of his ear sparkled under the mist. “You don’t have to make me promises like that. We’re human—mostly—and we make mistakes. It’s okay. It’s fine. As long as you can hear me out.”
I nodded before saying, “Of course. I should have listened to you earlier. Let you speak. It was—”
“It was fine,” he said, kissing me back. I pressed my body against his. It felt like I had moved close to a crackling fire. His body heat encased me and fought off the late fall chill in the night air.
“I want to say first that I meant what I said to you after the full moon. I love you, Dylan. I’ve grown to love you with every passing day, and I’m so excited to keep on loving you, to growing the connection we have.” He kissed me as if it was a period to his statement.
His words—fuck—I wanted to get them tattooed across my chest. Inside my damn heart. I wanted to skate them into the ice every time I played a game. They were all I ever wanted to hear. Feeling loved by someone who you love in return is akin to winning the emotional lottery. No greater feeling existed than the warm sunshine that just rushed through my veins and filled my body from head to toe.
“And I understand,” he continued sincerely, “where your worry and hesitation comes from. But I really did feel that fated pull the night of the full moon, and the more I think about it, the more I can see a link. I had taken everything off that night. Even my jewelry. I barely ever take that off, especially not this bracelet.” Miles fiddled with the golden cuff around his wrist. “I want to try something.”
“Fisting?” It was an intrusive thought. My eyebrows jerked up. Miles looked at me before he started to crack up.