Max walked into Gage’s house, holding a baby monitor and wondering if this counted as a date or not. Seeing that Addison was there, it seemed unlikely. They were all just hanging out watching a movie. Then why was he so nervous?

Both Riley and Addison met him at the door, holding glasses of wine. Addison also had a beer in her hand, which she offered to him. He accepted.

“Ready to be scared?” she asked.

“Sure,” he replied.

“Just a heads up, I may squeal,” Riley said, giving him a grin.

Clad in jeans and a sweatshirt, she looked cozy and adorable, and Max could hardly tear his eyes away from her. He still remembered the outline of her luscious body from when he had seen her in that dress of hers in the morning, and his imagination was running wild.

“Consider me warned,” he managed to get out, his throat getting dry.

They filed into the living room after that, where bowls of popcorn were set out on the coffee table. Pillows and blankets were in a pile near the couch, and the TV was on, the movie all ready to go.

Addison took her place on one edge of the couch, so that there was no other option that to have Max and Riley sit next to each other. They got comfortable, with Riley grabbing a blanket and pulling her legs up onto the sofa.

Settling in next to her, Max could feel the warmth radiating from her body, as she balanced her glass of wine on her knee. With one last look at the baby monitor, which showed Olivia fast asleep, he set the thing aside close by so he could easily glance at it.

Addison grabbed the remote, pressing play.

“Let’s get this party started,” she said, exchanging smiles with Riley. “Oh, I almost forgot,” she added as the logo of the production company came up on the screen in front of them.

Addison rushed to turn off the lights and then settled back onto the couch, the room now only illuminated by the glow of the TV. Max could hear Riley’s heart start to beat a little faster, and he chalked it up to the fact they were about to watch a scary movie.

But his own heartbeat quickened too, and it had nothing to do with the film. Riley was close enough to touch, and in the dark, he was even more acutely aware of her presence. Her blanket rustled every time she moved, a soft sound that reminded him of clothes falling to the floor, for some reason.

Taking a sip of his beer, he leaned back on the couch, stealing glances at Riley. He could still see her perfectly well in the dark, and he watched the light from the TV flicker across her beautiful face.

A deep need to reach out, maybe hold her hand took over, but he ignored it as best he could.

This is going to be one long movie.

* * *

Max found the group of college kids trapped in an old haunted mansion entirely unreasonable. Why on earth would they split up? Didn’t they know there was strength in numbers?

On the other end of the couch, Addison yawned. Next to him, Riley was snuggled into her blanket, and looked like she was about ready to start watching the movie from between her fingers.

“Guys,” Addison whispered, making Riley jump.

“Jesus, what?” she asked.

Hitting pause, Addison let out another yawn and rolled her shoulders.

“I think I’m going to call it a night,” Addison replied. “You two finish the movie without me.”

As Riley turned toward Addison, her face was hidden from Max, but he was pretty sure she was mouthing something to her friend. For a moment, the corner of Addison’s mouth tugged upward.

“Are you sure?” Riley asked, her voice just a tad too high.

“I’m going to doze off on this couch pretty soon, so yes, I’m sure,” Addison assured her, throwing Riley the remote as she got up from the couch.

Riley looked like she wanted to say more, but Addison all but ran away from the room. Max could hear her steps bound up the stairs to the second floor. The air in the room changed as soon as Addison was gone.

There was no more buffer. It was just him and Riley, and suddenly all the could think about were her lips. At least when the movie had been playing, he had been able to force himself to focus on what was happening on the screen.

Now, together in the dark, the situation felt more intimate than ever.

“Shall I…?” Riley trailed off, holding up the remote. “Or do you want to go to sleep, too?”

“And not find out why the creepy mansion with the very impractical maze-like layout is being haunted by a ghost who likes moving curtains around and standing ominously in the shadows?” he asked. “I don’t think I could live with such a mystery unsolved.”

Riley chuckled, rolling her eyes at him.

“Not the greatest fan of horror films, are you?” she countered.

“I like the company, though,” he replied.

She might have blushed at that, but it was too dark to be sure. Either way, she pressed play, and the movie started again. But it didn’t escape Max’s attention that Riley had scooted a little closer to him.

He almost moved to put his arm around her, but thought better of it. They were still practically strangers, even though it didn’t feel like it. And the last thing he wanted was to make Riley uncomfortable.

But as the movie progressed, Riley sank deeper into the couch, as if trying to get farther away from the TV.

“You know, you don’t seem like a big horror fan either,” he commented, keeping his voice low.

“It’s more Addison’s thing, but it kind of became our tradition. I’m more of a scaredy-cat, but I still enjoy the adrenaline rush,” she replied.

They fell into a comfortable silence for a moment after that, as the main character of the movie, an attractive young blonde, ventured into a dark, dank basement for some reason. As the steps creaked beneath her feet, something leapt out of the darkness, making both the character and Riley yelp and jump.

Max couldn’t help but laugh as Riley huddled on the couch. In the movie, a large black cat skidded out of the basement, running up the stairs and past the terrified heroine. Riley’s hand flew to her heart, as she caught her breath, before laughing as well.

“So, what do you think?” Max asked. “Normal cat or ghost cat?”

Without even really realizing he was doing it, he was also moving closer to Riley, as she gulped down the last of her wine.

“Well, it didn’t float or anything, so I’m going to go with normal,” she replied. “These damn jump scares always get me,” she added, shaking her head.

They were now all but pressed together on the couch, with Riley’s heartbeat thudding in his ears, and Max couldn’t hold back any longer. Reaching out, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

For a moment, he was in limbo – had it been the right thing to do? But as she snuggled up against him, his doubts disappeared. It felt right to have her close. As she let out a little sigh, he pulled her even closer.

His bear was purring beneath his skin, clearly pleased with this development.

The movie was no longer adequate distraction as Max breathed in Riley’s scent, feeling his every cell be drawn to her. And he noticed she didn’t seem to be that invested in the movie, either.

Biting her lip, her gaze kept darting away from the screen. When she craned her neck to look up at him, something about the look in her eyes caught him off guard. There was hesitation and craving there, mirroring the war going on inside him.

Reaching out, he brushed his fingers across her cheek, holding her gaze. Words didn’t seem necessary. He was sure they were on the same page. Anticipation and desire pounded in his veins as he bent his head, softly brushing his lips against hers.

Riley responded immediately, her eyes fluttering shut and her lips parting. Their kiss was slow and lingering at first, with Max taking his time to enjoy the moment. But before long, they were making out like teenagers, with her hands locked behind his neck and his squeezing her closer to his chest.

Breathing growing ragged, their bodies rubbed together in the dark. Max was entirely consumed by the sensations flowing over him, yet little by little, something was starting to grab his attention.

The sound was soft at first, barely audible, but as it grew louder, something in Max’s brain sparked. Riley seemed to be hearing it too, as her eyes suddenly snapped open. Pulling apart, they both immediately looked over at the baby monitor.

Olivia was awake and fussy, not quite crying yet, but getting there.

“I’m sorry,” Max whispered to Riley. “I have to go.”

“Of course, of course,” she quickly said, moving further away from him.

He wanted to say something else, but couldn’t find the words.

Thanks, kissing you has been amazing didn’t really seem appropriate.

So he ended up muttering another apology as he grabbed the monitor and rushed toward the door. As he stepped into the balmy summer evening, he had no idea what he was going to do next.

Riley was his mate, he was more than sure of it now. But did that really change anything?