CHAPTER NINETEEN

 

 

~

 

Sandy didn’t offer up a word of protest when her mate went to the car and brought her suitcase in. It was getting late, she was a little tipsy from the whisky, and she hadn’t exactly found anywhere to stay for the night.

“You can take the couch,” Joel said as he placed her suitcase down and eyed her with amusement from beneath his dark eyebrows.

“Such a gentleman and where is the dog basket you sleep in?” She tossed back and couldn’t help but giggle at the look on his face.

“Bedroom is that way when you’re ready.” Joel lifted his hand and pointed.

“I hope you mean to sleep,” she tossed back, but they were a long way from that yet.

She’d helped him put together a stew, and it was bubbling nicely on the stove. Her stomach was making protest noises that it could smell it, but it couldn’t taste it, and she wasn’t about to go anywhere on an empty stomach.

“You have a dirty mind,” he grinned and wiggled his eyebrows at her, and she tossed a cushion at his head. Unfortunately, he caught it in time. “Don’t get me wrong. I like it.”

“I like zapping things – it makes me happy. Do you wanna make me happy?” Sandy asked, but he couldn’t be sure if she meant it or not.

“Point taken…”

“It will be, and you know where,” she warned him, but she was less of a shrew and more playful than she had been before when she’d warned him off. Joel had to wonder if his mate was coming around to the idea of them together.

“Climb off your broomstick and have another drink. I like happy drunks.” He offered her a teasing, drop dead gorgeous smile, and she felt that one right to her toes.

“You just wanna see me dance naked on the kitchen table.”

“Yes, I do…”

“Well, tough. I only do that on my kitchen table.” She chuckled.

“Sweetheart, what’s mine is yours,” he offered in all sincerity, and she couldn’t help but chuckle again.

“Now who’s got the dirty mind?”

“Still you.”

 

 

~

 

 

Sandy didn’t know whether it was the excitement of the day, coming off the back of a double shift at work, or the booze, but she’d suddenly gotten so damn tired that it was impossible to keep her eyes open. She’d drifted into a sort of waking sleep and felt the gentle press of a soft blanket over her body before she’d zoned out completely, but strangely, she’d known that he was still around because he was in her dreams.

When she snapped awake a couple of hours later, there he was, looking as sexy as he had in her dreams and smiling at her like he knew a secret. She offered a quick look around the cabin before she returned her attention solely on him.

“Did I fart?” she asked and watched as his broad shoulders started to chuckle before he did.

“As a matter of fact…”

“Gentleman – not,” she said and pushed up.

She let the blanket fall down. Yep, still dressed – that was always a good sign. Although, if her dreams had come true then she would have been naked.

“Hungry?” he asked and pushed up to his feet.

“Actually…” Her stomach grumbled a growl that was just as good as one of his. “Yes.”

“Foods cooked, let’s eat.”

“Tell me what you’re grinning about,” she said as she pushed up and padded on after him towards the kitchen.

“You talk in your sleep,” he tossed back over his shoulder, and she almost tripped over her own feet.

“Do not!” she bit out in hot denial, but she was lying because she knew that she did.

There was a sense of foreboding inside her, a feeling that was burning brightly that she’d said something that she shouldn’t have. After all, her dreams had been hot, and he was the star, and she didn’t think he’d be so damn amused if she’d been calling out for breakfast cereal.

“You know you do,” he tossed back as he reached the stewpan on the stove and removed the lid.

Sandy sniffed the air at exactly the same time he did. “That smells…” Her stomach rumbled again.

“Real good, but could you ask your wolf to pipe down – it’s gonna get fed.” He shot her a wild grin, and she felt her cheeks burning. Not only could he hear her stomach pleading for its life, but what else had he heard while she was sleeping?

“Get me a plate full of that before I just bury my face in the pan and suck,” she tossed back, and they both reached for the serving spoon at the same time. He got there first, and her hand curled over the top of his.

 “If you want to hold my hand…”

“Food!” she grumbled back at him.

“Happy drunk, grouchy when not fed,” he chuckled. “You wanna do this together or do you trust me to serve it?”

“I’m seriously considering zapping you right now,” Sandy warned him, but there was no real malice behind her words, and he laughed it off.

“Then why am I feeding you just to make you stronger?” He grinned to himself as he grabbed a large bowl and started spooning the stew into it.

“I’m your mate, and you have to take care of me – it’s in your DNA – sucker,” she chuckled.

“Well, let that be our little secret,” he offered back and turned to waft the bowl right under her nose. “Hungry?” Her stomach rumbled again. “Sit.”

“Woof.” She frowned, but she hightailed right onto the stool at the end of the counter. “Oh wait – that’s your line – sorry to steal your thunder.”

“Someone doesn’t want feeding…”

“Someone isn’t a dog…”

“No, I’m not,” he grinned as he hovered the bowl just out of her reach.

“Point taken, stored for future reference,” she said, and he liked the idea of that – she was thinking long term. His beast growled within him. He placed the bowl down in front of her and held out a spoon, she snatched it right up and grinned. “And I’ll be sure to ignore it.”

Joel chuckled. “You win, eat,” he said. He found that he didn’t mind losing to his mate and that was a good thing. She might not have been as challenging as some of the pack witch mates, but she was certain to push his buttons because she was so independent and headstrong.

 

 

~

 

 

“Are you okay in there or should I call someone?” Joel stood at the closed bathroom door and called inside as he grinned wide and sniggered to himself.

“What?” Sandy poked her head out of the shower and listened hard because she thought she’d misheard him.

“Well, you sound like you’re in pain…”

“Butthead,” she snapped back and grumbled as she finished showering – without singing another word – and then turned off the water.

“The offer of the vampire is still open…”

“Will you go away?” she snapped back, but she couldn’t help but grin.

Her voice wasn’t that bad – he was just trying to get a rise out of her. Well, she might not have been able to zap him through the door, but she wasn’t going to be in there forever.

She wrapped the towel around her body and frowned. There was just one little problem – she’d left her suitcase outside the door and had no clean clothes to put on.

“I brought you something I thought you might need.”

Sandy winced and cursed under her breath. She had two choices, open the door and snatch her case, or walk out in a towel with her chin held high and offer him the stink eye if he made a sarcastic comment.

“You can put it in my room…”

“Your room?” his voice was teasing.

“For tonight it is…”

“But, sweetheart, what’s mine is yours and what’s yours…”

“Is staying mine, but nice try.” She chuckled.

“You don’t share – got it. I’ll just leave this in your room.”

Sandy knew she still had to walk from the bathroom to the bedroom and she was determined to do it with grace and double fast. Quick timing it was her best option, being the speedy little sucker that she was so that he didn’t cop too much of an eyeful.

How much could he see? She knew that she’d be wrapped in a towel, but still, they’d both know that she was naked underneath, and a towel was not the same a wearing clothes.

Oh, how she wished she’d opened up the door and snatched her suitcase now. More hindsight, perhaps she should learn to trust her gut.

“Ready when you are,” he called from what sounded like a safe distance from the door. She bit down on her pride, lifted her chin, and yanked open the bathroom door as if she couldn’t care less.

There he was, standing on the other side of the room with his big muscled arms folded across his broad muscled chest, and a grin on his face that she would love to have wiped off with a zap.

Sandy tossed him the stink eye, stepped out of the room and slammed the door behind her as she took off on fast feet for the bedroom. She felt the hard yank against her body as her towel was whipped away, and she almost fell back as she tossed a look behind her and found that one end of that stupid, traitorous towel had caught in the door.

Naked, mortified as she slapped her hands over her curvy bits and turned a slow glare in his direction as he almost choked on his tongue, she squeaked a sound in the back of her throat and bit down on a whole big list of curse words that were queuing up to get out.

“Thank you,” he said, practically drooling down his chin as his wide eyes took in her curves and his body rose to attention.

“Gentleman!” she snapped in anger before turning on her heels and fleeing into the bedroom.

A heartbeat later; she heard the howl of laughter that came from her mate and made her jump in place as the deep bass shook the very fabric of the cabin around her. Even the windows were dancing in the frames to that sound.

Sandy rolled her eyes to the ceiling and let her lids close as she bit out several of those bad words that were still fighting like cats in a sack to escape her. One after the other she hissed them out with a little dollop of venom.

Then she slapped the palm of her hand against her forehead and whimpered. “Thanks a lot, fate.”