Chapter Three
Darla and David, the double Ds, didn’t stay for long. Hayley stared out the window, watching the car drive away. The house had gone really quiet, and she didn’t know if she even wanted to be left alone with Micah.
Her body was betraying her.
Every second she spent with him, the more aroused she became. Her clit was so swollen, begging to be touched. She knew it had to do with being close to Micah.
“Is this normal?” she asked.
She knew he was in the room even before he made a sound.
“Yes. You want me, and your body wants me.”
“I’m not a wolf.”
“You feel me, and your body senses me. We don’t know how humans are able to get the same cravings, only that they do.” He moved up behind her, and she closed her eyes as he gripped her shoulders. “It will get worse.”
She couldn’t even think of it getting worse right now. All of her life, she had never felt the desire to screw anyone, and yet, she wanted to jump on his dick and ride it. This was not like her, not even close.
“I don’t do stuff like this. Not with complete strangers.”
“I’m not a stranger, and there is only one of me. I can take care of you. I won’t let anyone else touch you. You belong to me.”
“That’s what bothers me.” She spun around to face him. He held onto her arms, and she didn’t like how they seemed to burn. Not in a bad way either. No, she wanted him so much it made her ache for him in ways she didn’t like. “I don’t know you, and I don’t want to have sex with you.”
“We’re mates. It’s going to happen.” He ran his hand down her arm. She didn’t like how the burn eased under his touch and became pleasurable. “You feel that. You need me, Hayley.”
“I don’t want to need anyone.”
“Whatever happened to that girl from foster care?” he asked, causing her to frown.
“I told you. She got adopted and after a letter, I never heard from her again.”
“Did it bother you?” he asked.
“Not really. I was happy that she had finally found a home. When you’re in care, you don’t really think about anything else. She got a home, and I moved on. Last I heard she was happy, why dwell?”
“Your curiosity about the wolves, it never faded.”
“Not for a second, but I can’t go around begging people for answers.”
“Babe, I’ve told you we’re destined to be mates. From the moment I smelled you across the street as you were packing up your car, I knew.”
She frowned. “You never said anything. You demanded my name.”
“I was reeling. Especially as I’d been in the café and several of the pack were talking about you. You liked to take long treks alone in the forest.”
“I love the forest,” she said.
“Why live in a city?” he asked.
She didn’t know why, and told him so. “It doesn’t matter now. It’s over.”
“It’s never over. Do you believe in fate?”
“No.”
“Well, I do. I believe we were bound to meet and bound to be together. It’s what drove you here, and it also helped that you were intrigued by our kind.” He took hold of her hand and pressed it against his chest.
She didn’t like how the need faded out, and she was able to focus. There was no way she was going to be hanging off his every word just to stop the arousal.
“You’re not my prisoner here. I can give you a life you’ve always wanted.”
“What’s the catch?” she asked. She didn’t like how tempted she was.
“Give me a chance. Give the two of us a chance to mean something to each other.”
“Micah, I don’t know. This thing between us, it scares me. I’m not used to not having control.”
He pushed some of her hair off her face. “You think I don’t feel that? Never have I felt this overwhelmed before in my life. I adore you and yet you flinch away from my touch, even though I know I make you feel amazing.”
She understood his frustration. Taking hold of his hand, she couldn’t resist tracing a finger down his palm. “Fine. I’ll do it.” She had nothing left to lose and everything to gain.
“It requires you spending time with me.”
“I get it. I’m at your mercy and I’m to give you as much of myself as possible.”
Micah cupped the back of her head and leaned in close. His breath fanned across her face, and he was so close that she was sure he was going to kiss her. Suddenly, he pulled away. “You won’t regret it. I promise.”
She was going to regret it. She loved his touch too much to be able to resist for long. This was going to be the hardest time of her life.
****
“What did you think of Forest Palm?” Micah asked.
They walked side by side as they made their way down the long stretch of town. Hayley’s arms were folded, and she was wearing one of his red checkered shirts. It was one of his favorites, and especially now as she was inside it. The scent of her was keeping his wolf at bay. So long as his wolf didn’t want to come out and play, he would be fine. He would never hurt his mate, nor would his wolf. The biggest problem was if he felt there was a threat. His wolf wasn’t exactly known for drawing the women to him, not human women anyway. The only woman he wanted was right beside him.
The urge to touch her was so strong that he was having to fist his hands to keep from reaching out.
Men, women, and kids were looking toward them.
“Everyone is staring,” she said.
He chuckled. “They all know who you are.”
“They do?” She stepped closer to him, and he had no choice but to wrap his arm around her shoulders.
“Yeah. I told them straight that the next woman I’d be walking around town with would be my mate.”
“They look like they want to kill me.”
“I’ll protect you. I’ve told you that.” He closed his eyes as he breathed in her scent. Never had he met a more stubborn woman.
“So weird.”
“What is?” he asked.
“All of my life I’ve been curious about wolves, and what it would be like to finally meet one, yet here I am, and I’m so confused.”
“Ask me anything. If you remember that girl’s name, I can try to find her.”
Hayley stopped and looked at him. “You can?”
“If she’s part of a pack, I can certainly call around. That’s what packs do. We connect, we help each other, and we band together.”
“Kind of like a family?”
“Kind of. I’m not saying it’s all peaceful. There have been a few problems between packs. It happens when one pack gets too big and starts encroaching on another’s land.”
“Are you big? This is a pretty big place.”
“Nope. There’s not another pack for miles around. We’re safe here, and everyone here just wants to live their lives in peace. What more can a guy or woman ask for?”
He loved it when she smiled, and right now she was doing exactly that.
“I do love it here. I found … I don’t know. Like you said, it was peaceful, and I didn’t have to worry about banging into anyone or causing any trouble. It was nice.”
“Why did you live in the city if you hate it so much?” he asked. He loathed going to the city. The smells from such a heavily crowded place always interfered with his sense of smell. It had been next to impossible to find her, and he hadn’t liked that. If she had been anywhere else, he’d have found her in a matter of hours.
“I’m hungry,” she said.
It had been nearly four hours since breakfast. After taking her on a tour of the house, he had also taken her for a long walk around his cabin and surrounding woodland before walking out to town. She did enjoy long walks.
“There’s a diner just up ahead.” He held her hand, running his thumb across the back of her hand.
No one interrupted them as they made their way inside the diner and toward a booth. The scents of burgers, fried chicken, and pasta were heavy in the air. The thing about being a wolf, it meant he had an appetite and was always hungry.
Hayley took a seat opposite him and tucked some hair behind her ear. “I loved coming here.”
“I can’t believe I picked the week you visited to go mate hunting.”
“Why did you decide to go mate hunting?” she asked.
Micah chuckled. “If I told you that I’m sixty years old, what would you think?”
Her gaze was on him. “There’s no way you’re sixty. I wouldn’t put you a day over thirty.”
“I’m sixty-one in November.”
“Wow!”
“It’s a wolf thing. We age slower than everyone else. You’ll have a long life.”
“Wait, how? I’m not even a wolf.”
“When we complete the mating, you and I, we’ll be connected. You’ll age slower.”
“What happened to your parents? Do they know you’ve mated with a human?” she asked, glancing around the diner.
“My parents are dead.”
“Oh, sorry.” He saw her frown. “How?”
“You’re a curious person.”
“Wouldn’t you rather me be curious than, I don’t know, screaming and scared?”
“You’re right. I wouldn’t want you screaming away from me.” He reached across the table, taking hold of her hands.
“Is this another part of it?” she asked. “Holding hands, touching me.”
“Yeah, it really is. You have no idea how calming it is to me just to hold you.”
The smile was back on her face.
“Her name was Lettie. Lettie Sandsman. I would appreciate it if you could at least tell me if she’s happy. I’d like to know that,” she said.
“I’ll start making calls. You didn’t know anything else about her or where she went?” Micah asked.
“I don’t. I only know it was a pack, and that she was loving it there. I just want to make sure. A lot of bad shit can happen and I’m hoping it didn’t happen to her.”
“You cared about her?”
“A lot. She was my family for a while. We relied on each other.”
“Now you can rely on me, babe.” He stroked over her pulse, feeling as it raced beneath his touch. She felt it, too, but he wasn’t going to argue or force her to be with him more, not until she was ready.