Aric studied the room while keeping his back to me. “It’s not girlie.”
I agreed. My walls were a deep cream with white trim. A few pictures of my sisters, and places we had visited, hung around the room. On either side of my king-size bed stood two dark wood end tables that matched the bed frame. Emme had placed bamboo plants on each. She had a green thumb. I didn’t. I managed to keep them alive by leaving the two silver table lamps on during the day.
My comforter was chocolate brown with a crocodile pattern. I’d splurged and bought eight-hundred-thread-count white sheets. If it were up to me, that would’ve been the extent of my color scheme. Shayna believed otherwise. She folded a copper blanket between the bedsheet and comforter, and added copper and tiger-print accent pillows to brighten the darker shades. My dresser stood on one side of the double doors leading to the bathroom, and my brown leather chair and matching ottoman were on the other. During the day, I often sat on the chair to read, using the natural light from the large picture window to help me make out the words on the page. It was a simple room, and it fit me perfectly.
“I’m not really the girlie type,” I told him.
He turned around to grin at me. “Good.”
Aric’s smile could melt the Arctic in the middle of the coldest night. So could his eyes. I swallowed hard and tugged the edge of the sheet closer to my chin. Aric quickly spun around. “Sorry,” he said. “I’ll wait for you downstairs.”
I slipped on a tank top and jeans and hurried into the kitchen.
While I was convinced the bunny fiasco would live in infamy, Aric didn’t seem the least bit shaken. He draped an arm around me several times during dinner and took me on a romantic walk following dessert.
“It’s supposed to be nice tomorrow. Would you like to go for a hike? I know a spot with a great view of the lake where we could picnic.”
The night had drawn to a close too soon. It saddened me to know he was leaving. But when he wanted to see me again, I jumped at the opportunity. “I’d love to.” His grin held me in place. God, I wanted him to kiss me. “Would you like to come in?” So we can make out on the sofa and I can finally touch you?
Something about the way I looked at him then made those steamy brown eyes shadow over with desire. He answered by closing the distance between us and wrenching the door open. “After you,” he murmured.
As soon as we stepped over the threshold, the vapors from the petting festival on the couch practically knocked me on my butt. Shayna and Koda jumped when they saw us. If we’d arrived a few minutes later I was positive their clothes would’ve been scattered all over the floor. Shayna’s cheeks were red and flushed with sweat, and her ponytail sat completely askew.
Koda panted like he’d just run down a herd of deer. He strategically placed one of our throw pillows across his lap. “Hey. What’s up?”
Like we didn’t know in more ways than one.
I fell into Aric and shoved him back onto the porch, shutting the door on my way out. I turned around, laughing. “So now what do you want to do?”
Aric’s eyes widened slightly as he glanced back at the shut door. “Ah…I thought you wanted to go inside.”
I stopped laughing. Had he thought I was inviting him to my…bed? The way his face reddened told me yes. I didn’t do one-night stands…but I’d also never shared a connection like I did with Aric. His gaze searched mine while my mind struggled with what to do. My inner beast stirred, warming me to my core. She wanted Aric’s wolf, and she rather insistently reminded me I wanted Aric.
My tigress nudged us forward. Aric’s hands slid onto my hips while mine slipped behind his head to stroke his thick hair. Our bodies shuddered as my breasts grazed against the muscles of his powerful chest. He leaned down, brushing his soft lips against mine. He paused to assess my reaction before meeting my lips once more.
Oh, my God.
A barrage of heat pounded every delicate part of me. Our mouths parted.
And his phone rang.
He swore and jerked it out of his back pocket, keeping an arm fastened around my waist. “What do you need?”
“We have a situation. We just killed two more infected vampires and we’re tracking a third.”
“Where?”
“Just North of Kings Beach. This one is old, real old, Aric. She’ll be hard to kill.” The were growled on the other end. “Crazy leech already has a bitch of a scar from the last bastard who tried.”
I gripped Aric’s arm as my lungs clenched. “Where’s the scar?”
“What?”
My grip tightened. “Aric, ask him where the scar is.”