Tempting His Mate(9)

Once he’d sat across from her, she devoured him with her eyes. Even in the cold weather he just wore a simple T-shirt and jeans. No leather jacket tonight. It was a sharp contrast to the suit from earlier but just as sexy, especially since it showed off the roped muscles and tattoos on his arms. It didn’t matter what he wore, the man just exuded raw sexuality.

She took a bite and immediately groaned at how good it was. She should have eaten a real meal earlier, but hadn’t wanted to slow down. This was heaven. When she saw Asher watching her intently with primal hunger in his gaze, she realized she was basically making orgasmic sounds after that bite. “Sorry, it’s just really good,” she muttered.

He shifted almost uncomfortably in his seat and shook his head as he picked up his burger.

She knew exactly what he was thinking about too—that night. “Listen, I’m thankful for this gesture and you stopping by my office today. I understand what you’re doing and I hope we can be friends too.” She wasn’t stupid. She understood he was likely doing this because he wanted more than friendship, but something told her he wouldn’t offer her what she wanted long term. The male had been a lone wolf for a long damn time. Sure he’d settled into pack life—for less than a week—but he wasn’t what she was looking for. She might not know exactly what she wanted, but she didn’t want a fling and she didn’t want a fuck buddy. A male like Asher wouldn’t offer her more. She figured her statement would keep things casual.

“Friends?” he growled as he put down his partially eaten burger.

“Yeah.” Liar, liar. Too bad the sexual chemistry arching between them was off the charts. If she could go back in time and erase that night…She still wouldn’t. That realization annoyed her.

That predatory gleam lit up his eyes, making heat rush between her legs. She cursed her body’s reaction. She shouldn’t like it so much, but she couldn’t help it. She’d loved being dominated by him, being on the receiving end of all that power and strength—and too many orgasms to keep track of. No male had ever elicited that sort of reaction from her before.

“You don’t want to be just friends with me.” A low rumble emanated from him and her nipples hardened. Seriously. What was wrong with her?

“Maybe not.” She wouldn’t outright lie. “But I don’t want what you’re offering.”

At that, his expression darkened with hurt for a fraction of an instant, but then it was gone and she wondered if she’d imagined it. She knew she hadn’t though.

Feeling guilty, she said, “I didn’t mean it the way that probably sounded. I just meant… I just want to be friends with you. What we shared in that hotel was beyond amazing, but we’re both new to this pack and settling in and trying to figure things out. I’m not looking for something casual and while my previous behavior says otherwise, I don’t just jump into bed with every sexy wolf I meet in a bar.”

He went impossibly silent for a long moment. “I never assumed you jumped into bed with just anyone. And I’m not looking for anything casual either.”

Oh. She hadn’t seen that coming. Not at all. “What are you looking for?”

The look he gave her pinned her to the spot. “You.”

Tingles raced down her spine at the bold statement. She could take his meaning a few ways and wasn’t sure which one he meant. Since she was too much of a chicken shit to ask, she took a sip of her wine then paid a whole lot of attention to her burger as she tried to dissect what he’d just said.

* * *

The next evening Ella shut her computer down and pushed out a frustrated sigh. She’d planned to stay a few more hours, but she’d been so distracted all day. Technically it was time for her work day to officially end anyway. But her work load seemed to have grown overnight. She couldn’t focus on the numbers anymore though.

And it was all Asher’s fault.

After what he’d said to her last night at dinner, she’d realized she couldn’t fit Asher into some box. She couldn’t pre-judge the type of male he was—even though that would be the easiest thing to do for her sanity—because she’d read him completely wrong. Now she was thinking that maybe, just maybe, he was what she was looking for after all. But if she read him wrong or made the wrong assumption, she’d just get burned again. And Ella wasn’t sure her heart could take it.

Standing, she stretched her legs and contemplated asking Asher if he wanted to go running later tonight. The rest of their dinner last night had been nice, but he’d been almost too polite. And she’d felt awkward after what he’d said because she hadn’t been exactly sure how to take it.