“Naw. I fell in love with him.”
With no response, Willow looked away.
“Oookay. So I’ll leave the earrings on the table here. I expect to see you at my wedding.” Her small squeak of excitement at the word “wedding” pulled Willow’s attention from the far wall to the shining glow of happiness in Tess’s eyes. “Anyway. Put them and the dress on. Show up. Go to the reception. Watch us interact. See for yourself that shifters really aren’t all that different than humans. We laugh, live, love. And we love something fierce, Will. It’s what scared me about Caleb. How fierce his love is. Don’t let go of something precious because you were too afraid to hold on. Believe me when I say you’ll never regret holding on with everything you’ve got.”
Graceful as always, Tess rose to her feet. “And if you need more time to think, take it. But don’t keep Ben hanging. He’s the pack’s heart.”
Unable to respond because of the fist-sized lump in her throat, Willow glanced away, nodding that she heard and understood. After Tess left, Willow curled up on her side, allowing the tears to flow. She missed her dad. She was scared and didn’t know what to do.
But most of all, she missed Ben.
* * * *
The next afternoon Willow slipped into a nearly empty row near the back of the church, doing what Tess suggested. Observing. People gathered, sat, mingled, or stood up front, talking to Caleb and his groomsmen, all handsomely attired in black tuxes with varying hues of green vests and bow ties.
From the tingles of awareness that raised the fine hairs at the nape of her neck and how her breasts ached, she knew Ben was around, even if she didn’t see him. Not for the first time did she wonder if his proximity would always cause this type of reaction.
Her ever-present and now dapperly dressed bodyguards sat behind her. A male voice announced they were about to begin and people started buzzing around for seats. Someone slid down the row toward Willow. Without looking she knew it was Ben.
Could he hear the jagged beat of her heart? She glanced up when he sat next to her, her belly twisting at the naked heat in his eyes. He made no attempt to hide the raw longing as he traced the shape of her body with his eyes. Evidently he liked what he saw, until his gaze landed on his bite mark, now covered by a healthy slathering of makeup. His lips turned down ever so slightly, but he didn’t say a word. He did, however, cover her hand resting on her lap, and entwined their fingers.
It was both a clear sign of ownership and desire for touch, two characteristics as necessary to a wolf as air, which Willow had discovered in her foray on the Internet. No matter how charming he appeared on the outside, she needed to remember a deadly predator lurked just under the surface. He was a wild mix of danger and passion, an ultimate temptation, and she wanted to slide into his arms, into his heat.
This was exactly why she couldn’t think properly when he was near. She forgot everything except how she felt in his embrace. I’m an embarrassment to women everywhere, she thought, peeking at him as the wedding processional began. But really, who could blame me?
An hour later she was standing next to Ben in the hotel ballroom now transformed into an elegant atmosphere. An elaborate display of hors d’oeuvres and drinks were provided while the wedding party remained at the church for formal photos. A DJ played rousing music over in a corner and everywhere she looked, Willow saw people clearly enjoying themselves.
But she had no interest in any of it. She needed to speak with Ben. Questions still circled her head and in a room teeming with people, some she knew, most she didn’t, wasn’t the place.
“Is there somewhere close we can talk? Privately?”
Ben looked around the crowded room, then, grasping her hand, tugged her out a side door and down a carpeted hallway. Near the end of the corridor he pulled her into a deserted room, closing and flicking the door lock.
“This is a woman’s restroom.” Willow said.
Ben shrugged. “Best I could do on short notice. If you want, I could check and see if there’s a free hotel room.” This was accompanied by a wicked smile.
The way she was feeling, a hotel room would be a bad idea. Beds were in hotel rooms. “No. This is fine.” She looked around at the single stall, tiled floor, and wide immaculate marble vanity. A vanity that could easily hold her weight.
She gulped, her eyes locked on Ben’s in the mirror, his sly smile saying it all. He was thinking the same thing. All too easily she could see herself hopping on top of the vanity and testing it out. She remained rigid, not trusting herself to move away from the temptation.
Ben closed in behind her, setting his hands on her hips, his chest brushing her back. His lips tickled her neck. “So what did you want to talk about?”