Page 23 of Because You Rejected Me

My heart melted and I felt that damaged person inside me recoil. I shouldn’t be having feelings about this man. In fact, I shouldn’t be having feelings about anyone. My mind should be focused on getting my life back in order so I didn’t have to live in a hotel for the rest of my days.

“Ace,” I sighed, hugging my backpack to my chest. “I want to… but…”

He held up a hand. “Say no more. I’ll take you back to the hotel.”

“Sorry.”

He reached out, lifting my chin with his forefinger. “Don’t apologize. You have nothing to be ashamed of.” He leaned down, kissing me gently on the lips. “I don’t regret tonight at all.”

I nodded. “Me either.”

“Come on,” he said, waving for me to follow him. “Let’s get you home.”

Chapter Thirteen: Ace

I barely slept all night. Instead, I laid there with my hands laced behind my head, staring up at the ceiling as I thought of Matt. If I had doubted he wasn’t my mate before, I didn’t doubt it anymore. Every time we touched, it was like electricity shooting through my body. And when I had his cock in my mouth, his scent nearly bowled me over. I couldn’t get enough of him, and I ached for more.

When he’d asked to go back to the hotel, I’ll admit, I felt a little bit hurt. But I had to keep in mind that he was freshly homeless and trying to figure out how to get through the world on his own. Back when I was in his position, I wouldn’t even talk to people, much less get involved with anyone, regardless of how I felt. But Matt gave me a chance. I didn’t know if it was the pull of the full moon or the mate bond, but I was happy it happened. And playing with him as wolves? Well, that was something I’d relive over and over again in my memory. I couldn’t remember the last time I had so much fun.

However, by the time dawn began to peek over the horizon, I was exhausted. I’d maybe gotten an hour or two of sleep at the most. But today was market day and I couldn’t keep my customers waiting. Not only that, but I was picking up Matt to come along with me for the day. That alone was enough to get me out of bed and dressed.

Thanks to his help the day before, I had the truck packed and ready to go in less than twenty minutes. Making sure I had my hat and my bag full of cash, I hopped in the truck cab and headed for the hotel. When I arrived, I found Matt outside waiting for me. I guess he had a hard time sleeping as well.

“Ready to sell some vegetables?” I asked as I pulled up, the window already rolled down.

“Mmm,” he groaned, pulling himself into the truck.

“Maybe coffee first?”

“Please.”

It was more of a grumble than a word, but it was good enough. I took the long way to the market, stopping first to grab us coffee at the only cafe slash bakery in town. It was run by another werewolf named Andy. He was another one of Sam’s projects from way back when, and he provided quite a bit of food to the hotel like I did. He wasn’t manning the counter, which meant he was probably at the farmer’s market as well. He liked to do that to bring in more customers.

With coffee in hand, we arrived at the farmer’s market along with the other vendors. I drove my truck up to my usual spot, backing it close so we could pull more product from the back whenever we needed it. Matt covered the built-in benches with a cloth as I unloaded my vegetables. I showed him where they went and how to display them so that they looked the most appealing to customers.

No sooner had we gotten it put together than a van pulled up beside us. Out stepped a tall man with blonde hair and blue eyes. He had warm colored skin and freckles across his nose giving him a boyish look even though he was only a year or two younger than me.

“Hey there, Ace,” he called, waving in my direction.

“Good morning, Andy,” I replied.

Andy pulled open the back of his van revealing racks and racks of baked goods. Not only that, but there were two large carafes filled with coffee and a rack full of syrups. He even had a small cooler in the back of the van that he used for milks and creamers. The man practically drove a cafe on wheels.

“What have you got today?” Andy asked, ignoring all of his own goods and coming straight over to my booth. He always liked to have the first pick. “Out of rhubarb?”

“No, I just put them aside for you,” I smiled, reaching back into the bed of the pickup. “It’s the last of the season and I knew you’d want it.”

“Damn right I do. These little strawberry-rhubarb tarts sell like hotcakes!” He took the bundle of bright red stalks happily. “And I keep a few of them for myself, of course.” He patted his belly. “Obviously.” Andy’s gaze swept over to Matt, standing awkwardly off to the side. “Did you hire help?”

“Sorry,” I replied, shaking my head. “This is Matt. Matt, this is Andy, the cafe owner.”

“Nice to meet you,” Andy said, holding out his hand.

Matt shook it. “Likewise.”

“Another werewolf, huh?” Andy asked. “You must be one of Sam’s projects.”

“I’m uh… new to town.” Matt’s gaze darted up to me. “And I’m staying at the hotel.”

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