Page 13 of Forbidden Daddy Mate

His thumb stroked my collarbone up my neck and back again, a rhythmic motion that put me at ease. I glanced up at him, looking into emerald-green eyes so deep you could drown in them.

“That’s right.” He smiled down at me. “Everything’s okay.”

He was right, too. I didn’t have anything to worry about. Why had I been so nervous in the first place? It was silly.

“Sorry,” I said, giving a soft laugh. “I don’t know why. I guess I’m being weirdly jumpy today.”

“Don’t worry about it.” He studied me closer with that smirk on his lips as his hand continued to rest on my shoulder, keeping me in place. But I didn’t mind. Part of me wanted to get even closer, to close the small gap and press my mouth to his.

“You know, I was just planning on popping in and out to see if anyone else had shown up,” he mused. “But I don’t think Varin would mind if I took my time a bit.”

Varin? Who was Varin? Did it matter?

Yes. Yes, it did matter. Whatever was happening shouldn’t be happening. I blinked, shaking my head to clear it. All of my senses were screaming at me to shift into a wolf and tear whoever this man was limb from limb.

“This is a bad idea,” I said, pushing him back.

Tyr’s emerald eyes turned a shade darker. His playful smirk turned to a confused scowl for a moment before returning.

“You are very interesting,” he said. “Not many people can do that naturally. You’re not very good at it, but the fact you can push me out at all is intriguing. Usually, it takes practice. I wonder if it’s the wolf part or if you’re special. Either way, I wouldn’t mind finding out.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, and frankly, I don’t care.” I paused as something he said set off new alarm bells. “How did you know I was a shifter?” My mouth went dry.

“Just a guess,” he said, though something told me he was lying. Only I couldn’t figure out why. “You have that look about you.”

I shook my head, trying to clear the bizarre fuzz starting to fill my head. “I’m sorry, but I think it’s best if you…” I trailed off as that caramel scent grew stronger, filling me, making me forget what I was about to say. My mind suddenly felt blissfully blank.

“You don’t want me to go,” he said, stepping back toward me, a strange edge to his tone. “You want me to stay a while, don’t you?”

I nodded. I couldn’t remember how to speak. I felt like I was drowning in him. Every ounce of my body wanted to be closer to him, to let him do whatever the hell he wanted.

“You want to do whatever I say, don’t you?” Tyr asked.

I did. I really did. I nodded again.

He took another step closer, now in arm’s reach. His hand went to the back of my head, tangling his fingers in my hair as he dragged me toward him, forcing my head upward so I was staring in his face. His mouth was inches from mine, his eyes hungry with lust and craving. His teeth looked unnaturally sharp.

“You want me to—”

He froze, head jerking toward the door. He snarled.

“Unfortunately, it seems we’re about to have company soon,” he said, releasing my hair. “So I’m afraid we’ll have to pick this up some other time.”

I frowned, still reeling from whatever had happened, my mind still muddled and not entirely my own.

“He’s already going to know I was here based on the footprints,” he told me. “If he asks, just say I came asking for supplies.” His thumb brushed against my lower lip. “You don’t need to tell him about us. That’ll be our little secret, okay? You can act like everything’s normal, can’t you?”

I nodded dumbly as the words ingrained themselves in my brain, cementing themselves as gospel.

He smiled. His teeth were normal. “Good. Thanks for the hospitality. Until next time.”

He closed the door behind him, leaving me reeling as I tried to figure out exactly what had happened. My mind continued to spin as I stayed rooted to the spot, trying to figure out why I felt so uneasy and why my wolf was snarling with fury.

I was still there two minutes later when Malcolm strolled in.

“I found a deer,” he announced. “Do you like venison?” The cheerful demeanor vanished almost instantly when he saw my dazed expression. He stepped toward me, his hand twitching as if about to go to my shoulder before he decided against it. “Everything all right?” he asked.

“Um…yeah,” I said, shaking my head to clear it. “Sorry.”

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