Page 52 of Oath of Revenge

She just nodded and set the eggs beside their bags. Then she turned toward the river. “I’ll just go skin these.”

She slipped through the trees to the bank. She found a path down to the water, just five steps down, and crouched with one of her daggers. A noise above drew her attention, and she spun on her heel. Wulfric jumped and landed a few feet away with a grunt.

He grinned, his mouth too wide and a wild look in his eyes. “Hand me a dagger and that other squirrel.”

She hesitated. He was still a Growler.

Before she could follow that train of thought, she was handing over one of her precious daggers. He beamed at her, making her preen under his proud gaze, and took the other squirrel from where it lay on the ground beside her.

Preening at making him happy? Ugh, what was wrong with her? She frowned and ignored him as he crouched down and got to work. As best she could ignore him anyway, with the way her body was hyper aware of him.

Then there was the emotional aspect. Her emotions were piling one on top of each other, adding to her confusion. Desire, sexual tension, and anticipation warred with anxiety, fear, and anger about the future. None of them were more powerful than the others.

They reminded her of how his aura shifted and twisted with the two colors. She glanced at him after every swipe of her blade.

He made quick, efficient, clean cuts. When she was done washing her hands in the water, he began unlacing his boots.

“What are you doing?” Gods, was that her voice? So low and seductive.

He nodded to the river. “This part is shallow. I think I can catch a few fish to go with the squirrels.”

She sighed in relief. He hadn’t picked up on her tone of voice. He set the boots aside and wiggled his toes in the small pebbles.

Her lips twitched in an unbidden smile. “You just want to get out of the clothes, don’t you?”

He laughed and pulled the shirt over his head. Muscles rippled, taking her breath away. “Maybe I do. Can you take them up to camp for me?”

She nodded, her gaze roaming over his body. “Hm hm.”

He gave her a sly look as he shoved his pants to the ground and tossed them on top of the boots and shirt. Damn, his dick was just right there. No embarrassment, no shame. She blinked, unable to look away as he strode into the water, sank to his haunches, and shifted into wolf form.

She shivered as she watched the magic. Just washing her hands had chilled her to the bone, but his wolf magic must keep him warmer. She craved his heat, but she didn’t want to give in.

She frowned, cleaned her daggers, and gathered the now gutted squirrels.

With one hand, she grabbed his boots and clothes before slowly climbing back up to the top of the bank. With one last look at him in the river, she turned to the warmth of their camp.

It had been fun at the cottage. They’d had some great conversations on their hike so far. Then there was the team work to get their camp set up.

It wouldn’t last though, and she wouldn’t—couldn’t—let herself fall for him. If she let herself hope for something better, it would only be ripped to shreds. It wasn’t worth the pain, she knew from experience.

She was slowly turning the squirrels over the fire when he came back into camp, dripping wet and still in wolf form. In his jaws were three good sized fish, which he promptly dropped next to her.

His tongue lolled as he panted, sitting on his haunches with so much pride in his eyes.

She chuckled and reached out a hand to scratch him behind the ears. “Good boy,” she crooned with a grin.

He froze, his pupils dilating as she scratched, that wild, predatory gaze sharpening as his tail wagged furiously. The intensity of his gaze sent a shiver up her spine, and she pulled away.

He turned his head and licked the inside of her wrist. She shivered at the hot, wet slide. That rough texture had felt so good on her clit.

She took a shuddering breath as he pulled away and gave a whole body shiver.

Freezing water went everywhere, and she shrieked a laugh as it hit her face. When she wiped her face with a smile, ready to chide him, the words stuck in her throat. He’d shifted back into his more human form, that big grin on his face so wide it had to hurt.

“Sorry to get you wet, bunny.”

She snorted. “No, you’re not. You wanted to get me wet.”

---