Page 92 of Wolf.e

Gabriel looks down at me and uses his first two fingers to tuck my hair behind my ear.

He kisses my forehead. “You think I’ve suffered enough, little hummingbird?” he whispers in my ear.

I smile up at him. “Never,” I whisper back.

“Fuck.” Jack cackles. “Let’s go, Romeo, I’ll show you to your cabin.”

We settle into our surprisingly sturdy tent-like cabin, right beside Layla and Sean. There’s a spot at the back of each cabin for the guys’ bikes, it’s clearly been designed to house an event like this.

I quickly change into a rather revealing black tank top Layla gave me, that has tiny little rips and holes in both the front and back. Then I slip on a short, distressed jean skirt that makes my legs and ass look amazing, and add a pair of black fringe ankle boots with a chunky heel. I give myself a little half turn and admire the way all this training has shaped me without taking away from my curves. If anything, all those weighted squats he’s had me doing have made me more shapely and I love how feminine—yet strong—I feel.

This skirt is not something I would ever normally wear. Normally, I live in yoga pants or jeans, casual tees, and my chucks, but here I want to feel sexy.

I curl my hair and fluff it up around my shoulders, and give myself some cherry lipstick, a hefty dose of eyeliner, a few chains, and some hoop earrings before exiting the cabin. Sean and Layla, the entire HOH crew, Jack Walker, and Gabriel are all waiting and talking at the bottom of the cabin steps. The only one missing is Jake. Gabriel said he had a deal to work out in order to replace the methadone that was lost in another Atlanta clinic break in, so he won’t be here until later tonight.

Everyone stops talking the moment my feet hit the steps. It’s like a scene from one of the rom coms I watch, when the heroine gets a makeover. Layla lets out a low whistle.

“Fuck yes! Naughty little schoolteacher vibes, I’d do you!” She giggles as I feel my cheeks heat under the attention.

I’m too nervous to make eye contact with Gabriel until I hear everyone’s chatter start to resume, but when I do, I can’t help but notice the hunger I see in his eyes. I attempt to walk by him and give Layla a side hug. His hand darts out to wrap his first finger around my pinky and tug me close.

“This…” he whispers into my ear in a gruff timbre. “This is going to have me plucking out the eyes of every man here tonight one by one. I can fucking feel it.”

I reach up and pat him on the chest under his cut before kissing him.

“No need, it’s all for you.”

I swear Gabriel growls in response. He takes hold of my hand under his cut, pulling it down and holding my palm up. I watch as he reaches into his inside pocket and pulls out a knife, smaller than the knife he wears everyday, the one that was inside me, but with the same kind of smooth bone handle and a leather sheath to match. It’s small enough to fit into my hand and still conceal it which makes me smile.

“What’s this?” I ask.

“The handle of my knife is made from wolf bone, hunted by my grandfather, as is yours now. I had this made from his knife. It’s strong, sturdy and the perfect size to fit your hand. I trust you’ll only use it if you absolutely need to.”

I look down at it, understanding what it means. I’m strong enough. He’s trusting me to protect myself. I take it from him and bend down to slide it into my boot, reaching up to kiss his lips.

“I’m a warrior now too, just like you?” I ask.

Gabriel pulls back and looks down at me as awe and admiration bathe his face. A flicker of light returns to his steely gray eyes, one like I saw in those photos from his younger years just before he bends to kiss my lips, people around us continuing to move and pay us no attention.

“You were always a warrior, little hummingbird, you just never knew it.”

Gabriel takes my hand and leads me into a large crowd of people near the main mess hall building and settles in around a large stone fire pit with drinks in hand. It’s unseasonably cool for late July so I’m glad for the fire as I sip my drink, spending the rest of the afternoon watching people from clubs all over America approach Gabriel and the rest of his crew.

I’m on my third or fourth butterscotch flavored shot when Gabriel whispers in my ear. “Slow down, you need to stay alert, and men tend to get handsy with women when they’re drunk. I really don’t want to have to kill anyone tonight.”

“I’m plenty alert,” I say back, but truthfully I’m a little tipsy. Layla giggles beside me.

I’m like a college kid having freedom for the first time, what does he expect?

Gabriel grabs my current shot from me and tosses it back just to prove a point. The face he makes when he tastes the sweet liquid makes me laugh.

“I wanted that,” I tell him, with narrowed eyes.

He grimaces at the flavor, pulling his bottle of water up, he takes a sip. I haven’t even seen him have a whiskey tonight. Probably for the exact reason he’s telling me to slow down. He has to be alert.

Gabriel will be watching me I know, but I’m not worried here. I’m on a stress-free vacation. Vacation from the four walls of his house, someone hunting me just to hurt him, the insanely surreal direction my life has taken in the less than two months since I’ve been home, all of it.

I let him win and don’t search for another drink, knowing someone will bring another round soon enough.

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