Page 15 of Seduced By the Werewolves

Let’s just say that I probably shouldn’t get a motorcycle license. If I’m a terror behind the wheel of a car, it’s a thousand times worse on a motorcycle. I crash into every conceivable wall, and even take out Leon a few times. I come in very last place, barely finishing the course before time runs out. He’s laughing so hard by the end that he slips getting off his motorcycle.

“All right, let’s try a different game, huh?” He glances down at my feet and gives an approving nod when he finds I’m wearing a pair of simple black flats. “Dancing?”

I squint at him. “Dancing? We’re at an arcade.”

“I know.” Again, he takes my hand in his, twining our fingers together. It reminds me of being one of those teenagers on a first date. “Come on. It’ll be fun.”

I work up a decent sweat trying to figure out the dancing game, where I have to step on the buttons on the dance pad in time with the screen. My feet have no idea what to do, and it’s the second time I’ve looked like an idiot in front of Leon. He’s barely winded from the long round we just did, where I frantically tried to step on the right arrows.

But when I glance at him from the side of my eye to see if he’s laughing, he’s just looking at me with that intense blue stare of his.

“Do I have something on my face?” I ask, rubbing my cheek surreptitiously.

“No.” The side of his wide mouth turns up in a grin. “You’re just really gorgeous.”

He steps off the dance pad and then offers to help me down, and his earnest compliment has made my legs a little shaky, so I accept.

“Don’t take this the wrong way,” he says, his eyes crinkled with amusement, “but you’re really bad at video games. It’s adorable.”

I wonder what other possible way I could take that. Leon’s a little clueless sometimes, which I have to admit I find cute, too.

“I never got to play video games growing up,” I say. “Mom said they ‘weren’t good for developing brains.’ Some of my friends had them, but I only ever got to watch them play.” Now that I think about it, that’s probably why I thought coming to the arcade wouldn’t be fun. I dealt with the fact I didn’t get to have a Wii as a kid by convincing myself video games weren’t cool.

“Huh.” Leon cocks his head. “So she’s always been kind of controlling?”

I guess I hadn’t thought about it. “Mom thought I should spend my time doing homework instead.” I can’t help but laugh. “You can imagine how mad she was when I dropped out of college.”

Leon shrugs. “I didn’t go to college and I turned out okay.” He leans thoughtfully on one of the claw machines, which is full to bursting with stuffed animals. “There are lots of different paths to take in life.”

I like that outlook. It makes me feel like less of a failure, seeing as he runs his own successful business.

I’m surprised when Leon drops a hand to my thigh, and he runs his thumb over my jeans. “I’m glad we can come here and play games together, then. We’ll train you up real quick.” He jerks his thumb over his shoulder toward a different part of the arcade. “Let’s try some Skee-Ball?”

The longer we play, the closer I find myself getting to Leon—or he’s getting closer to me. Or perhaps we’re gravitating toward each other like magnets, because that’s what this feels like: getting pulled in until I don’t want to leave again. Just being near him, my skin tingles, imagining his touch on me again.

It turns out I’m fantastic at Skee-Ball. I have just the flick of the wrist I need to sink the ball in the middle hole every time, and we win half a roll of tickets. Leon looks at me like I’m a brand-new woman as we head to the front counter to take a look at the prizes.

“It’s that hand-eye coordination,” he says, mostly to himself. “Dang. I bet you’d be killer at Frisbee.”

The attendant looks bored when Leon approaches, all smiles.

“Teddy bear or Nerf gun?” he asks me, counting up the tickets. “Or you could buy a dozen of those ring pops.”

“Ring pop,” I answer instantly, and Leon snorts as he hands the tickets over.

“Get the lady every ring pop I can afford,” he says in an imperious tone.

Once I’ve got a whole armful, Leon takes my free hand. He uses it to draw me closer to him, until we’re almost touching, and leans down.

“Tiff.” I’ve never thought my name sounded sexy until now, until Leon says it that way. He reaches under my chin and tilts it up, so I’m staring right into those bright blue eyes. His mouth is just inches away from mine now, and I think...

I think he wants to kiss me.

“Leon,” I answer cheekily, and he laughs. I roll onto the balls of my feet, so we’re even closer together, hoping that he’s feeling the same thing I am, this warm electricity between us.

In response, he presses his lips against mine.

I’m surprised to find Leon’s touch is tentative and uncertain. So I kiss him back harder, showing him what I want: more. His arm tightens around my waist and then, suddenly, his tongue is tracing the seam of my lips. I let him inside, and as he slips into my mouth, he grunts in approval. I get sucked up into the whirlwind of his kiss, floating in it as our tongues weave around each other. Every single thing vanishes in that moment—my mom, Mr. Bosley, all the ways in which I don’t feel right for this world.

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