Page 80 of Chev's Mate

I already had a pair made for her, and I duck my head as she reaches in and pulls them out. She fingers the fabric, and I clear my throat as I take them from her and put them back inthe drawer. I’m embarrassed, and I want to hide them away. She wasn’t supposed to see them.

“Are those for me?” she asks.

I shrug.

“I’m not upset you don’t want to wear them,” I say. “I just thought it would be nice to have a pair ready in case you ever do.”

Vanessa rests her cheek against my shoulder. “I wouldn’t mind wearing them for you in our home, but not outside in public.”

Our bond pulsates. I love that, and I find my hands are shaking as I yank open the drawer and grab the pair of female leathers I just hid from her. I want to see them on her…urgently.

“May I?” I ask.

Vanessa giggles, her eyes wide as I lift her sleep dress up and over her head. I don’t think she minds me seeing her bare, but I still keep my gaze averted as I wrap the leather top around her chest. It pushes her breasts together, drawing attention to them, and I tie it just tight enough to stay up.

The skirt is next. I wrap it around her waist before tying the overlapping ends together.

Fuck.

Vanessa tugs at the bottom of the skirt before turning and looking in the mirror. Her cheeks are flushed, and she runs her hands over her exposed midsection before skimming them over her chest.

“I’m happy I’m the only male who will ever see you in these,” I admit.

Leathers fit differently on shifter women. They don’t have nearly as much curvature to their bodies as Vanessa, so the leathers cover more. Vanessa is spilling out of the top and bottom. This is for my eyes only.

Vanessa fights back a smile as she looks at herself, and I do the same. She looks good, and I think she knows it.

“I’ll wear them for you this morning,” she says.

I’ve never heard better words, and I happily follow her into the kitchen. She doesn’t have to be at work for another hour, and I’m looking forward to spending the morning with her.

“Are you hungry?” Vanessa asks.

What a silly question. “I’m always hungry.”

It’s the truth, too. I’ve always had a large appetite, and when it comes to Vanessa’s cooking, I fear it has no limits. I’d eat anything she made, and I’d do so happily. Everything is so good, and it makes my kitchen skills feel inadequate.

Vanessa looks in the pantry, her eyebrows furrowed. I stocked it before her arrival, so it should be full of everything she needs. I took the liberty of searching her kitchen back in Wrath so I knew what kinds of ingredients and products she enjoys.

“I’m going to hunt you an ucka,” I say. “Soon.”

It’s this week’s number-one priority. Finding an ucka large enough to honor my mate may take days, so I need to begin tracking as soon as possible. It’s tradition, and I won’t disappoint. I’ll get her one twice as large as the one my father brought my mother when they first mated.

“I’m excited,” Vanessa says. “I’ve never tried it before, but I’ve read it’s a shifter favorite.”

It’stheshifter favorite, and it’s incredibly hard to get. Only the strongest shifters are big and fast enough to take down an adult ucka. Several men in my pack choose to hunt in groups, but as alpha, it’s expected I go on my own.

It’s one way I prove my strength to my people.

I sit at the kitchen island while Vanessa pulls two wooden bowls out of my cabinet.

“I might be working late tonight,” she says. “I have a lot to catch up on after taking most of yesterday off. Would you mindmeeting me at the portal so I don’t have to walk through the shifter lands alone? I don’t think I’m quite ready for that.”

I purse my lips. Meet her at the portal?

“Aren’t you going to be working with me?” I ask. I was under the impression we would be sharing my office until I fully transitioned my work to Echo. I only have a few weeks left before I’m officially done. Vanessa and I should enjoy it while we can.

Vanessa shakes her head. “Not today. I need to work out of Wrath.”

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