Page 8 of That's the Way Rejection Goes

Sam glanced my way, his cheeks blushing bright pink. “Alright. Let’s go then.”

I gave Erick a quick kiss before I followed Sam out of the hotel and into the street. In the past few days the winter weather had really kicked in. Being a boy from the Midwest, I wasn’t a stranger to cold winters. But Michigan winters had a different level of ferocity to them. And being that we were on the east side of the state, there was nothing to slow down the biting wind that whipped across the state toward Lake Huron.

“It’s a pretty town in the summer,” Sam said, seemingly reading my thoughts as he hiked his hood up around his face. “Beautiful beaches, lots of sun, and all the greenery you could wish for. But during the winter…” He gestured toward the desolate and snow-drifted main street of downtown. “Well, it’s a little bleak.”

“It’s fine,” I replied as we walked, the snow crunching underfoot. “Erick and I grew up in northern Missouri. It gets pretty cold there although it looks like you all get a lot more snow than I’m used to.”

“It’s pretty snowy here. The lakes make sure of that.”

“Do you get a lot of tourists during the summer?”

“A few.”

“Must be good for business.”

“I don’t have much room in the summer. Seems a lot of wolves get kicked out in spring to be on their own. Come summer I’ve nearly got a full house with all of them flocking here.”

“And you just take care of them all, huh?”

Sam nodded. “I try.” He glanced over at me, a happy but tired look in his eyes. “I love helping them, I really do. I don’t want anyone to do what I had to do when I got kicked out of my home. So I do everything I can to give them a safe, supporting place to get back on their feet.”

“It must be exhausting.”

He bit his lower lip nervously. “It can be. But I try not to think about it. The wolves I’ve helped give back to the hotel and take some of the weight off my shoulders.”

“Still,” I continued. “Running this whole place by yourself is pretty impressive. How long have you been at it?”

“Over ten years.”

“Fuck. That’s a long time!”

“Some days it feels like it.”

“You must’ve found your mate by now then,” I said before I could stop myself. Curiosity was getting the better of me and the wind was blowing his floral scent right into my face. I couldn’t help myself. “I mean, with all these wolves coming through, I’m sure you got snatched up pretty quick.”

“No, I haven’t.” There was a melancholy note in his voice as he looked away. But it was quickly replaced by his customer service voice. “I make it a point not to date my customers. I want to care for them, not prey on them.”

“Oh… I didn’t… I mean, I wasn’t trying to insinuate anything.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he smiled. “I know what you meant. I just try to keep in mind that most people who come through this hotel are having the worst days of their life. If I’m going to find the right guy for me, then I want him to like me for who I am, not because I saved him.”

The rightguyfor him. Those words made my heart soar. I had a feeling, based on the cover of his book he was always reading, that he might be gay. And considering the way he’d reacted to us when we first arrived. Not to mention, he definitely smelled of arousal that morning. The wolf inside me was running in circles, the excitement getting the better of me. Between his scent on the wind and this new knowledge, I could barely contain myself.

“What if the guy you met was part of the hotel, but not emotionally compromised?”

Sam looked over at me, his brows furrowed together. “I don’t know how that could be. Everyone who comes here is a little messed up after what life has done to them.”

“Yeah, but some of us already have mates and are really happy.”

He looked at me long and hard, that smile fading from his face in an instant. The warmth in his eyes turned cold as he realized what I was hinting at. I felt my chest tighten as I recognized that I’d gone too far.

“Then I would tellhimthat he already has a mate and that he should be ashamed for thinking of betraying him like that.”

Sam turned away from me then, his pace picking up. I opened my mouth to argue, wanting to explain what I’d meant. But he was right. I’d told Erick not twenty minutes ago that what I felt toward Sam was only a joke and nothing more. And here I was, trying to tell him that I wanted to fuck him in a not-so-subtle way.

I felt myself deflate and the chill seeped in. Betraying Erick wasn’t my intention. I never wanted to do anything to hurt him. And this attraction I felt toward Sam… it was strong, but it would pass, right? Erick was my mate, through and through. I needed to remember that. What we had together wasn’t worth risking for a quick fling. If Erick and I were together for the fling, that would be a different story, but we weren’t. Erick was in the lobby of the hotel three blocks behind us, and I was out there in the cold, hitting on a guy without Erick’s knowledge. That was wrong of me to do, and Sam was right, I did feel ashamed.

Stuffing my hands in my pockets, I followed after Sam, keeping my mouth clamped shut. I felt like such an ass for what I’d said, and I knew no amount of backpedaling would get me out of the hole I’d dug for myself. Instead, I stayed quiet and kept to myself. I just hoped Erick didn’t find out about my indiscretion. The last thing I needed was a wedge driven between us after everything we’d gone through to be together back home.

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