Page 16 of The Wolf's Plus-Size Bride

My eyes move on their own to the dressing room at the end of the aisle. There’s no attendant, and I don’t see any cameras. I could drag her in there, give her a taste of exactly what she’s getting herself into.

Fuck.I adjust myself behind the shelf. I need to get out of here. Now.

With a low growl, I turn on my heels and stalk back to the entrance.

***

A few hours later, I’m at home, trying desperately not to think of Jane. I’ve already jerked off twice, and yet she’s still invading my thoughts like some kind of curse. Normally, I’m not hung up on a woman at all. I can usually take her or leave her, totally fine with either option. But Jane? I can’t get my mind off her.

I need a distraction and a good, stiff drink. Maybe even someone else to take the edge off. My wolf is restless, insistent, and the only way I can think to calm him is to go for a run.

I strip down naked-no need to ruin perfectly good clothes-and am about to shift when a sharp knock beats at my front door.

A rumbling growl sounds from my chest, reverberating through my very bones as I move through the living room and head into the foyer. I should probably grab a shirt or put on some pants, but I’m over it. Most of us in the area are in the same pack, minus the Stardust Hollow wolves, so my nudity is probably nothing they haven’t seen before.

But when I swing the door open, it’s not a pack member standing on my welcome mat.

“Jane,” I say her name slowly, as if asking a question. My mind goes back to the lingerie store and that scandalous outfit she was holding. I try not to think about how snugly it would stretch across her curvy hips or strain against her ample breasts.

It’s useless. I groan, scratching the stubble lining my jaw.

Her gray eyes flick down, and I swear I see a hint of blush on her cheeks. But she shakes it off and smooths her wavy black hair behind one ear. “Sorry, I would’ve called, but I don’t have your number. Did I catch you at a bad time?”

She can’t stand still, rocking back and forth on her heels, hands clasped tightly in front of her. The subtle movement causes her full, plump breasts to jiggle, drawing my attention once again to those stiff, perky nipples that are poking through her dress.

My focus snaps back to her when she clears her throat pointedly.

“No, I was just, uh… come on in.” I step aside and wave her through.

She hesitates at first, then closes her eyes and sucks in a deep, shaky breath before letting it all out and strutting past. “Sorry for dropping in unannounced like this.”

I shut the door and walk over to the couch, where I have a throw blanket tossed across the back. I wrap it around my hips and sit down, hoping to lessen the intense atmosphere in the room. “Don’t worry about it. What’s up?”

“So,” she pauses, flicking her tongue out to moisten her lips, and my stupid dick twitches in response. “Dinner.”

I tuck an arm across the back of the sofa. “What dinner?”

“With my family,” she explains. “My aunt is putting together a dinner, and she is insisting I bring you along. I tried to tell her that we hadn’t gotten that far yet, but she’s relentless.”

My shoulders slump. I do not have the energy or interest to go hang around a group of Stardust Hollow shifters. No, thank you.

“Sorry, I can’t make it.”

She walks to the couch and plops down on the edge of the cushion, facing me, and lifts one brow. “Can’t, or won’t? Because I thought we agreed to try to make this believable.”

I huff, gritting my teeth, and cross one ankle over my knee. “There will be plenty of other opportunities for us to play kissy face in public, sugar.”

“You mean, when it benefits you? When it’s your friends we’re trying to convince? You don’t know my aunt, Reiner. If she thinks for one second I’m faking things, she won’t leave me alone until I break down and tell her. If I show up without you tonight, she’s going to start asking questions. Worse, she’ll probably march right over here and start poking around. And if she does, everyone will know we’re lying. She won’t stop until she figures out the truth.”

I sigh, squeezing the back of my neck with my hand and looking up at the ceiling. She makes a good point. If anyone in her pack finds out, then my pack will learn the truth, too. And I don’t want to even think about what Rafe will do if he finds out I’ve been using his wife’s cousin.

“All right, give me your phone. I’ll put my number in it, and you can text me the information. When and where, and that sort of thing.”

“Thank you,” she says, and for the first time since she walked in my door, she seems genuinely pleased. She pulls out her cell, unlocks the screen, and hands it over to me. Our fingers brush, and the hairs on my arm prickle at the sensation. My wolf stirs within, lifting his massive head with a grunt, telling me to take her.

I let out a slow breath and tap in the numbers. When I press send, my phone dings from somewhere in the kitchen.

“There. We should probably come up with our own private signals, too. In case one of us needs an exit out of a conversation. A code word, if you will.” I hand the phone back. “You know, save one another from unsavory social obligations.”

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