Page 20 of Shifter Marked and Claimed

So what did I do?

I went to her and blabbed it all like a big idiot.

I was lucky she hadn’t already kicked me out, especially the way I had held her so close to me while she was vulnerable. I certainly hadn’t expected her to open up to me in any way, not yet at least. It was far more than I had a right to ask for.

I was pretty certain I hadn’t done anything inappropriate. Had she even noticed when I sniffed her hair? I was a wolf, that shouldn’t have been too out of the ordinary. Well, I hoped not at least.

Being so close to her had turned me on something fierce. When she awkwardly put space between us, I feared maybe my desire for her had been a little too clear. I didn’t dare glance down to check and see if my pants were tented though, at least not when she was still looking in my direction.

We stood there staring at each other and I doubted either of us truly knew what to say next.

An alarm suddenly sounded making us both jump.

Lucy pulled out her phone and gave me a sad smile.

“Sorry, but that’s my reminder that it’s time to go and pick up Vada from school.”

“Right. I should probably check on my clinic. I’m expected to hold office hours today, and well, I sorta closed the place down after you left. It was a moment of panic.”

“Would you really have just left?”

“I thought you were mated to someone else, so, yes, I really would have. There was no way I could meet you and not be able to see you and touch you. If you were already mated that wasn’t going to be possible.”

She gave me a quirky look. “And just because I’m not, you think that’s going to happen?”

I felt a sharp stab of pain in my chest and recognized it once again as rejection. I couldn’t falter that easily though.

I winked at her as a huge smile enveloped my face. It was the kind of look most women swooned over.

“I guess we’ll see. I’m feeling like just maybe I’ve got a bit of stalker in me.”

She snorted trying not to laugh. “That was terrible.”

I shrugged. “Maybe, but I’ll see you tomorrow.”

I left before she could tell me no. I wasn’t going to try and force a relationship on her, but I also knew that now that I’d met her, there was no way I was going to be able to stay away. I might have to get creative with ideas for ways to make that happen.

For now, all I really wanted was a chance to get to know her and for her to get to know me too.

I didn’t think that was too much to ask for. Only time would tell.

True to my word,I swung by Lucy’s over my lunch break the next day. I had been surprisingly anxious all morning but began to calm down on the drive over knowing I was about to see my mate.

I jumped out of the car and walked up her porch to knock on the door. My hands were sweaty and I realized I was nervous. Things were still up in the air between us. I had no idea how she was feeling about finding out I was her one true mate.

I knocked on the door.

There was no answer.

I waited, looking around, and realizing her car wasn’t there either. How I hadn’t noticed that driving up was beyond me. I was seriously losing it.

I had brought lunch for the two of us.

My stomach grumbled so I went and retrieved the meal from my car and sat on her front steps. As I was pulling out the sandwiches I’d made that morning, a car pulled up.

Lucy sat there looking at me almost confused and then slowly got out of the car.

“You’re here.”

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