Page 21 of Redeemed Wolf

“Yeah, sure,” the other guy whose name I’d already forgotten said. “My pleasure too.” He sounded like he was choking back a laugh, and Silas kicked him under the table, making him laugh out loud. “Oh, would you look at that. Time for me to head back to work. Talk to you later, Silas.” He scooted his chair out and rounded the table, patting Silas on the shoulder on the way by.

“And then there were two…” Silas said, smirking, pushing his lunch to the center of the table, offering to share with me.

Being alone with Silas felt dangerous, like it was only a matter of time before one of us pounced. I’d never been what anyone would describe as passionate, had never been inclined to date or anything like that, so this rush of physical sensation was a little disorienting. I wanted to run my hands over his body, mess up that ginger hair of his. I wanted to trace his scars with my tongue, all the way down, as low as I could get.

The back of my pants had begun to dampen with arousal, and Silas’s nostrils flared as he took a deep breath. He balled his hands into fists before slipping them under the table. “Tell me everything about you.”

I huffed a little laugh, picking up half of his peanut butter and jam sandwich. “I only have 30 minutes for lunch.” And I’d wasted three quarters of it debating whether coming here was a good idea or not.

“Then hit the highlights. Are you from around here? Have any pets? What’s your favorite flavor of ice cream?”

“Born and raised in Fairhome, no pets, and rocky road. You?”

“I’m from… Boston,” he said, but it came out strained, and for a second, I’d wondered if he was going to say something else instead. “Other animals don’t tend to like me much, so no pets, and I like mint chocolate chip best.”

“Otheranimals?” I asked, laughing. “What, like you’re an animal yourself?”

He didn’t laugh, though. A muscle in his jaw ticked once. “No, of course not. I meant other than my childhood pet. I had a dog… named Jude.”

“Jude. That’s a weird name for a wolf. I mean, dog.” I winced, rubbing at my temple where a sharp pain had lanced through me. Wolf? Where did that come from?

Silas was watching me carefully. “Are you okay? Do you need a glass of water?”

I nodded. “Please.”

He was up in a flash, pouring me a cold glass of water from the dispenser in the corner. Then he was at my side, passing me the cup, his misty rain scent enveloping me and easing the building headache more surely than any painkiller.

“Thank you,” I whispered, not daring to look up at him. I gulped down the water like a man dying of thirst, then set theglass on the table with a bang, gasping for air. “Sorry, I’ve been sick. I guess I’m not over it yet.”

“Maybe…” he said softly, before reaching a tentative hand out and resting it on the back of my neck.

I choked out a sound, half gasp, half pleasured groan, and for a full three seconds, I was appalled at how starved for attention I sounded, how needy. But then he ground his thumb in, massaging at the base of my skull in a circle, and any shame I might’ve had flew right out the window. Yes, shameless, that was me. My eyes drifted shut, and a long, drawn-out moan slipped from my mouth.

His chuckle was rich and textured, seeming to brush along my skin right along with his talented fingers. “Is that the spot?”

“Seems so,” I sighed, tilting my head to the side without giving it a second thought. I wanted more from him, but I didn’t have the first clue on how to ask.

His phone gave a loud beep, and my eyes flew open. When had I leaned into him like a dog in heat? Gods, what was wrong with me?

I flinched back, shaking off his hand and standing in a rush. “Sorry, I…”

“Need to go,” he finished for me. “It’s okay, I understand. It’s a lot.” His face seemed to soften, even as his eyes grew even more intense, so green, just like his scent. I should ask him what cologne he wore so I could spray my sheets with it. It would certainly give me sweet dreams. “We don’t need to figure it all out today, you know. I’ll wait for you. Whenever you’re ready.”

Half of me was ready for anything he was willing to give me. The other half was… confused. Lost.

“Thank you,” I told him, brushing his hand with mine on the way out the door. I paused and looked back at him, and there was this intense pull, demanding that I stay. “Maybe we could have lunch again tomorrow? I’ll even bring my own next time.”

His eyes flicked up. “It’s a date,” he said, a promise, and the way his tongue traced his lower lip was enough to feed me all week.

I headed back to the lab in a daze, floating so high that I wouldn’t have been surprised if my feet didn’t touch the ground.

My dad was waiting for me, of course. “Hey, I missed you at lunch. Where’d you go?”

“Sorry, I was busy.” He waited for me to elaborate, but I didn’t, and he didn’t push.

“Just make sure you don’t forget to eat something, okay?”

“Mm-hm.”

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