Page 27 of Whisper Woods

Gods’ tits, who knew picking up a phone could be foreplay?

Phone safely in hand I straighten, the eye contact in this room reaching nearly pornographic levels. I don’t know shit about pheromones, but if some scientist could bottle what’s in this room right now, they’d make squillions.

Buzzing completely forgotten, I tap my phone against the palm of my hand. I could run. Not far—this room is fucking tiny—but I could. There is enough furniture in the room to create some obstacles.

He could catch me.

Fuck me against any one of those surfaces.

Like he can sense my thoughts, that hand clenches again in the sheets and he moves, in slinky, too-graceful, movements.

A predator ready to capture its prey.

Wolf whines. You’d think he’d hate that, being the prey. Running. But no, he just wants to get his rocks off. And no one does it like Rafe. No one has ever given us what we crave.

There is a hint of a smile on Rafe’s face, dark and dangerous.

A slight shuffle of my foot is met with a subtle straightening of his spine.

My knee bends, he raises from his elbow to his hand.

If I aim for the other side of the couch, I can probably evade him for at least a minute.

My cock jerks, distracting Rafe just enough for me to make a move.

But as I spin on my heels, ready to take a running leap for the other side of the ugly ass couch, my phone buzzes again and I stumble to a halt.

Behind me I can hear Rafe’s growl as he launches from the bed, smacking into my back when I haven’t moved from my spot.

It’s Caelan.

Like, alotof Caelan. Calls, texts. Seldon too.Fuck.

“Who is Caelan?” There is a rough edge to his voice. I don’t know if it’s jealousy or our aborted playtime. I don’t take my eyes off theCaelanon the phone, still buzzing in my hand.

“My ex. My friend.” Rafe only grunts, the rough snort tickling my ear. Leaning into him and the steady calm he gives me, I shudder through a deep breath and hit the green answer button. “Hey, what’s going on?” There is a lot of noise in the background.

“Seff,” Caelan sounds out of breath. Is someone crying? “You need to get to the Black Stump Tavernnow. It’s Theo. He’s missing.”

My gut bottoms as the floor disappears underneath me. Only Rafe’s presence at my back keeps me standing. “What do you mean he’s missing?”

“This guy rocked up. His ex, I don’t know. From what Seldon told us, he isn’t a good guy. They went to the house to talk about something, I don’t know, whatever, and now they aren’t there.”

I haven’t heard Caelan this frantic since he called me the night that his grandparents had died. There are more shouts, definitely tears. Rafe’s hand travels up and down my back, in firm, comforting strokes. I have no doubt he can hear every word. “You need to get here now.”

Caelan hangs up without waiting for my answer. He knows I’ll be there. He’s pack after all.

“I gotta go,” I mumble, scrambling to find my underwear and almost falling over three times as I try to jam my body into them. Rafe’s hand on my arm stops me.

“You aren’t going anywhere like this. I’ll drive you. I can help.” His eyes bore into me, and without a word he kneels to help me into my underwear, my shaking hands absolutely useless. “I assume you have a car? It isn’t safe for you to drive like this.” My jeans are next, he gently lifts one foot in and then the other.

“I can’t ask you to do that.”

Rafe freezes, my pants halfway up my thighs. “I do not believe I was asking, Seff. I just found you again. I am not going to let you run half-cocked into danger.”

Ha! If only he knew. He continues to dress me, right down to my baseball cap.Once I’m fully clothed, he grasps my biceps in his impossibly strong hands.

“Give me five minutes and we will be on our way.” He waits for me to nod before he moves, leaving me to gnaw my thumbnail to shreds while he gets dressed and ready with lightning speed. It still feels like an eternity until he’s standing in front of me with his large leather bag. “Okay Seff, let’s go help your friends find Theo.”

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