Page 16 of Dane's War

“I don’t drink beer,” I tell him, honestly. I hated the taste of it. I rarely drank liquor, but when I did, it was always vodka or gin. I wasn’t a dark liquor drinker. Mostly, I stuck to coffee, tea, and water. You couldn’t go wrong with those.

“What do you drink?” he asks, twisting back to me, a brow cocked, a beer in the hand not holding the fridge open. “Got water and tea. If you want a soda, just tell me which one, and I’ll get the prospect to bring it up when he brings the pizza.”

“You’re having a prospect deliver the pizza here?”The question slips past my lips before I can help myself.

“Don’t typically get deliveries out this far in the boonies, baby. Mailman even refuses to come out here. Had to get a postbox in town. If I want anything out here, though, I’ll note I’m not typically here, I have a prospect bring it up, or I get it while still in town.”

“Why didn’t we do that? It would have been the easier thing to do.” Okay, my mouth needs to stop speaking before my brain fully catches up. Damnit.

Dane’s lips quirk up at the edge, and he moves from the fridge, it closes behind him. “Raine, baby, I’m not going to put a pizza on the back of my bike. My truck is out in the garage, and I wanted you right where you were while we road up here. Prospects gotta do their bit before they get their cuts, and if that means bringing pizza out here, that’s what they’re gonna do,” he says, coming closer, setting the beer on the counter as he does so. When he gets in close, he moves into me, hands on my hips. “Now,dolcezza, what do you want to drink?”

“Do you have any flavor packs for water?” Okay, so I drink water, but I love flavor packets.

“Do I look like the type of man to have that shit around his place?” He chuckles.

“Ugh, no.”

My heart stutters a bit.

“Regular water or a tea. It doesn’t matter. Well, so long as it’s sweet tea.” I didn’t do unsweet. I need the sweetness to it.

“Right,” he mutters, gives my hip a slight squeeze, and walks away back to the fridge. He reaches in and pulls out a bottle of tea. I recognize the label and smile as he says. “Sweet tea.”

“Thank you.” Slowly stepping toward him, I take the bottle. “So?—”

“Let’s go into the living room,” he states, interrupting what I was going to say. “Told you we’d have a movie marathon, and that’s what we’ll do.”

Taking my hand, he guides me from the kitchen to a room that didn’t look at all like a living room. Living rooms are supposed to be about guests and be inviting. No, this room held a couch that could be seen as nothing more than a big bed that was fuzzy and looked very comfortable. On the wall, there was a huge TV with a sound bar underneath it. The curtains were black-out ones, keeping the room dark. On either side of the couch sat an end table that had pipes going up them to where a lamp was attached. It was pretty cool looking.

“Go ahead and get comfy. Take your shoes off, and we’ll pull up the firstmovie.”

I didn’t know what to think about him being like this with me, but I have to admit, it’s nice. So nice that I’m not sure I can trust it or not.

“You’re kiddin’ me.” Dane laughs, arm stretched across the back of the couch behind me. He’s got his body propped on his side, and he’s facing me. Laughing. Straight out laughing.

“I don’t see what’s so funny,” I tell him, grumbling.

“You don’t see telling me that your favorite movies are theAmerican Piecollection as funny? Babe, those movies are the shit. At least you didn’t go for theTwilightones.”

“Those wolves just don’t hold comparison,” I speak truthfully. I mean, sure, they’re okay movies, but nothing like the books. The book is typically always better.

“Good to know they don’t hold comparison.” Dane grins, shifting slightly. “Ready forMeg 2?” We’d just finished watching the first one. While watching, we chatted a bit. Him asking me questions about random things. Nothing heavy. Mostly, it was like what is my favorite movie. I told him and asked thesame. The whole thing was nice. I’d never had anything like it before.

Brady was all about himself and his buds—that and making a fool out of me. I don’t know what I saw in him in the first place. He’d worn a mask that hid the man he really was from the rest of the world.

Dane, though, he’s not Brady. Nothing like him. He’s . . . well, I don’t know what he is.

“Why were you in the woods last night?” I blurt the question without thinking.

Dane’s head jerks slightly, and his brows draw up slightly. “What?”

“What were you doing in the woods? Were you just running, or had something happened?” I take a breath and scooch up slightly. “If you don’t want to answer, you don’t have to,” I add, not wanting him to think . . .

I don’t get to finish my thought as Dane scoots toward me, his free hand coming to curl around my hip. “Raine, you can ask anything you want. I’ll answer any question unless it pertains to the club. Only then will I tell you that it’s something I can’t answer.”

“Okay,” I breathe.

“I’d felt like a run last night. I needed to shift. It happens. The need to be as my wolf. To feel the earth beneath me as only I can when he comes forward. Yougrew up with shifters raising you, you ever go out with them?”

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