Page 16 of Leave Me
When the last guests who were helping Channing and me clean up left, and Gramps went to rest in his room, Chan decided to get chatty while we finished up the dishes. Since the dishwasher was full and running, I washed and she dried.
The wood of the cabinets was sanded down and refinished in a hunter green, a big change from the dark brown wood stain I remembered. It fit in with the view of the trees and the darkening skies through the window over the sink.
“How was it seeing your old friends and everyone?” Channing asked.
Considering the lack of rude stares, though there were plenty of sneaky looks and whispers behind hands, I was pleasantly surprised. “Good.”
“So monosyllabic,” she teased, whacking me with a dishtowel.
Shrugging, I smirked and handed her a bowl. “I’m a guy.”
“So? You were a guy in your teens, and we couldn’t get you to shut up.” Chan rolled her eyes, and I laughed.
The acceptance was overwhelming after years of thinking I wouldn’t have this at home.
“Everyone seemed interested, but no one was rude,” I said to placate her. Then added, “The pack is more welcoming than I thought, or more distracted.”
“Not just distracted,” Channing nodded and reached for the salad tongs I was rinsing off. “The younger generation gets it. Hell, half of us are not cis-hetero.”
Side-eyeing her use ofus, my curiosity piqued. “Does that include you?”
“I’m cisgendered, but I’m not straight,” she answered without pause. The difference that ten years made was staggering.
Yawning as I drained the sink, I was grateful my hangover had subsided. Food helped, but it also made me tired. Of course, Channing didn’t miss anything.
“Go take a nap. We’ve done enough for today.”
“You sure?” I asked, looking over at the bags of trash lined up by the back door.
“I’ll wake you up so you don’t miss going out for the reunion thing tonight,” she insisted, and I had a flashback to how our mom ran herhousehold and my father’s schedule, my grandma doing the same for my gramps.
King women were formidable. Competent and commanding, but in a loving way.
“I’ll take these out and then go rest.”
Grabbing four bags at once, I pushed the screen door open with my elbow and took the well-worn path around to our locked cans. We didn’t want wild animals getting into them, though most stayed away, sensing our inner wolves as predators.
When I made another trip for the last bags, my mind wandered back to Riley. He was always cute when we were kids, and I’d enjoyed kissing him at prom, but I’d certainly never smelled him and wanted…more. Hell, even the kiss felt like a push too far with knowing I was leaving town.
Though I liked all genders and body types, I couldn’t deny that Riley filled his suit out better than most. With his jacket off, his muscles strained the fabric. And maybe it was him sweating, but he smelled delicious.
My wolf purred in agreement, which was shocking to me. I kept the wolf pushed so far down, I rarely ever noticed feelings or thoughts. And that was the thing, I couldn’t tell if my wolf was ahe,like me. Either way, they liked Riley,too.
Riley.
Riley.
Riley.
More than liked. My wolf’s desire for Riley sounded more like an obsession. Did Ri really smell that good to my inner Alpha? My wolf had never reacted this way to anyone before, and I mentally told myself off. Riley was my childhood best friend, not someone to drool over.
My wolf growled internally at my assessment, and I rolled my eyes as I made my way back toward the house. In response, the wolf conjured an image of Riley on his knees, looking up at me with his blue pools almost obscured by his pupils, a hunger for me written across his face.
Shaking my head to clear the idea, I pressed down between my legs and took a deep breath before reaching to open the screen door.
As an alpha shifter, I had a dick, but I rarely let myself get fully aroused. My wolf didn’t like how I repressed my urges, but I didn’t want to scare some hookup when I popped a knot. I’d rather they think I had an amazing surgeon, or I kept the lights low and let them think I had a strap-on. I’d never knotted anyone, afraid I could hurt them, and also not feeling the intimacy was there with anyone I’d dated.
Riley… My wolf started, but I tamped it down.
