Page 27 of Bait Wolf
It didn’t make any sense. A day ago, they were willing to let medie, so why demand so much money for me now? Supply and demand, I realized. They knew how much Coal wanted me. They could charge what they wanted knowing Coal would pay it.
I swallowed the lump in my throat as Coal pushed to his feet.
“We’ll talk more later.”
Abram laughed.
“You have the weekend. Get me my money,” he said, then turned on his heel and walked from the room, slamming the front door to hard that the room shook.
I looked at Coal, my stomach twisting.
“What are we going to do?” I asked uneasily.
Coal turned, looked at me still perched on the arm of the couch, and pulled me unexpectedly up into his warm, thick arms.
“I guess we’ll pay,” he said. “It’s not right what they did to you. It makes me want to attack him, not reward him… but I can’t risk them coming after you again.”
I dug my fingers into Coal’s side, gripping him tightly just in case my alpha tried to back away.
How do I feel this way?!
In a matter of hours, really, it felt like my entire world had changed. Escape was no longer the cold streets or wilderness on my own. No, now freedom was something else. It was a warm embrace from my mate, the choice for us to do whatever we pleased,together. Morning sex and shared showers, maybe dinners out or afternoon walks, movies on the couch with popcorn and chocolate that turned into long make-out sessions. I didn’t care. A new, unexpected life was being offered to me and it didn’t feel like suppression; it felt like safety and maybe even love, and I didn’t want to let it go.
“Hey.”
Coal’s hands found my cheeks, tilting my head up so that our eyes could meet. Grudgingly, I opened my burning eyes and met my alpha’s concerned gaze.
“Don’t worry. I won’t let them take you.”
Relief eased into me, untangling the knots in my stomach.
“I want to stay with you,” I admitted.
Coal bent down, a seriousness falling into his eyes as he pressed our foreheads together.
“You’re not going anywhere,” he whispered. “I promise.”
I blinked back those stubborn tears and tilted my head the inch it took for our lips to meet.
It was gratifying that Coal gave in to me. Very quickly it felt like things had changed, like I wanted this at least as much as he did. Then Coal’s grip on me changed, pulling me in closer with a heady moan and I felt a bit better about it.
Groaning, Coal wrenched himself away, still holding me tightly, his hands drifting up and down my sides like he couldn’t quite stop himself from touching me.
“I want nothing more than to lay in bed with you all day, but I have to go,” he sighed. “I have to contact some people about Asha.”
I pushed back my disappointment.
“Of course. Do you know where she is?”
He shook his head.
“No, but Everest and Seymour know someone who might.”
A look crossed his face, a grimace of pain.
“I have to get her back, Ember. She’s like my daughter, we’ve never been apart this long.”
I was surprised by that. Imagining Coal as a parent made sense though. He was just the type to take a role like that seriously. My heart squeezed at the thought as something else became clear; Coal seemed so…alone.
