Graham was ridiculously easy to talk to. I hoped he felt the same way about me, too.
nine
STELLA
We spentthe next few days sleeping, with food breaks in between. While we cooked and ate, we talked. About his childhood, and mine. More about our jobs. About how he’d ended up joining the feral pack, and about everything else that came up.
I woke up with the sun on the day I finally started to feel like I’d recovered, and found Graham studying my face as he held me close. Warm beams of light shone through the curtains we’d left open, bathing everything in soft sunlight.
His lips curved when he saw me looking. “Hi.”
“Hey, Teddy Graham.” I leaned in, and he kissed me.
His hands cupped my face, and he tilted my head back to deepen the kiss for a few moments before we both pulled back.
We hadn’t screwed again since that first time.
I think we were on the same page about needing to figure things out before we got any more physical. Graham’s wolf was probably going to trigger the climax in the near future anyway,so it wasn’t like we’d be lacking in the sex department when that struck.
There were other kinds of intimacy we needed to focus on.
The emotional kind, mainly.
We were getting there. Progress was what mattered.
“Any plans for today?” Graham asked, running his fingers lightly through my hair as I settled on his chest. He was a lot more comfortable to snuggle up with than he looked, with all those tight muscles.
“As long as I don’t crash halfway through, I’m going to call Jade this afternoon,” I said. “And the university, too. I should get back to real life. Starting with figuring out where you left our phones.”
“Should you?” He tugged my hair playfully.
“Yes. As long as you’re okay with meeting up with her with me, since your wolf doesn’t want me out of your sight.”
“I think I can handle that.”
“Thanks.” I kissed him again, lightly.
He deepened the kiss once more, before finally rolling me onto my back—and promptly getting off the bed.
When I made a noise of complaint, he flashed me a grin from where he stood. “Come on, Stell. I’ll make you a cup of coffee and we can watch the sunrise together. It’ll be fun.”
Graham held his hand out toward me, and I placed my palm in his before he pulled me to my feet. His front brushed mine as we turned toward the kitchen.
An idea struck me when he started the coffee, and I slipped into one of the spare rooms for a moment while he turned away.
His wolf’s growl from the kitchen made me bite back a grin as I quickly grabbed the supplies I’d need.
“Stella?” he called.
“One second.” I finished gathering everything. His organization was amazing. I seriously owed him for that, because all of my stuff had been a wreck since I moved into my last apartment.
He reached the doorway just as I headed toward it. His gaze dipped to my armload, and his forehead creased.
“Sorry, I thought I’d be fast,” I apologized.
“No worries.” He took the easel I’d tucked awkwardly under my arm, and the canvas too.
I knew he’d been wanting to see me paint. He’d brought it up to Furball a crazy number of times.
