Page 27 of Twisted Lies
“What if it is? Is that okay with you?”
He was so close, his heat seeped into her, his lips inches from hers. Gods, she wanted to taste him—wanted to know if those full lips of his were as soft as they looked. Her mind swam with possibilities, but most of all she wondered if she’d get fired for tossing his ass on the counter and riding him like a pogo stick?
“Please,”her wolf begged. The thought of finally having their mate and completing the mating ritual had her charging to the forefront of Mikah’s mind, demanding control.
She pushed the animal back. It was her decision to make and hers alone.
“I really have no desire to see you every day. I don’t know why you’d even bother with me.” she didn’t need her wolf to tell her that she was lying through her teeth. For the first time in years, she felt the sting of the lie as it left her mouth. She glanced down at the floor, suddenly embarrassed by the raw emotion that tore through her.
His fingertips brushed over her cheek and down to her chin, gently lifting her head until her gaze met his. “Look at me, Mikah. You were made for me and me alone. I may have had a past, but you are my present—my future. I’ve never wanted anyone—never hungered for anyone like I do for you.”
Before she could talk herself out of it or dwell on the possible repercussions, Mikah grabbed Jason’s collar and pulled him close. Her lips landed on his—heaven. He tasted like a sweet and spicy male.
More!
A moan flew from her mouth. His arms shot around her, holding her tight. Her nipples pebbled into tiny peaks as his chest rubbed up against hers. What had started off as a tentative and exploring kiss quickly turned into a fiery make-out session. Her fingers tunneled through his hair, she nipped at his lips. Their teeth clashed together, finding the perfect angle.
Jason made love to her mouth, his hands roamed over every inch of her body. Mikah wanted more, skin on skin contact. She wanted to feel his body stretched out above hers, his delicious weight pressing down on her as he kissed and teased her.
He pulled her leg up and around his waist. His erection pressed against her heat, driving her mad. For the first time in her life, she wondered if it was possible to climax from a kiss.
“Um. Excuse me. Mikah? Jason?” Cam’s voice filled her head.
She ignored it, wanting nothing more than to feel Jason’s hard length sliding into her.
Cold water hit her face, cooling the heat between them.
“What the—”
“Finally!” Cam groaned, setting the now empty pitcher of water on the counter. “As happy as I am that you’ve found each other and as sweet as your moment was, I’ve got a restaurant to run.” She walked over and flipped the sign on the door to open.
Mikah pushed Jason away as fast as humanlypossible. Which wasn’t very fast at all, consideringshe could have used the strength of her wolf to send him flying across the room faster than she could blink, but she hadn’t. Instead, she drew her arm back and slapped him across the face.
“Don’t you ever do that again!” she said through ragged breaths.Please, please do it again. Pretty please!
She ran to the kitchen to hide, before he could process what had even happened. She’d taken the chicken’s way out when she should have stood and fought for her feelings—for her needs.
“Don’t run from this, Mikah,” Jason warned.
She didn’t bother looking back to see the heartbreak that was sure to cover his face. The only way to survive this was to stay strong—be vigilant. She could not give him the sort of power he desired…the power to truly destroy her—from the inside.
***
As the days passed Mikah’s anxiety and apprehension doubled, then tripled. Calling off work to seek the comfort of her bed and cat. She didn’t want to face Cam or Jason, or the rest of the world for that matter. Her people skills were completely absent, the ability to adult had been thoroughly sucked out of her.
She wanted nothing more than to sulk in her own misery, in the quiet, safe and uneventful life she’d pieced back together for herself after the debacle with her ex.
“It’s almost the truth, but not quite,”her wolf said.
Her wolf was right—as always.
It was about far more than just that bothering her. Her biggest fear was that she had taken things too far with Jason. That with the kiss they shared, he’d expect more. More of everything that she just couldn’t give to him.
He might be her fated mate, and he may have marked her, but that didn’t mean that they had to complete the mating ceremony, joining their souls together for all of eternity.
What if he turned out to be a total dickhead like Shane? She couldn’t live through that kind of pain and heartache again. Once had been enough. Thank you very much.
“What should I do, Oscar?” She stroked the cats back.
“You’re going to ask a mangey cat what to do about our life, but not me?” her wolf huffed. “I should eat that fleabag and be done with this ridiculousness.”
“Oh, you stop! Be nice to the kitty. He needs our love and support too. And yes, I am asking him. He seems to give better guidance than you!”
She knew her wolf hated the cat, but it didn’t matter. She had saved him one night in a dream from some lunatic that had thrown him into a river, trapped in a black trash bag. He was part of her life, and that was that.
“Meow,” Oscar cried as he rubbed up against her.
“Yeah, I think you’re right. I need to get my ass up and get back to work. Hopefully, Cam isn’t too pissed off for my disappearing act.”
“Let me get this straight… the cat meows at you and you decide he’s right? You know that meow was him saying ‘pet me, bitch’ right?”
