She smiled.
“Jobs.” He stared at her. “My dad worked for Dean, Finn’s dad. He was a damn good mechanic. Finn’s dad valued my father, helped me get into the right schools. Finn and I grew up together. He was my best friend. But once I figured out Dean was paying for everything, I acted like a shit and ran off, ashamed of my dad for taking a handout. I bummed around, using what my father had taught me to pay the bills. Finn tracked me down. Our reunion vacation turned me into a wolf, and I took off again.” He shook his head. “Finn and I didn’t talk for a long time. I tend to move around a lot. I wouldn’t want to put a target on the people I worked for.”
“No one special in your past?”
Mal cleared his throat. He’d locked memories of Jude deep inside, to keep himself sane. It had gotten easier in
time, but he knew he’d never fully recover from what happened. He could lie to Olivia, pretend she’d never existed, but he didn’t want secrets between them. “Once.”
“I didn’t mean to pry, Mal. It’s none of my business.” Her fingers stroked along the side of his face.
Only Olivia would say something like that and mean it. “Her name was Jude, and we were engaged. I thought I’d be able to make it work, even as a wolf. But the Others found her.” He shrugged, his brown gaze searching hers.
“Did she know?” Olivia’s voice was soft.
“That I was a late-night-movie monster?” He shook his head. “I never wanted her to.”
She nodded. “I’m so sorry Mal.” She slid closer, kissing his forehead. “I’m so sorry.”
He was, too—for Jude. He’d wanted Jude, wanted the family that came with her. She’d been funny and sweet, bringing joy to his life again. But his wolf had known. His wolf had tried to leave, running farther and farther from their apartment every time they shifted. The wolf had been waiting for its mate. And now they’d found her.
“I wish I’d taken you up on your offer.” He held her hand up, kissing each fingertip. “Me, you, and a beach in the middle of nowhere.”
She smiled. “Maybe we can convince Finn we need a getaway. He could buy our own little island, set up a new refuge just for the pack. Surround it with all sorts of defenses and wolf-eating sharks.”
He laughed. “Wolf-eating? Different than man-eating?”
She grinned, shrugging. “Fine, Others-eating. Maybe Hollis could scent train them or something?”
“If that was a thing, Hollis could do it.” He adored this woman.
She nodded. “We should talk to him.”
“Sounds good.” He sat up, reaching for the shampoo. “Lean back.” He poured the gel into his hand and ran it through her hair. “You? After you got your graduate degree, what did you want to do?”
“Work in a museum. Growing up, it felt wrong to see these pieces of history sold off. I always thought history was exciting, and artifacts were something meant to be shared with everyone, for anyone to learn from.” She sighed, closing her eyes. “It all seems so far away now.”
He rinsed her hair, wringing out any remaining shampoo suds.
“Mal.” She grabbed his hands. “Your turn.” She tugged.
He shrugged out of his clothes and climbed in, facing away from her. Her breasts pressed against his back, silky soft. Her legs fitted against his sides, cradling him against her. He closed his eyes, relishing each caress as she washed his hair, using her nails on his scalp until he was groaning. She laughed, massaging the muscles of his neck and shoulders before biting the nape of his neck.
He was pretty damn relaxed by the time the washcloth was gone and her hand started stroking his ever-ready erection. If she wanted him, he wasn’t going to argue. But he wasn’t going to take any chances, either. He gripped her wrist, eased her hand away, and stood. “Bed.”
She nodded, taking his hand and letting him rub her down with the thick towel. But she was impatient, tugging the towel from his hands and launching herself at him before he’d fully dried off.
He carried her back to the bedroom and laid her on the edge of the bed, standing between her thighs as he rolled a condom on, then lifted her hips. She was panting beneath him, hands gripping his forearms as she arched up to meet him.
He slid deep, growling at the heat that welcomed him home.
...
Olivia closed her eyes, focusing on the slide and tug of Mal inside of her. The friction was magic, raking her from head to toe, teasing her with flares of pleasure, flooding her with hunger.
She slid her hands over his, then up her sides and over her head, stretched out across the mattress. He pounded into her, the bed shuddering beneath her, making her rock. Her breasts bounced in time, another jolt to the senses. His fingers tightening on her hips ratcheted up the swell of heat and want tightening her stomach and melting her insides.
She looked at him, then, in tune with her body. And his.