“Don’t get me wrong, I’m loving this more … amenable woman, but what has changed from last night?” he asked.
She had been so adamant he was wrong.
“I can feel who you are,” she said. She placed a hand over his chest. “There’s no fighting the mating call. We’re destined to be together, and even though it scares me, I’m not going to run from you.” She kissed him again, and he sank his fingers into her hair, ravishing her lips. She was everything to him and so much more.
****
Suzy tried the front door of Beast’s cabin for the hundredth time. It was locked. A wolf she may be, but she didn’t have the strength to break through his enforced lock.
Two days ago, she’d finally found out they were mates.
Yesterday, he took her virginity.
Today, he’d locked her in his cabin as he went to deal with the pack in town.
She didn’t know why he had felt it was necessary to lock her away. It wasn’t like she was any trouble, but here she was, locked away, and she couldn’t get out.
“Seriously. Why, Beast?” She let go of the handle and moved toward the back door that was at the edge of the kitchen. Sure enough, that was locked.
She’d be able to smash a window, but she didn’t want to actually cause any damage to his cabin.
Stepping away from temptation, she sat down at the kitchen table, pressing her hands together.
She wore a pair of his shorts and a long shirt. They were at least two sizes too big for her, and they smelled of him.
With the full moon almost upon them, she could sense her wolf even clearer now than ever before.
She was always aware of her wolf, but never like this. With how close her wolf was to the surface, it was how she believed Beast that they were mates.
Mates.
Suzy smiled. She had always thought her mate would be different. Not an alpha. Never the leader.
His fear of her being attacked was definitely founded. Women were known to get rather mean and cruel when they felt someone had taken their place. None of this ever made any sense to Suzy.
If men and women were supposed to be mates, their wolves designed by fate themselves to fall in love and be together, she didn’t know how anyone could even think to take a woman or man away from such a union, but she had heard tales of that happening.
Getting up from the chair, she moved toward the bedroom, opening up his closet. The scent of Beast was everywhere, and right now, her wolf wanted to feel him near.
Running her fingers along the shirts, she smiled, recalling the number of times she saw him walking through town.
Even as she tried to look away, he’d drawn her gaze. Was that the mating call? She didn’t know.
Beast was such a powerful man. She had witnessed his power before when he had to deal with the pack.
He never allowed anyone to cause trouble within the pack.
Dropping down to his pants, she smiled as she caught a few pairs with holes where he’d been walking through the woods. She stroked over the torn bits of fabric and made a note for him to get her sewing kit from home. She could more than repair any damage he’d caused.
She jumped as the cabin door opened and closed.
Rushing out of the room, she found Beast in the kitchen, unloading bags of food.
“You locked me in,” she said, folding her arms across her chest.
He turned toward her with a smile. “I had a good reason to.”
“Yeah, what exactly do you consider a good reason?”
“Food.” He winked at her and held his hand out for her to look. “Or do you disagree?” Her stomach chose that very moment to growl. “You see, I’m just taking care of my woman.” He pulled her in close, and she smelled other women and the pack on him.
She tried to pull away.
“I wasn’t near anyone, I promise you. I went to the town hall. A couple of people asked where you were because of the sandwiches, and I told them you weren’t feeling well so you wouldn’t be available for a couple of days. I was taking care of you.”
“You told people that?” she asked.
“Yes. No one would ever dream of coming here.” He ran his hands down her back, cupping her ass. “Did you miss me?”
“No.” The lie fell easily from her lips, but as he raised his brow at her, she rolled her eyes. “Yes. You didn’t have to lock me in.”
“I don’t want you wandering around. Not with my smell all over you and inside you. I’ve not taken you yet, and if we have any enemies close by, they would try to take you from me.”
“We haven’t had any enemies come into town for years, Beast. You worry too much.”