Of Mistletoe and Mating (Claws Clause 1.50)

Maybe.

Disappointed and feeling rejected, Evangeline had murmured something that might’ve been an I love you or maybe you’re right, but was really a what’s wrong with us before she rolled over, curled up in a ball, and drifted off to another uneasy sleep.

When she woke up the next morning, the quiet was the first thing she noticed. Quiet… because there were no loud snores coming from the wolf in bed with her.

Because there was no wolf.

Maddox had already left the room.

Her heart sank. He’d probably risen with the sun, waking up early to check his traps, his marks, his territory and make sure that no one had attempted to cross the lines while he got a couple of hours of shu

t-eye.

It was something he’d been focusing on since they came to the cabin. As second-in-line to take over the pack when his father, the current Alpha, finally gave up the reins, Maddox could’ve arranged for some of the unmated packmates to act as additional soldiers. Could’ve, but didn’t. As much as he trusted his packmates, the only person he would let around his mate was his brother, and since Colt was already preoccupied, that left Maddox to run the watch all on his own.

She tried to tell him that it wasn’t necessary. She’d been more than fine the first few months after Cilla first transported her away and, well, nearly killed her. But then the Nightwalkers tried to use her as leverage and… yeah. Maddox was too stubborn to let that go.

But Evangeline was secure now. And all she wanted was to spend a cozy, quaint Christmas with the mate she adored.

Too bad they weren’t on the same page.

They never really had a chance for a honeymoon. When they were married three years ago, the near-fatal accident that Cilla orchestrated came right before they could celebrate their elopement. Then, after Maddox served his time in a Cage while Cilla held Evangeline’s memories hostage, her mate had only one thought on his mind: getting Evangeline to remember him so that he could finally claim her as his bonded mate.

Which he did, but there still hadn’t been any time for a true honeymoon. Evangeline was still getting used to her memories coming back to her in waves, then pieces, and there was the question of where did Cilla disappear off to and what the jealous witch was plotting now?

This was supposed to be their time together. That’s what Maddox said when he first proposed the idea of their spending Christmas together at the cabin that meant so much to them.

Evangeline went along with it because, even a month ago, she had started to sense her mate pulling away from her, both physically and emotionally. In the weeks since they moved into the cabin for the holidays, it had only gotten worse.

And then there was last night. She could still feel his hand against her hip, the possessive brand that warmed her all the way to her heart—until he jerked it away, making another excuse to put more space between them.

So they slept in the same bed. It might as well have been different worlds.

She shook her head, then threw back the rumpled comforter. No use in sitting in bed and moping all day. When Maddox came back from wherever he’d run off to this time, she’d confront him.

He was keeping something from her. She knew him well enough to tell when he was being secretive.

After his desperate approach to get her to remember him, the way he drugged her then kidnapped her so that she’d remember who he was and that she was his wife, Maddox swore that he’d never keep secrets from Evangeline again. It was the only thing she asked for back then.

It was all she wanted now.

Christmas was in little more than a week. If that’s all he gave her for a gift, she’d get to the bottom of why Maddox seemed to be regretting their mating.

He was her mate. She was his. They had a marriage certificate and a bonding license—plus Evangeline had Maddox’s bite—or prove it.

If he changed his mind about them, he owed her an explanation at least.

* * *

Evangeline was in the upstairs shower.

Maddox could hear the soft spray of the water against the tile the instant he let himself back into the cabin. Just imagining his mate’s gorgeous body standing beneath the water had his cock twitching, going instantly hard. If he thought she’d welcome him, he’d shuck off his clothes, his boots, and go join her for a little shower sex.

With a rough hand, he palmed at his erection through his jeans. He needed to tame the bulge because, honestly, Maddox wasn’t so sure that Angie would welcome him.

Ever since he brought his mate back to this cabin, leaving their fledgling home in Wolf’s Creek behind them, she’d been giving him the cold shoulder. He didn’t want to push her, not when it was still so soon after the trauma she went through, but giving her her space was giving him the worst case of blue balls he’d ever known.

For his mate, though, he’d deal with it.