m snuggled on the couch, streaming nostalgic Christmas movies on the television mounted to the wall.
It was nice. Maddox held her hand in his giant one, pulling her close as he nuzzled his nose in her long hair, breathing in her scent. She arched her neck, inviting him to kiss her skin, and even if Maddox didn’t take the hint, he was still there with her.
She’d take what she could get.
When the third movie ended and Evangeline turned down his offer of another sandwich, Maddox untangled his arm from around her shoulder and sat up on the edge of the couch. He yawned, stretched, before running his hand through his shaggy, sandy hair. He scratched at the stubble on his cheek, smacked his lips, and moved the blanket away from their laps.
“Should we start another movie,” Maddox wondered in that deep, raspy voice of his, “or would you rather go to bed now?”
Her heart nearly skipped a beat. Was he finally showing some sign that he was interested? “I—”
“It’s alright, Ang. You don’t have to stay up and keep me company. I saw the way your eyes were drooping during that last flick. Go on. You lay down and I can clean up the kitchen while you get cozy.”
It took everything she had not to let a disappointed frown cross her face.
Nope.
Not interested.
Tucking her hair behind her ear, Evangeline mustered up a small smile. “Yeah. You’re right. I… I guess I am kinda tired.”
“It got late without us realizing it and you decorated most of the cabin on your own. I can tell you’re beat.”
Oh? So Mad knew when she was exhausted, but he was clueless when she was feeling horny?
Evangeline had to try. “You, um… you coming to join me soon?”
“In a bit. I’m gonna take another run around the mountain when I’m done first.”
Of course he was.
Her smile dipped down into the noticeable frown she’d tried to hide before. Not now. “You just said it’s late. Come on, Mad. Come to bed with me. The patrol can wait until the morning.”
“Your safety is too important to me to skip it,” Maddox told her, patting her knee once before pulling his hand away. “I shouldn’t be gone long, just a quick patrol to reinforce our territory lines. You don’t have to wait up for me.”
A flash of fury mixed with sadness ran through her.
Evangeline got up from the couch.
“Don’t worry,” she said, turning away from her mate. “I won’t.”
* * *
Maddox was gone.
Again.
Feeling grumpy, feeling grinchy, Evangeline sprawled out in the king-sized bed, her body stretched out like a starfish as the chilly sheets told her that he wasn’t just gone. He’d been gone for a while.
At least she knew that he did come to bed last night. If it wasn’t for her early morning trip to the bathroom, when she saw Maddox lying on the edge of the bed, his back to where she’d been curled up sleeping, she might’ve wondered if he’d slept downstairs on purpose to avoid her.
Just like he told her not to, Evangeline didn’t wait up for him. She didn’t. And if she was semi-conscious when he came tiptoeing up the stairs much later than he should’ve, well, that was just coincidence.
What was he doing out there? She couldn’t help but wonder. If it was just a patrol, he should’ve have stayed out that long. But he had.
It wasn’t another woman. No doubt in Evangeline’s mind about that. Cheating… it wasn’t the way a Para was wired, especially not a shifter. Mating for life wasn’t just something that attributed to wolves in the wild. A shifter only got one mate; for Maddox, Evangeline was it. So it wasn’t another woman.
It was something, though.