21: What The Wolf Wants, The Wolf Gets

The following days and nights aren’t any worse, in fact as the days go by the feeling slowly ebbs away. I can get past Gabriel’s face, I can feel like myself again. No attachments, no obsession. Work isn’t just empty hours spent daydreaming about a monster. It’s like I can breath again.

But as the days go by, the fewer there are before my week is up. I have no doubt that Gabriel will show up as Phillip had instructed.

And as if the devil could sense when he was being talked about, thought about, he shows up to gloat.

Gabriel strides through the front doors of Mystic Moon with a smug smile on his face. Part of me wants to hide in the basement with Jezmin and part of me, a very small part, wants to smile at his approaching body.

I physically shake myself to knock the thought away. He catches it, a twitch to his lips as he finds my struggle humorous. He strides up to the counter and cockily leans on it. “Nice meeting you here.”

“Oh, cut the bullshit. What are you doing here? It has been a week yet.” I still have until tomorrow. A glance at the clock tells me it's only a little past one o’clock. It still rattles me to see him in the daylight. It should be against the rules for him to be out this early as it might blow his cover.

“I know, but I wanted to see how you’re doing? A little check up.” His cover definitely needs to be blown.

“I’m doing great, so great that I would prefer it stay that way.” My eyes glance around the shop searching out Monty. The last thing I need is her pestering eyes.
“Have you found the witch?” He looks at me. His deep gaze reads my mind, plucking the words right out of my head that I wish he didn’t. “You haven’t even tried have you?”

My eyes lower to the counter top. No, I haven’t. I’m not sure I want to, but come tomorrow I’d wish I had. I don’t need him to say a word, because I’m pretty sure I know what he would say. ‘And this is exactly why Phillip insists on the weekly blood drinkings.’ ‘Motivation.’ ‘Liquid threats.’ The possibilities of what he could say is long.

Longer than the list of what he wouldn’t say. Considering the list of what he wouldn’t say is really just things I wish he would.

“I’ve been a little preoccupied.” I snap.

“Oh, I know.” He leans closer and the urge to punch gets greater.

“Who’s your friend?” Monty hops out from around a corner and Gabriel and I leap apart from each other. “Does he want a card reading?”

At the same time we both say no, but mine is high pitched and repulsed by the offer. Gabriel’s is kind and almost flirty as he kindly rejects the offer. I want to throw him under the bus so badly. Hand him over to Monty so he can endure something he doesn’t want to, but then I realize there’s a reason for his no.

Monty would be able to see all his secrets and the connection to myself. Would either of us be able to lie if off? Probably not. Monty is too good and thankfully she’s too smart to nag. She gives a shrug of her shoulders, mumbles something that sounds like ‘I tried’ before she disappears.

But I don’t trust her. She’s probably lurking, eavesdropping on whatever’s left of the conversation. “If that’s it, you should go.” My eyes skim past him to eyeball the shelves behind him. I wonder if he can sense my wandering mind.

“Until next time.” He winks at me, because he knows he can get away with it.

Seconds after he leaves Monty comes rushing up. “Who was that?”

“No one.”

“Um-huh.”

“Don’t you have stuff to do?” I want her away from me, her prying eyes and inquisitive questions.

She walks away, but I know I haven’t heard the end of it. My newfound contentment is ruined. The following hours of work I spend arguing with myself in my head. I throw a few jabs at Monty and a few more at Gabriel...a lot more at Gabriel.

I’m so deep in my one sided argument that I don’t see Monty come up on me before she’s nearly inches away. “I’m leaving for the night.” She has her purse already over her shoulder, keys in hand. Twenty bucks she was just lounging in her office instead of working.

“See ya.” I would say you tomorrow, but I’m not entirely sure how I’m going to be tomorrow. Maybe sick. Maybe unconscious from ingesting vampire blood. No one knows.

I’m not in the shop by myself for too long before I get to turn off the lights and lock the door. Things seem just like all the other nights before, but as I open the door and take one step onto the sidewalk, I slam into a firm chest that shoves me backwards back inside the shop. Two large hands tightly grip my shoulders, steading me on my feet.

“I need to talk to you.” The familiar, rough, deep voice brings me a little comfort.

“Oooookkkkaaaayyyy.” I draw out the word confused by him showing up. It’s been days since we kinda made up and he just storms in here now.

“You know what, never mind.” His words are even more confusing, but as his hands go to grip my arms holding me in place, he places his mouth on mine. “I’ve missed you and I was wrong. I am wrong.”

“Oooookkkkaaaayyyy.” Clearly confused on what the hell he’s talking about, but as he mouth is hovering right in front of me, I can’t think straight. But there’s no denying the wolf that ripples beneath his skin.

Between the visit with Gabriel earlier today and the yearning I’ve felt for the past six days I’m all for letting Caleb’s wolf ravage me. I grab him by his shaggy hair and pull him down until his mouth is on mine again.

He quickly lifts me up, wrapping my legs around his waist just like in the street. Except this time I’m wearing a long floor length skirt and his hands easily find the hem. Soon those strong hands clench my almost bare ass.

He stumbles along not looking where he’s walking. We collide with the front counter and a grunt of pain rushes out of my mouth, but Caleb doesn’t realize it’s pain or he doesn’t care. His mouth is still on me, moving from my mouth to my neck to chest.

A giggles quickly follows my groan from slamming into the counter as his unshaven face scratches against my skin. He heaves me up a little higher and starts his trek across the shop again.

He doesn’t stop until he lays me upon my round table in my doorless office. I hike my skirt up around my waist as he undoes his jeans. I’m ready and waiting for when he pushes himself between my legs. His fingers glide across me as he nudges my underwear to the side.

There’s no hesitation, no thinking twice about it. It’s just him and me and he pushes himself into me. A sharp breath hisses between my teeth as he buries himself as deep as he can go. He wastes no time pulling himself out to the tip and slams all the back in. The table legs scratch against the floor as it slowly moves in unison with Caleb’s rough rocking thrusts.

He’s startled to stop as several glass bottles shatter against the floor. I grab him by his shirt bringing his attention back to me. “It’s just Jezmin.” I wrap my legs tighter around him and thrust my hips wanting more.

He obliges, but with only a few more bruising thrusts before I can feel the faint pulse of him as he finishes. He takes his time withdrawing himself from me, his lips now kiss me gently as if he’s now all too aware of his prior forcefulness.

“I didn’t realize the full moon was that close.” I whisper into his ear.

He lets out a throaty laugh as we separate. He quickly tucks himself back into his pants as I adjust my skirt. “Marcus will kill me if he finds out I’m here.” My breath gets stuck in my throat as he says the words.

I should be pleased with him defying his alpha for me. I’m sure he could’ve full-mooned, restless wolf fucked Gloria, but he came to me. Something I didn’t realize I missed until now. What the wolf wants, the wolf gets...and he’s not the most gentlest about it. But the way he says how Marcus will kill him this time sounds different than all the other times. Like there’s some hidden meaning behind it. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing more than usual.” He grabs my face and plants a kiss on my forehead. He sees the deep set wrinkle between my brows as I try to decipher some hidden meaning. “Do you want me to walk you home?”

“Oh, the wolf wants to walk me home after manhandling me?”

Just as Caleb’s lips part in reply his phone rings annoyingly loud from the inside of his jean’s pocket. He glances at the phone and all I need is to glance at his face to know who it is.

“Busted.” I whisper. “You better get going.”

There’s an apologetic, turned down slant to his lips as he looks at me, but he knows better than anyone, ‘when the alpha calls, you come’. Even if the alpha is a fuckng bastard. Caleb places one more light kiss on my forehead before he dashes out of the store.

He doesn’t answer the call until he’s outside on the sidewalk, the annoying bell that would give his location away silent behind the shop door.

I clean up Jezmin’s mess before I go to the front door and lock up...again. This time the lock snaps closed, no handsome visitor sweeping me off my feet.