Chapter Eighteen

Annie’s mouth dropped open as she took in the fully restored car. She wasn’t sure what kind it was.  Her eyes moved over the paint. Taking in the running wolves along the passenger side door and the chrome detailing, the wax surface gleamed in the dim light of the garage.


“It’s Dev’s hobby.”  Candy said as she moved forward to open the door for her mate.


“The car or the paint?”  


“Both, he’s the one who painted my shoes.”  Candy answered as she held her hand out to Annie.  Pulling her attention away from studying the details that Dev had put into his artwork. It was an accurate portrayal of wolves on the hunt.


Slipping her hand in Candy’s, Annie bit her lower lip as her eyes met honey- colored eyes.  


Candy moved closer to Annie. Her other hand coming up to cup her mate’s cheek.  “If you keep looking at me like that, we won’t make it to our date.”


“Is that a bad thing?”  Annie asked, biting her lower lip as she looked at Candy.


“No, it’s not.” Candy said before shaking her head, her cheeks heating up.  “I do have a plan and there are things that you need and I wanted to be the one to take you shopping.”


Annie nodded before sitting down into the seat and letting go of Candy’s hand. The leather creaked beneath her as she pulled her feet into the car.


Closing the door, Candy spun on her heels.  She needed to get her body under control or she was going to scare her mate away.  Her heels clicked in the quiet garage as she walked around the car.  Concentrating on her breathing and trying not to think of how her mate smelled.


A plan already forming in her mind, she’d have dinner with Annie.  Then she’d tell her about the kiss she had shared with Stolas.  Hopefully her mate would understand. After all, if she felt the same pull that Candy did. She’d know that there was no way to avoid the pull of the bond.


Opening the door, Candy slid into the car.  Putting the keys into the ignition, her head filled with thoughts of watching Annie kiss Stolas. Hope blooming in her chest, that her mate would feel the same pull.  Biting back a moan, she buckled her seatbelt and turned the keys starting the car.


“Are you feeling okay?”  Annie asked as she reached over, grabbing her hand.


“Yeah.”  Candy squeaked out as she shifted to buckle her seatbelt, before taking Annie’s hand in her own.


“You look a little flushed.”  


“Just a lot on my mind.”  Candy replied with a slight smile.  


“So where are we headed first?”  Annie asked as Candy pulled the car out of the garage.  Navigating them up the long gravel driveway that led to the road.  


“I was thinking food first, then shopping unless you’d like to shop first and then eat?”  Candy said, stroking her thumb across Annie’s knuckles.  A shadow moved above the car, blocking out the fading sun, and Candy rolled her eyes.  One day the dragons were going to be seen.  


Annie shifted in her seat, looking up at the sky.  “Was that, was that a dragon?”  


“Yeah, pack lands border on their mountains. Drake has a good relationship with their flock.”


“I didn’t know they were real.”  Annie said, and Candy smiled at the awe in her voice as she studied the white dragon moving through the clouds.  


“Maybe I can take you to meet one some time?”  Candy said, glancing over at her mate.


“That would be so cool.”  


Candy frowned, her wolf was jealous.  The beast didn’t like her admiring another shifter, her next words soothed the beast.


“Maybe I can meet your wolf too.  I mean, when you’re ready.  I don’t want you to feel like you have to show me or anything.”  Annie’s words were rushed and Candy couldn’t help but smile. Her mate was perfect, soothing her without even realizing it.  


“My wolf would like that.”  Candy said, trying to fight back her smile.  Her beast wanted her to pull the car over.  Shed her clothing and her human form so she could show Annie how she looked as a wolf.  


Candy soothed the beast, letting her know that there would be time enough for that in the future.  They had their entire lives to get to know one another better, and she wanted her mate to feel cherished. 


The drive was quiet and comfortable as Candy navigated the car towards the city.  “What type of foods do you like?”  Candy asked the closer they got.


“I like everything right now.”  Annie chuckled as she rubbed her stomach, “Well, accept for pizza.  They don’t seem to like that too much.”  Her stomach turning at the thought of the food she used to like.


“Did you like it before?”  


“I did, but now.  Even thinking about it-”  Annie said, bringing her hand up to her mouth.  Her face going pale.


“Do you like oranges?”  Candy asked, trying to get her mate to think of something else.  “My grandmother used to bring me and my brother chocolate covered oranges every Christmas.”  


“I do.  That’s actually been one of my biggest cravings.  That and jalapenos.”  


Candy nodded, a smile on her face as she decided where they would be going.  She continued driving until she pulled Dev’s mustang into the parking lot of a Mexican restaurant.  “I hope this is okay.”  She said as she parked the car.  


She turned to look at her mate, the neon lights painting across her skin.  Highlighting her features, making her look otherworldly.


Annie spoke, but Candy couldn’t hear it, her breath was taken away.  If she’d looked into the rearview mirror, she would have seen her eyes had changed.  Her wolf peeked through to watch her mate.  Studying her, she felt desire coil through her.  


“Candy?”  Annie asked, stroking her mate’s hand as she spoke.  Hunger welling up inside of her, moving over her skin in a way that it never had before.  She leaned forward, pulling her hand from Candy’s to rest it to her bare knee.  


The skin beneath her palm was hot and it felt like sparklers moving over the skin where she touched her mate.  


The low growl that filled the car was one that made Annie’s toes curl in her shoes.  It was a sound she’d heard before, but with Beau she knew that it meant something bad was coming her way.  With Candy, though, she didn’t have the same fear.  


“Annie,” Candy said, her voice rough with the growl of her wolf.


Annie had never wanted to press herself up against someone as much as she did right now.  Moving her hand higher up Candy’s thigh, she sucked in a breath.  Excitement filling her, mixing with the arousal.