Jealousy flashes through me at the thought of some other woman kissing Carter. Of Sebastian making her pancakes, of Troy carrying her to bed.
“Whoa.” Sebastian sniffs wildly at my hair. “What the hell was that? What are you thinking?”
My cheeks heat with embarrassment. Of course, he can smell the change in my scent, and now I’ll have to explain my mortifying spiral of doom because I don’t want to lie to him.
I keep my gaze on my knees and admit, “I thought that maybe you should get another mate. Someone who wouldn’t half pass out after one round of fucking.”
He recoils as if stung. “Emma! Stop that. We’re not even talking about that. There will be no other woman for us, and if we have to fuck you one at a time and give you breaks from now on until eternity, you’d still be the best, most ideal mate for us. Now wait here and don’t move.”
He stands suddenly and stalks away, his gorgeous ass flexing, his fluffy tail swishing this way and that in agitation. He throws open the front door and bellows, “You two get your furry asses back inside or I’m going to drag you here. Right now!”
Then he slams the door and turns back to me. I raise my eyebrows at him, surprised at his outburst.
“Yeah, this is the first time I’ve yelled at my alpha.” He rubs the back of his head. “But I felt like it needed to be done.”
“I don’t think Carter will mind.” I grin at him. “That was pretty badass.”
His answering smile has butterflies exploding in my belly. He’s just so open and good and caring. I extend my hand to him, and he returns to the couch and wraps his arms around me, pulling me against his chest.
“What’s your story?” I ask him. “How did you come to be in a pack with Troy and Carter?”
He hums, his cheek resting against my temple. “Not much to tell. I was an artsy kid born into a family of hockey-obsessed werewolf jocks, but luckily for me, they weren’t all bad and I was never bullied or anything. My mom’s the greatest, and she encouraged me to go to art school and still comes to all my shows, even if she has to fly, which she hates to do.”
I glance up at him. “You have art shows?”
He huffs, sounding pleased. “Yeah. I’m working on a series of paintings right now for a spring show in Boston.”
“That’s so cool,” I say. “I’ve never been to one before. Only galleries with old paintings.”
He gives me a soft smile. “You can be my plus-one for the next event, then. And you’ll get to meet my mom. Or we might fly to Montana before then. I can’t wait to introduce you to my family.”
My chest squeezes happily at the thought. He wants me to meet his folks? No guy I ever dated was this eager to bring me home as Sebastian is.Before I can tell him how much that means to me, he stiffens slightly, then says, “They’re coming.”
I strain my ears, listening, and finally distinguish footsteps on the porch, though the sound is nearly muffled by the wind howling outside. “Both of them?”
“Yeah.” Sebastian takes me into his lap and holds me close as if he wants to protect me. “They…smell weird. So whateverthey say, just remember, we all want you here. But they can be incredibly stubborn, so please, don’t give up on them.”
I turn to look him in the eyes. He’s frowning, his snout twitching with whatever whiffs of scent Carter and Troy are giving away.
“Okay,” I promise. “I’ll keep an open mind.”
He kisses my cheek quickly. “That’s all I’m asking for.”
Chapter
Sixteen
EMMA
The two massive werewolves shake the snow from their fur, hulking at the door. Troy is still in his full wolf form, magnificent on all fours, while Carter is in his half form, rising to almost seven feet. I realize for the first time that they must have built this cabin with their larger proportions in mind because Carter didn’t even have to duck his head to pass through the door.
Water drips from them, droplets flying everywhere, and Carter growls at Troy to wait, then takes a towel from a shelf by the door and scrubs it over himself. Then he drops in a crouch and roughly dries Troy, too, while the other werewolf tries to evade him.It’s such a domestic moment, I can’t help but grin.
Then it occurs to me that Troy could have dried himself if he only shifted, but he seems determined to remain a quadruped.
Meaning he can’t talk.
That doesn’t bode well for the conversation I know we need to have.
