“It gets easier,” he says, slapping me on the back and adding, “once they wear your mark,” through the mindlink. “You and Sofia look to be getting along better?”
Are we? Goddess, I hope so. It feels like we are. But that doesn’t mean Sofia won’t push me away again. That I won’t fuck it up again. The sound of a roar of laughter rises, and I look over to see Sofia knocking back shots.
I force myself to stay seated. To trust her. Fuck, this is going to be torture.
I have to keep my hands hidden under the bar so that no one sees the claws that push out through my nails over and over again.
Sofia is drunk.
She dances with Emily, hips swaying, hands running up her curves, hair wild around her face. Every eye in the bar is on her. She fends off advances with ease—even breaks one guy’s fingers when he gets too handsy. Fuck, I forgot humans wouldn’t be ableto smell me on her. I need to get her a ring. Something with an obnoxiously large diamond. Sofia smirks at me when she realizes I saw her deflecting the last guy. My wolf howls with pride and jealousy in equal measure.
But I hold back. She’s safe. She’s capable.
When she finally stumbles over, flushed and glowing, she leans close and says, “Wanna get out of here?”
I breathe out a sigh of relief before taking her hand and guiding her to walk ahead. No way I’m taking my eyes off her. I wouldn’t, anyway. But especially not drunk.
“You can carry me now,” Sofia declares, her arms outstretched as soon as we leave the bar. I chuckle and scoop her up bridal-style. She giggles into my chest as we walk through town. Shifters don’t get drunk easily, but I’m pretty sure she drank an entire bottle of tequila, and that’s enough to let her guard down.
“Can I tell you a secret?” she asks, glancing around to see if we’ll be overheard as I walk down the main street of the human town nearest our pack, carrying my drunk mate.
“What’s that?”
“I know I said not to, but I kinda miss you calling me princess.”
She giggles to herself and shushes me even though I’m not saying anything. I want to say so much. But she’s a drunken mess right now. Not the time. When I get to my truck, she’s already nearly asleep, but I rouse her to make her drink some water. I think that’s supposed to help with hangovers. Then I buckle her in and drive us home.
She must have found a new lease on life because she chews my ear off the whole drive home. It’s amazing. Telling me about how she wants to open a self-defense class for human women when Ryan finds his luna, and she has more free time. She talks about Emily and how close they are. She even tells me she thinks she doesn’t hate me anymore.
And I listen. I soak it all up, grateful to tequila for helping me to get this invaluable insight into my mate. Drunk-Sofia is fun and carefree. She’s still a smartass, full of sass. But she’s freer.
I want to drive forever. To keep listening to her. But she needs sleep.
I pull up towards the pack house—where all the cars are parked—and walk around to Sofia’s side of the car. I unbuckle her and lift her again into a bridal carry for the short walk home.
Fates, having Sofia in my arms so much tonight has been everything I needed. It feels so right.Shefeels so right. I adore her solid weight. How she’s not petite and tiny. Sofia is tall and curvy and toned. Not at all breakable.
“Any chance of you wanting to skip the couch tonight?” I ask when we arrive home, and I put her onto her feet. Sofia wobbles a little, but she’s already sobering up. Her hands sneak up the outside of my arms until they land on my shoulders. Slowly, she raises her gaze, raking up my body until she reaches my face.
She’s the same height as me in those heels, and her face is only a breath away from mine.
“Want to hear another secret?” she asks as her fingers move towards the buttons of my shirt. I inhale a sharp breath when sheopens them and runs her fingers along the grooves in my abdominal muscles.
“Not tonight, Princess. You already gave me so much,” I say, cupping my hands over hers when she drops them down to my belt. Fates, it’s killing me to stop this, but I can’t have her regretting it when she gives in to our bond.
Sofia’s eyes go wide. Hurt flashes across her face, raw and sharp. She jerks her hands back as if I burned her. “I’ll sleep on the couch,” she snaps as her cheeks flush. “You can go now.”
Shit. The last thing I wanted was to reject or embarrass her. But I can’t let her do something she might later regret.
“Sofia, wait—”
“No,” she says, silencing me with a raised hand. “You go to bed; nothing happened. You just happened to be a warm body here. Don’t read into it, Beta.”
She turns away from me, and my wolf snarls, pushing me forward.
“Sofia,” I say, my voice more stern. “Don’t do that. Don’t push me away again.”
“Just go!” she yells, her voice cracking at the edges.
