“Good job. You’ve stepped over a bar that’s literally ground level.” Sarcasm drips from my words like venom. “Do you want a fucking cookie?” I wave at the ones in the dirt.
“No,” he grumbles.
Silence descends between us until he breaks it with what sounds an awful lot like a command.
“Do it. Dance in front of me.”
My urge to come to some shared understanding evaporates under my heated anger. Mr. Alpha Pack Leader is used to having his dictates followed. But I’m not a member of his pack, and I am not some scared human, here to entertain him.
“No.” The word cuts through the air. “My terrible dancing is forme. It’s not for anyone else. Just because we made out doesn’t change anything.”
Maybe I don’t truly fear Roderick, but not being afraid of someone is still a long way away from the freedom to be a completely honest version of myself around them.
“I won’t judge you,” he insists.
At that, I can’t stifle a disbelieving laugh. “Seriously? All you do is judge me, Roderick. The second I crossed into your territory, you’ve been judging me. So, pardon me if I don’t believe you.”
The wolf stands, towering over me. But again, I don’t feel fear. Not like when I saw his black eyes last night.
It seems I only have certain panic triggers, and the Pine Falls pack leader is not setting any of them off at the moment with his hard eyes clear of the darkness that hints his wolf lingers near the surface. All he has is my annoyance.
“You accepted my apology.” Roderick rumbles the words deep, and I wonder if I would have felt the vibration of them had my hands been on his chest.
“Forgiving doesn’t mean forgetting,” I bite out.
And suddenly, I find myself unable to keep from touching him. But I refuse to confuse this conversation with foreplay, so my actions possess an air of aggression.
I push him with my fists against his broad chest. He doesn’t budge, but that’s okay. The point wasn’t really to move him.
Roderick stares down at me.
“Does that help?” he asks.
“Does what help?” I scowl into his handsome face.
“Trying to push me?” He reaches his hands up, only to brush his thumbs over the back of my fists, where they remain planted against his firm pecs.
“Yes,” I admit. “It does.”
“Why?” His tone is curious. “You’re strong, but you won’t move me.”
Cocky much?
No, that’s not right. He’s just being honest.
The fight leaves me as fast as it rose, and I answer with equal truth, “I think I want proof that you’ll let me.”
Roderick’s hands gently rub my forearms, down to my elbows, then back to my wrists. “You want to be able to push people?”
Mesmerized by his touch, I shake my head to deny his interpretation, but also to clear away the trance he’s laying over me. “That’s not it.”
“Then what is it?”
Now I hesitate. This next bit is more revealing. “I like knowing you won’t push me back.”
The wolf frowns. “That would hurt you.”
Oh, Roderick.
