Page 38 of Logan’s Acadian Wolves

Falling back onto the pillow, he grunted, roughly pulling Wynter into his arms. She easily slid off his sex, immediately shaping herself to his body, like she’d been made for him. Logan’s heart slammed against his ribs as he stared up to the ceiling. He’d barely been able to restrain himself. What if he had bitten her? Was he really ready to be mated? The woman did amazing things to him in bed, but he hadn’t known her for very long at all. Just because his wolf wanted to claim her, that did not mean he had to accept it.

He needed to get his head on straight. If and when he made love to her again, he needed to show her his true nature. Rough and hard, the wolf wouldn’t go easy. Maybe he needed to avoid her altogether. The confusing emotions tightened in his chest. Logan silently admonished himself for almost giving in to the temptation to mark her. It was as if he’d temporarily forgotten the bloody battles he’d endured over the past two months. His hard-fought effort to fulfill Marcel’s wishes had come to fruition. The distraction that was Wynter Ryan threatened his role as Alpha. Protect and lead my pack. That was his destiny.

Taking a mate so soon into his reign could put that into jeopardy if he didn’t lead with clarity and objectivity. Loyalty between what he felt for the little wolf and his role as Alpha warred. Fate would not allow him to deny his mate for long; he’d go insane trying to do so. He needed to figure out how to have both. Before he marked her, he’d need to carefully contemplate the ramifications as opposed to allowing a momentary lust-filled roll in the hay to dictate his future.

Wynter’s breath slowed and she glanced up to Logan who appeared deep in thought. Her heart constricted. She could fall for this man in a New York minute. Logan would devour her if she let him. Ironically, that was exactly what she wanted. Her Alpha. She couldn’t remember the last time in her life she’d ever felt so at peace.

“I don’t want to leave,” she said softly against his chest.

“You’re not going anywhere, sweetheart,” he assured her, glad she couldn’t see the worry reflected in his eyes. Fuck almighty, he’d almost bitten her. He needed some distance before he did something he regretted.

Chapter Fifteen

Logan sat at the kitchen table, drinking his coffee and browsing through work emails. A solid dose of business was exactly what he needed to give him a brief respite from his otherwise chaotic life. The sound of the sliding glass door’s security pad beeping alerted him that Dimitri had arrived. He looked up to see his friend, strolling into the family room.

“Hey, D. Coffee’s on,” he commented, not looking up from his iPad.

“Hey. Beignet?” Dimitri held up a small white bag. He walked into the kitchen, took a clean mug off the counter and poured himself a cup out of the carafe. “Where’s Wynter?”

“No thanks. Wyn’s upstairs. Showering.”

Dimitri put a palm to his chest with a smile and closed his eyes, taking in the thought of her bathing. He lived to tease his Alpha. If Logan had found his mate, it could provide him with hours of material, at least until the novelty of having her around wore off.

“What are you doing?” Logan asked, now distracted by his beta’s antics.

“Wait, oh yeah. Just picturing that in my head,” he laughed. “You sure she doesn’t need any help up there? I’m excellent with a loofah. Yeah, I’ll volunteer for that duty any day of the week.”

“You’re a dick,” Logan replied with a smile, shaking his head.

“Speaking of…”

“Don’t say it. She could hear you, you know,” Logan warned.

“So?” Dimitri sat down, leaned back in his chair and raised an eyebrow at Logan.

“So what?”

“So…how’d it go last night?”

“As if you couldn’t hear?” Logan asked sarcastically, refusing to look up from his screen. Dimitri lived across the courtyard but with his preternatural hearing, he probably had heard every last moan.

Dimitri broke out in a hearty laugh. “Got me there,” he conceded. He picked up a beignet and pointed it at Logan. “You know, I’m not a total asshole. And for the record, I don’t exactly go listening in on your business on purpose. Believe it or not, I do have a life that doesn’t include you all the time. And hey, I was very good last night. I do remember someone thanking me for being such a wonderful beta. So let’s hear it. Last night she was pretty broken up. I just want to know how she is.”

“Yeah, ’cause you’re caring like that,” Logan said, taking a long drink.

Dimitri took a bite of the pastry and waited patiently for at least thirty seconds before he added, “You know you want to tell me.”

“Tell you what? That she’s the single most fucking unbelievably passionate little wolf I’ve ever been with? I am still not over how she woke me up this morning.” Dimitri was right. Not only did he want to tell him how he felt about Wynter, he wanted to tell everyone. He wanted to scream it from the rooftops. And that there, was exactly his problem.

“Let’s see, D, what else should you know? How about this? She’s totally distracting me from my Alpha responsibilities. Oh, you’ll like this one; I almost marked her last night.” Logan sighed heavily, raked his hand through his hair and clicked open another email.

Dimitri smiled quietly. His Alpha was so far gone. If he’d just give into this, things would go a lot more smoothly. It wasn’t as if he didn’t feel for him, he really did. It wasn’t as if he was itching to be mated. But he’d watched enough wolves over the years go through the process to know that you just had to accept it. You could go easy or you could go hard. But one thing was certain; you were going…and your mate was going with you.

“What, no words? No smooth advice from my beta?” Logan lifted his head, giving him a small grin. He was so fucked.

“I could help you,” Dimitri suggested slyly.

“Yeah and how’s that?”