Page 54 of Satisfaction Guaranteed

“Shit, Alana, are you alright? Please tell me you aren’t hurt.” He waits, poorly veiled anxiety pouring out of him in waves. But when her throat betrays her and leaves her unable to answer, his resolve crumbles. His enormous muzzle dips into her sides, her legs, and her arms, snuffing and huffing in search of some sign of blood or injury.

“Ah!” Alana squeaks when the chill of his nose touches her scorched skin. She recoils, shoving Cyrus’ head away. “I-I’m okay!”

Cyrus backs off when he hears the stutter in her voice. How he looks at her makes her heart feel too big for her ribcage. Briefly, she wants nothing more than to bury herself in him and hug him close, in spite of everything.

She resists the urge.

Alana breathes slowly through her nose and even slower out through her mouth. Her arms curl around her as she pulls her knees to her chest. “Are…are you okay?” Her gaze drops, raking over Cyrus’ chest and body for any signs of damage.

“He didn’t lay a scratch on me. I’m just fine, sweetheart, I promise.” Cyrus’ voice holds a calm, comforting weight. He licks under her chin.

Under any other circumstance, it’d render her heart useless. But right now, it doesn’t hold the same effect. Her body feels heavy, bogged down by an invisible weight she isn’t strong enough to shake. The adrenaline of the night has left her hollow and bare. She’s been yelled at, rejected, chased, and almost killed. She wants to thank Cyrus for saving her from that fate, but she’s equally as willing to sock him in the muzzle.

“You don’t get to call me that right now.”

Cyrus whines. It’s a pathetic, puppy-like sound. “I’m sorry.” He lays his oversized head in her lap. Even when she tries to turn away, he noses under her hand. “I really am. I didn’t mean any of those things. I’m honored you’d want to support me through this. It’s the sweetest thing, and I know you meant well, but I just—” Standing, he rubs a clawed hand against the side of his neck. “I was just scared, okay? I was scared. I can get intense during a full moon. I didn’t want to hurt you. Or worse, had you agreed to something not knowing what you were getting into? If you woke up and came to regret anything we did, I’d—ow!”

A pine-cone hits Cyrus square in the nose. His eyes widen at the assault, a hand coming forward to cup his snout. “The hells was that for—”

He narrowly dodges the small pebble that’s thrown next.

“Alana—”

Another.

“Woman, would you cut that out!”

“No!” Alana snaps. Tears cloud her vision. She looks ridiculous, hurtling objects at a werewolf four times her size, but she couldn’t care less. “Gods, Cyrus. I’m not stupid, okay? And I’m not as helpless and naive as you apparently think! I told you once before, I’m not made of fucking glass.” She snatches another item to toss—an old, dented beer can. “I’m grown. I knew what your wolf might need when I got here. I was willing to be whatever you need whether it was sex. Or food. Or company. Whichever you choose, I wouldn’t regret it because it’s, well, because it’s you, you dummy! I thought…”

Heat cascades over Alana’s face, and pink settles against her cheek. Had she interpreted things wrong? Him showing up at her party, the kiss. How awkwardly he was behaving. There were times she could be oblivious, but she really thought he… wanted her. Alana sniffles again, and Cyrus’ oversized hand wrapping around her wrist is the only thing that stops her from chucking the beer can at his face.

“I really am sorry, Lana. I should have never, ever spoken to you like that,” he says.

He wipes a tear from the corner of her eye, and it should terrify her—the sight of him like this. That hulking frame, those teeth. But as the adrenaline coursing through her veins subsides, she realizes she’s anything but afraid. He doesn’t look scary; he looks powerful.

“You should be,” Alana mumbles. Tugging her arm away, she hugs herself around the knees to brace against another gust of wind. “Do you really think that’s all I wanted? To get back into bed with you? Because I promise—”

“No,” Cyrus says quickly. “No, lovely, I don’t. I just—it’s what I’m used to. Folks typically only want one thing from me, and…I guess I panicked. I panicked because I wasn’t sure I’d be able to recover this time around.” He takes a seat on his haunches, his ears flattened against his head. He looks defeated. As defeated as a werewolf could look, at least.

Alana’s frown deepens. “What do you mean?”

The gold in his eyes dims. “It isn’t important. Really, Alana, it isn’t. All that matters is that you’re safe. And while I trust you, I really, really don’t want to hurt you. But if you don’t leave now? I’m scared I won’t be able to hold myself back.”

Alana isn’t satisfied with the answer. Not in the slightest. Her brows furrow, mouth hanging, then Cyrus shifts on all fours again. Above them, the midnight sky is clear, the moon full and bright. Cyrus whines again, licking across his teeth. They’re sharper than when she’d seen them last.

“‘Lana…” His voice holds a lustful, urgent edge. And as Alana’s attention flickers lower, she can see that urgency manifest in another form. “I-I know it’s not fair of me. But I need you to make a choice.”

Alana’s body goes taut, a cold shiver racing down her spine. “I’m staying, Cyrus. Like I said before, anything you need, I’ve got you.”

Cyrus’ eyes dilate, and the intensity in his gaze makes her feel no better than how those hens must’ve felt under the coyote’s stare. Trapped. Only, she doubts they felt the same attraction she feels toward the very being strong enough to end her. Cyrus looks at her with all the feral edacity of a man starved, the moonlight fraying at his continence. Then, it snaps like burning thread.

“Anything?” he asks. The question rumbles out of him like passing thunder from the mountains.

Alana swallows hard, an audible gulp in the quiet. “Anything.”

Cyrus’ mouth curls into a predatory grin. The gold in his eyes glows bright and he settles his paws into the earth. Powerful shoulder muscles flex, and his thick, opaque claws dig deep grooves into the soil. He crouches low, waiting. “Then I need you to run.”

“Um, huh?” He can’t be serious. Did she not just run for her life already?