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TWENTY-SIX
With a dramatic sigh,I slid under the blankets and lowered myself to my back on the mattress. There was a good foot of space between Jesse and I—something I didn't particularly like, but did feel was necessary.
I wasn't going to be the kidnapped, mail-ordered, Stockholm-Syndromed bride, after all.
"Close your eyes," Jesse instructed.
I opened my mouth to argue.
"Tea, close your mouth and shut your eyes. You know I'm not going to grab your tits or anything."
DidI know that?
Yeah, I knew that. He'd been a perfect gentleman, despite his body's obvious reaction to me.
My eyes closed.
"Where do you see yourself in ten years?" he asked.
"Working in a hospital. Living next door to my mom. Buying her the shoes she stares at in the store window and taking her out to eat; shit she never could afford when I was a kid because kids are so expensive," I answered automatically.
"What else?" he asked.
I opened my eyes, shooting him a frown. "What do you mean, what else?"
"What else do you see yourself doing in ten years? Having a kid of your own? Learning to paint? Going back to school for your master's degree? You're a planner; you must have some idea of your future other than financial stability."
I shot him an irritated glare. "This is what you call relaxing?"
"Yep."
"You're obnoxious." I turned my head back to the ceiling, shutting my eyes again. And though I knew I didn't have to, I decided to play Jesse's little game.
What did I want out of life, other than not having to worry about money?
My mind went back to the past month. To the way it had felt when I sat on the couch, studying, with Wolf Jesse snuggled up against my feet. For no reason that made logical sense, it was so much more enjoyable than studying alone.
Everything had been more enjoyable with Jesse the Wolf than when I was alone.
"I think I'd like to get married, at some point," I finally said. "Or maybe just find a partner to share my life with. Someone to talk to when I get home from work, and text when something funny happens."
"And snuggle at night?"
I shot Jesse another glare. "I know what you're doing. You want me to see that having a mate is a blessing, just like your mom was trying to tell me. I understand that it's special, and that at some point I'll probably be glad that your wolf picked me, but—" I cut myself off when his hand landed on my arm.
"That's not what I'm doing, Tea."
I glared, waiting for him to clarify.
"I'm not trying to manipulate you. I asked because I wanted to know your answer, not because I want you to think I am the answer." He paused. "Though on second thought, I could be."
I smacked him on the chest with the back of my hand, and he chuckled. "I was kidding."
"Sure you were." Drawing my hand back, I placed it on my abdomen with the other one.
"We could be good together, you know. I've seen the way you look at me, and you know how I look at you. We could—"
"We've known each other for like three days, Jesse. I get that you watched me through your wolf for a couple of months, but I'm not jumping into a relationship with someone I just met regardless of any werewolf magic." I slid out of the bed. "I need to catch up on my homework."
