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“Because you think something is inherently wrong with the way shifters do things?” she asked.
I hadn’t thought of it like that, but now that she put it that way…
“I feel like it’s a pretty objective truth that the way my biology works is far stranger than yours,” I said. “I don’t see any human couples trying to fuck in the middle of the forest.”
“I promise you, some do,” she said with a laugh. “And they don’t even have the excuse of instincts—not that they need it. There’s nothing wrong with two consenting adults doing something they want to do. I mean, that’s what you always tell me whenever I feel shameful about the things I want to do with you.”
“Uno reverse,” I groaned. “Fair enough, using my own arguments against me.”
“Well, I can’t help it that you’re so reasonable,” she said.
She reached over for my right hand and took it in hers. I kept my left hand on the steering wheel as the light turned green and I continued driving.
“Point is,” she said, “even though I’m nervous, and even though this whole thing has some elements of danger and strangeness associated with it, it’s still something I want to do. It’s something I want to do with you, and only you.”
“Would you want this if you were dating a human?” I asked.
“I’m not dating a human,” she pointed out.
“But—”
“Cole, hypotheticals like that are silly,” she said. “I don’t know what I would or wouldn’t want if I was with a human partner. And I hope I never do because I love you, and I don’t ever want to think of a life I’m not spending with you.”
I squeezed her hand. She had no business being so utterly perfect. Kind, sweet, beautiful, sexy, sensual Marley. With a heart the size of Texas. “I can’t imagine being with anyone other than you, either,” I said.
And maybe that was the answer to this strange, misplaced guilt. Maybe it was time to really think about settling down with her. Maybe I would feel better about everything if I gave her the legitimacy of a proper marriage along with an official bond within my own community.
Suddenly, her hand in mine felt sorely naked. I wanted to see a ring on her finger, a ring I got for her. I wanted to feel the cool metal and hard stone against the callouses on my hand.
I resisted the urge to rub my finger against the empty space on her ring finger. The last thing I needed to layer on top of all of this was the hint of a marriage proposal.
“I love you, Cole,” she said as we pulled up in front of the townhouse. “So don’t worry about me. You’ve always been so understanding of my choices and the pace I set. If I tell you I want to do something, you can trust that I really do want to do it. And you can trust that I’d tell you if I didn’t.”
I nodded, my shoulders sagging in relief. I brought her hand up to my mouth and kissed the back of it. “I’ll do my best not to freak out about it.”
We went inside to shower. I hopped in with her, but we kept it pretty chaste, especially since Travis had told us which restaurant to meet at. Early dinner was what he’d called for, which gave us only about an hour to get ready and head out of the compound to visit some brewery that was famous in the region and, therefore, something Travis was absolutely obsessed with. We’d also have to account for traffic going into the city, not to mention a thirty-mile drive since Travis never did anything by half measures.
When we got out of the shower, I gave Marley a rub-down to ease the tension in some of her aching muscles. I tamped down the urge to seduce her. Ever since coming here, it felt like I couldn’t keep my dick in my goddamned pants. Every time I saw her bare skin, I wanted nothing more than to bury myself in her. But I wasn’t a beast. I could control myself.
I could give my mate a damn massage without having to worship her pretty little flower.
When I was done and Marley was sufficiently loosened up from her hard day of training, we got dressed. She picked out a nice, slouchy sweater along with a pair of gray jeans. She finished everything off with a cute scarf and a pair of sneakers.
I wore my typical uniform—a pair of dark jeans and a black T-shirt. I also trimmed up my beard and threw on a gray leather bomber jacket in case Marley got chilly.
We hit a surprising amount of traffic after leaving the compound, but it didn’t aggravate me the way it usually did since Marley was with me. Conversation with Marley was always so effortless. We talked about everything and nothing at all, made jokes about the people we saw in other cars killing time in curious ways, like one woman who was so prepared for traffic, she was crocheting what looked like a baby blanket.
“I strive to be that good at multi-tasking,” Marley said.
“You could start a side hustle with all of the hats you make on your commute home from work,” I said.
“Side hustle becomes the main hustle,” she said. “‘Marley’s Mittens.’”
“‘Baby’s Blankets,’” I said.
“Oh, come on, that’s terrible. Even for you.”
“Excuse me, that is excellent material.”
