Page 29 of Wolf Bitten

His eyes glowed faintly, and that presence inside me stirred harder. With theyankstrengthening in my chest, I had no qualms. “Of course.”

He exhaled and smiled. “Good. I was hoping you’d say that.”

He exited the car, and by the time I opened my door, he was already there, helping me out.

I smiled so wide that my cheeks hurt. “I’m feeling a lot better now that I’m warm. Well, other than being itchy.” I glanced up at the half-moon, noting it was descending. It was around two in the morning, which was good, given how much mud was caked on me. It was the middle of the school week, and most people were asleep.

Wrapping an arm around my waist, Raffe shut my door, and we made our way to the building. The cold night air had me stepping closer to him. Maybe I wasn’t as back to normal as I thought.

We entered through the double-glass doors and rode the elevator up to the fifth floor. In the light-gray hallway, we turned left. My mud-covered socks padded on the dark-gray carpet, leaving splotches of dirt behind. I cringed and stopped to remove the socks. A cloud of dirt swirled around me. Okay, that hadn’t been the smartest idea, but I was committed at this point.

Raffe chuckled, and I turned to find him smiling at me adoringly. My heart sputtered, and we headed to the apartment at the end.

I entered the code to the door and paused. “Where’s Cat-Keith?” The last thing I wanted was for my adopted cat from the animal shelter to attack Raffe as soon as I opened the door.

“She’s fine.” Raffe shook his head. “She and Lucy have come to an understanding while you’ve been gone. She’s in Lucy’s room.”

Learning that the two of them had formed a connection made me smile. I would’ve never believed it based on Cat-Keith’s reaction to Lucy the day I’d brought her home. “Good. I didn’t want her to attack you.” I wasn’t sure I had the energy to fight her off.

I entered the apartment with Raffe on my heels and headed straight into the one full bathroom in the middle of the small hallway that led to the two bedrooms.

Now that I could shower in my own place, I was eager to clean off the itchy dirt. I turned the water on in the marble-tiled shower and removed my clothes, trying to keep the dirt flakes to a minimum.

Raffe entered and grabbed a clean white towel from under the counter. He placed it on the sink for me.

He opened the glass door and pointed at my clothes. “I’ll put these in the washing machine and clean up behind you.” Something like sadness still shadowed his eyes.

I slipped into the shower and gasped, the water warmer than expected. I stepped under the spray.

The dirt still clung to me. I grabbed my vanilla-scented shampoo and started cleaning myself from the top of my head down. After I’d washed my body once, the water was still slightly brown. Not like when I’d first gotten in, but I had more work to do. As I washed the bites on my neck and wrist, I realized they were already scabbing over.

The sound of clothes dropping pulled my attention from my wrist. Raffe closed and locked the bathroom door and joined me.

My breath caught as I scanned his body. He was an amazing, caring person and built sexier than any god could ever dream of. I wasn’t sure how I’d gotten so lucky.

He took the bar of soap from my hands and worked up suds, then guided me to turn around and washed my back where I couldn’t reach. I could feel his anger swirling inside me as he growled, “Those vampires will die by my hands.”

His strong hands kneaded my back, working out knots I’d thought would never disappear. The buzz of our connection and the way his hands worked my body had need flaring within me. I no longer sensed sadness from him. Maybe I’d been paranoid after our earlier conversation.

He spun me around, allowing the water to run down my back, and I stepped toward him, needing to kiss him. The yanking almost swallowed me whole. Having him here like this had the presence inside me urging me forward.

I needed him.

Before I could kiss him, he moved under the spray to clean himself. I wanted to help him, but I stood there transfixed by the way his muscles flexed as he washed his entire body. Somehow, this was more erotic than foreplay.

When he cleaned his already hard dick, something inside me snapped.

I surged forward and kissed him, and he pulled me against him. His tongue swooped into my mouth, and I reveled in his minty taste. I wrapped my arms around his neck, needing to touch him and also have him support my weight.

He spun us around, my back against the tile so we were both in the water.

I freed a hand and trailed my fingers down his chest, causing him to quiver. He groaned, taking a small step back, and growled, “You’re injured. I’m trying to behave. Though my wolf wants to claim you all over again, we should wait.”

I whimpered. “My wounds are already healing, and I’m clean. I feel fine, and I need you after being apart for so long.” I closed the small gap between us and took him in my hand. Holding his gaze, I started to stroke him. “We can clean up afterward since we’re already here.” I waggled my brows. “You got into the shower with me.”

His hand fisted my hair, tilting my head back so I could stare into his face as the water poured over him. He rasped, “I got in to get clean and wash your back.”

“I’m not complaining.” I stroked him again, and I watched as his resolve shattered.

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