Page 96 of Taken By the Pack

Jake wipes his mouth with a napkin. “I’m heading to open up the shack. You good?”

Rowan nods, tossing some bills onto the table. “Yeah, I’m gonna check onHelene.” His boat. His pride and joy.

I glance at Grace. “You wanna head back?”

She tilts her head up at me, eyes warm. “You gonna nap with me?”

“Yeah.”

She smiles, small and sleepy, and I swear it does something to me.

When we step out into the parking lot, she stops, looking out over the quiet town. She doesn’t say anything for a long moment. She just breathes.

“You okay?” I ask.

She nods, then, softer, “Sometimes it doesn’t feel real.”

I don’t need to ask what she means.

The pack. The bond. Us.

I take her hand, leading her to the car and pulling her closer. She moves easily, climbing into my lap as I settle back against the seat.

Her arms loop around my neck, face pressing into my skin, and she exhales like she’s been holding something in all day.

I hold her, rubbing slow circles into her back, and she nuzzles in, warm and soft against me.

“You smell good,” she murmurs, voice drowsy. “Like sweat and—” She pauses, then licks up my throat.

A low growl rumbles in my chest.

Heat pulses through me, sharp and undeniable. My grip on her hips tightens, my Alpha straining against my control.

“Grace,” I warn, voice rough.

She hums, shifting just enough that her lips brush my jaw. “What? Just because I can’t have sex doesn’t mean I don’t think about it.” Her fingers skate over my stomach, trailing lower. “And you’re my Alpha, right?”

Fuck.

The word slams into me like a physical thing. A challenge. A reminder.

She’s pushing. Testing.

I swallow hard and she’s watching me now, eyes dark and playful, fingers teasing the waistband of my shorts.

“Grace,” I say again, but it’s rougher this time.

She smiles. “Then let me.”

Her hand dips into my boxers, wrapping around me, and I curse under my breath, jaw clenching as she strokes, slow and teasing.

“Shit,” I hiss. “Anyone could see us.”

“No one will,” she whispers. “Kiss me.”

My restraint snaps.

I grip the back of her neck, yanking her mouth to mine, and she gasps, the sound swallowed between our lips as I kiss her hard.

---