Page 23 of Restoring His Howl

Before Dillon could finish his sentence, Cinders kissed him. This wasn’t just a kiss, but Cinders tasting and claiming Dillon. He enjoyed the wolf shifter. Cinders sucked on Dillon’s tongue. He needed to be closer. When Dillon moaned, Cinders swallowed the sound. Pride swelled within him. He wanted Dillon in his life for good. Dillon was soft, yet strong, unique and perfect.

Dillon broke the kiss first. He wobbled into Cinders.

“Good?” Cinders held Dillon to his chest.

Dillon nodded.

“Want to try it again?”Maybe, like a hundred times?

“I do, but not here.” Dillon sighed. “I want to go home.”

Cinders kept his arm around him. “We can go to the mansion.” He wasn’t sure if that’s what Dillon meant by home. He said nothing along the walk and enjoyed the sounds of nature around them—the rustling of birds in the trees, the leaves tumbling along the concrete, the crunch of gravel under their feet. He and Dillon belonged to nature and the human world. If he had his way, they’d belong to each other, too.

Dillon stepped onto the back porch and paused. “What do you think Markas will do to Avan?”

“I’m not sure.” He’d never known anyone to cause problems deliberately at the Sanctuary, but he was still relatively new to the facility. Maybe, there had been other troublemakers. What did he know? “Whatever happens, I’m sure Markas had a plan.” He opened the door for Dillon. “I don’t want to talk about Avan.”

“We should.” Dillon made his way through the mudroom and kitchen to the stairs. “He opened a lot of wounds.”

“He did.” Cinders kept beside Dillon. “He wanted to cause chaos.”

“He ripped open scars I thought were healed.” Dillon paused halfway upstairs. “Are you sure you want to do this? To be with me?”

“I’m not afraid of what you’ve gone through. I’m not afraid to help you heal.” Cinders escorted Dillon to his room. “You’re strong. To get through what’s happened, you can’t quit. I’m honored to know you.”

Dillon opened the bedroom door. “When Avan screamed and I collapsed, I didn’t feel strong. I felt like I was back at theWet Dreamsbuilding.” He shivered.

“Honey.” Cinders allowed Dillon to shut the door after they’d both entered the bedroom. He liked the privacy better anyway. Cinders tossed his sunglasses onto the desk. “I’ll be tough for both of us.”

“Thanks.” Dillon didn’t sound convinced.

“You don’t believe me.” He kicked out of his boots. “Why?”

“I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop, so to speak. I’ve been ostracized, kicked out, laughed at, ogled, and I expect you to say you want to see the videos. If I can find them, I’ll show you. I don’t want to watch them, but I can’t lie. I’m in them. I’ve got the scars to prove I went through the situations, too. I’m afraid to show you the physical marks, but I can’t hide them, either.”

“No.” Cinders grasped Dillon’s hands and sat on the bed. He tugged Dillon forward, forcing the wolf shifter to sit on his lap. “A part of me is curious. I can see you in my mind as a highly erotic, sexy man and I’ll bet you were good in those films. The people making those pictures want believability, but most of me doesn’t care if I ever see those movies. Those are a part of your past, and I bet you threw your heart into your work—even if you didn’t want to do it. The movies shaped you, but you’re more than that one time period. I like the guy you are—the one who made it out and survived. You’ve got flaws, but they make you original. If you can’t tell, I love originality. I’ll love your scars, too.”

“I like you, Cinders.”

“Good.” Cinders patted Dillon’s ass. “Besides, we could have so much fun playing naughty cop and the mouthy greaser. Or we could be the guys who fell in love after an arrest. I don’t know.” He laughed. “I’d love to have you rev my engine.”

“You’re corny.” Dillon chuckled. He draped his arms around Cinders’ shoulders and toyed with the hairs at the base of Cinder’s skull.

“But I made you laugh.” He slid his hands into Dillon’s back pockets. “We’ll go slowly. I want to be with you, but we’ll do it at your pace. When you’re ready.” He rubbed his nose along Dillon’s. “That doesn’t mean I won’t try to kiss, touch and hold you. You’re kind of irresistible. But I respect you, and I want this to last.”

“Me, too.” Dillon half-smiled. “Cinders?” He grasped Cinders’ shoulders.

“I’m right here.” He opened Dillon’s jacket. He wanted to unwrap his present. Winning over Dillon was the ultimate prize.

“What if we aren’t compatible? We haven’t slept together.” Dillon removed his jacket and rubbed his bare arms. The T-shirt clung to his thin frame. “We could get into bed and realize we’re crap together.”

“I doubt it.” He noticed the marks on Dillon’s arms and traced the lines.

Dillon flinched. He met Cinders’ gaze but didn’t pull away.

Cinders had seen these kinds of scars before. A hundred questions bubbled into his mind, but he kept them quiet for now. Dillon could tell him about them in his own time.

Cinders held Dillon’s hand and pressed Dillon’s forearm against his lips. He’d seen the cutting scars a few times on two of the strippers fromStiff. The lines on Dillon’s skin appeared old, but still… He hated that Dillon had felt low enough to hurt himself.

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