Page 10 of Little Howl of Moon

Those words lingered between us, and now I could barely breathe. All I wanted was to leave the cafe with him. It was rash and sudden and maybe a terrible idea. It was madness, even.

And yet.

“Oliver,” I whispered his name, a plea in my voice. “Oli. Please? Can we go?”

His breath hitched, those bright blue eyes filling with need. “We have a lot to talk about if we’re just going to jump in bed together. I don’t know what you like. Or what you want. Or need. Are you sure this is what you want?”

“I’m absolutely fucking sure,” I said. “Areyou?”

Oliver went silent for a few moments, truly thinking it over. “Yes. Yes, I am. I feel like I should add that I’m off work thisweekend. My house is about thirty minutes from here. Not to be a creep . . .”

“You’re not a creep.” It was getting more difficult to keep the desperation out of my voice, but Ineeded to be fucked by him. It was the only cure for my rut. My bones felt like they were on fucking fire, and his scent? His scent was making everything even more intense. All I wanted, above anything else, was to taste his cock. I wanted to get back on my knees and stroke him until he marked me as his.Fuck.“I have no plans this weekend. I’ll stay as long as you want me.”

We held each other’s gaze again. All I could think wasplease.I needed him. I needed him so much more than he even realized.

This was the one problem about being a werewolf. I’d been in a rut now for almost three weeks with no relief. It didn’t matter how many times I touched myself or got off, it didn’t satisfy me. I’d spent a whole fucking day last week jerking my cock, only to find myself unable to get any sort of pleasure.

It’d been absolute torture.

Oliver let out a soft hum. “Maybe I’m just as mad as you are.”

“Well.” I cleared my throat. “You are a human, yes. But, if we are mates, then you may be affected by my current condition. I’ve heard stories.”

“Stories,” he echoed. Then he shook his head with a sly smile. “The Barista left out some details about how this date would go.”

“As someone who has known him my entire life, I can safely say that he has a habit of being cryptic sometimes. He lets people learn things for themselves.”

“I see that now. I’m not mad about it.” He slid out of the booth and stood up, holding out his hand to me. “Let’s get the hell out of here. I’ll drive.”

I slid my clawed hand in his and swallowed hard as he pulled me to stand. I squared my shoulders as I walked through the cafe, noting the way everyone stared.

They could stare all they wanted. He was going to be my mate. I’d wait however long he needed for him to accept me. I hadn’t planned on finding someone, but now that I’d met him, I could think of nothing else.

Oliver would bemine.

3 /INSTINCT

Oliver

All the nerves I’d felt when I first got to the cafe had vanished.

Well, maybe not all.

But I knew one thing. Iwanted him.I wanted him so fucking much that it’d been almost impossible to sit still at the cafe.

I was suddenly very glad that I’d taken off a few days from work. I’d had an inkling that I’d want this weekend to myself, but now I realized it wasn’t meant for solitude—it was meant for us.

How long had that date even lasted? Fifteen minutes? I’d put him on his knees, learned three things about him, and now I was speeding to my house so I could bend him over my bed and fuck him.

It wasn’t like me to be this impulsive, but instinct was driving me. Maybe he was right about me being affected by hiscondition.

Hisconditionappeared to be about ten inches long and thicker than a fucking beer bottle.

A text chimed on my phone, popping up on my car’s dashboard. I winced when I saw it was my kids checking in on me.

Steel made a sound. “Do you want to message them back?”

“Uh . . . Yes, otherwise they’re going to harass me while we’re busy. Oh, damn it.”