Page 41 of Little Howl of Moon

We were locked together now.

It felt so good. I’d never been this full before, and having him inside me . . . all of him . . .

“You feel so good,” I rasped.

Steel’s claws traced up my spine, and he grabbed the back of my neck, drawing our foreheads together. “Last chance,” he whispered. “Are you sure you want us to be mated?”

“Yes. I want this. I love you, Steel.”

“I love you too.”

And in the same breath, his fangs sank into the softest part of my shoulder, and I let out a soft howl. Pain was immediately replaced by pleasure, and instinctively I knew what to do.

I leaned in, biting the base of his neck until I felt his skin give.

Yes, yes, yes.

Something snapped to life inside my chest. A warm fluttering, a connection that ran so deep it was difficult to comprehend. I could feel his pleasure rushing through me. His thoughts. His feelings.

Hope filled me, chasing away all the dark clouds that had been in my mind for so long, reminding me that I wasn’t alone.

I never had to be alone again.

I was mated to my werewolf.

Steel smiled up at me, his body relaxing beneath me. All we could do was grin at each other.

“Thank you,” I said.

“For what?”

“For showing me that I deserve to be loved again.”

Steel’s arms wrapped around me and I cuddled against his chest, feeling our special bond beat like a heart.

I fell asleep just like that, happy and content, in the arms of my fated mate.

14 /TWO MONTHS LATER

Steel

It’d been two months since Layla’s bond was severed. Since then, Death hadn’t been seen.

And since then, I hadn’t gone back to the cafe.

It was time. The tensions were running high. Layla was not speaking to my uncle B, and no one blamed her. He was doing his best to mend bridges, but that was hard when everyone was pissed off.

It was hard to be around him, but only because the sadness was so painfully clear.

Regardless, I really wanted a latte. I’d run out this morning while Oli was still tucked in bed and sound asleep, and I wanted to surprise my mate with his favorite bread loaf and coffee.

I stepped through the repaired front door, huffing in the scent of roasted beans. Uncle B was working the counter with my cousin Bell and Lucy.

Of all five of my cousins, Bell was the one who always threw me off the most. He was avery chill,fun-loving, sarcastic guy, unless you brought up one of his hyperfocus subjects. He was a nerd who loved to travel, but under the surface, there was acurrent of something. I wasn’t really sure what. It was the same way for Layla, Luca, Jace, and Tana, though. They all looked human, but without a doubt, they were not.

It made me glad I was simply a werewolf.

“Oh hey, look who it is,” Bell said, raising a brow at me. His hair was long enough that he wore it in a bun, and it was clear he’d been working out more since coming home. I wouldn’t be surprised if some time in the next couple weeks he waved goodbye to all of us again and went traveling. He didn’t like staying in one place for long. “Where’s Oli?”