Page 68 of Diners, Damsels & Wolves

“Thank you for inviting me today, and I wanted …” She sighed. “I wanted to apologize again.”

“You don’t—”

“Don’t finish that sentence,” she cut him off. “I do have to apologize. You’ve been nothing but wonderful to me, and then I … I can’t believe I treated you like that, you didn’t deserve that.”

“You already apologized.” He ran a finger along her jaw. “We talked about this. We got a bit carried away with ourselves, it was an emotional response. It’s alright.”

“It’s more than that though. You’re always doing everything for me and I’m not exactly reciprocating.”

Pulling back, he looked down at her. What in the world was she talking about? Did she think she needed to repay him for his adoration?

“What I mean is,” she continued, “I feel like we aren’t exactly balanced. I’m sorry for that too.”

“Listen to me.” Pulling her chin up, he forced her gaze to meet his. He needed her to see the sincerity of his words. “I do these things for you because I want to. I never expect you to feel like you have to repay me. I don’t want you to repay me. If you did, it would kind of defeat the point.”

Her jaw locked, eyes skeptical. She clearly needed more convincing.

“You’re in a tight spot right now with taking care of Rachel all by yourself. Besides, with any relationship, it’s not always going to be fifty-fifty. Sometimes you’ll meet eighty-twenty or sixty-forty, and there’s nothing wrong with that. So long as you keep meeting me somewhere along the line. We’ll be okay.”

Her eyes broke from his gaze. She absently traced a finger along his chest and chewed on her bottom lip. The urge to lean down and suck on that lip rose up in him, instead, he ran his thumb over the outline of her mouth.

“So … we’re in a relationship?”

He blanched. Blinking down at her, he couldn’t think of how to respond to that. Had dating changed that much since he’d last done it? Were the flowers and the dinners not enough? What else was he supposed to do, hire a barbershop quartet to sing it to her?

Clarissa snorted. Snorts turned into a full belly laugh. “I didn’t mean to give you a stroke.”

Getting up, she swung around to straddle his lap. A glimmer of humor still lingered in her eyes. She leaned forward, pressing her lips to his.

“You want to keep meeting me along the line?” she said, her voice somber.

“As long as you’ll have me, I’ll meet you anywhere.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

Wrapping her arms around his neck, she leaned into him. He grabbed her hair, soft and fragrant, and pulled her close to his chest. Their beating hearts thrummed against each other.

Closing his eyes, he let himself become lost in her. This beautiful, fragile, human woman; she was more resilient than any shifter he’d known. Whatever he did to deserve her, he would never know. One thing he did know was when, if, she wanted him, his pack, the full package, he’d go to bat with anyone who tried to tell him this human wasn’t suitable for an Alpha.

He just needed to find the right time to tell her. He needed to stop being so afraid of her rejection. Because the truth was, he needed her; she was a bright spot in a world that rarely made sense.

She was one of the few he could be himself around without her asking, demanding, anything of him in return. Perhaps that was part of the reason he hadn’t told her. Being with a human, with her, meant there were no expectations of him. He didn’t have to be Alpha when he was with her. He could just be Tom.

Maybe that was selfish of him, keeping her in the dark so he could enjoy this peace. She deserved to know the truth, he knew that. He also knew accepting the supernatural underground was no easy feat. The last thing he wanted was to scare her away.

Opening her mouth, a small moan vibrated in her throat. Her hips ground down on his lap. His grip tensed as his greedy dick reacted instantly. With a sharp intake of breath, she rocked her hips into it.

Realization punched him in the gut. There was more she wanted with their alone time. He didn’t think she’d want to again. Of course he couldn’t stop thinking about what she felt like, how she tasted on his lips. But he’d accepted the idea that it might be a while before she was comfortable being intimate again.

A thrill ran through him, making his dick rock hard. Moving his hand from her waist, he grabbed the swell of her ass. She nipped his bottom lip, taking it between her teeth and sucking. His hands moved of their own accord, lifting her dress to palm her thigh, pulling her in closer.

“Clarissa,” he rasped against her kisses, “do you … are you …?”

“I need …” She licked his neck. “I need to feel you.”

He stood, placing his hand under her bottom. Stumbling forward, he pressed her into the kitchen wall. Moving the hand from the back of her head, he wrapped it around her neck, careful to keep his grip relaxed. She mewled beneath him.