by Amy Green
Tessa knelt on the blanket, smoothing it out over the grass. Then she pulled two more things from her bag: a stack of Heath’s clothes, and a second blanket, this one lightweight cotton. She set the stack of clothes to the side. Then, kneeling on the blanket, she pulled her jersey dress off over her head, tossing it with his clothes. Her bra and panties came next. She picked up the second blanket and wrapped it around her.
There. Now she was ready.
She sat, the blanket wrapped around her, her knees drawn up. She didn’t have to wait long. There was a soft huff of breath, nearly a growl, and a pair of gleaming eyes appeared in the trees. Then a wolf walked out into the clearing, walking slowly and gracefully, his head down, watching her.
This was Heath’s wolf. She knew him well by now. She knew his sleek, strong body, his long legs, the white-gray fur that covered him except for the white mask on his face. There was a small scar on his left shoulder that parted the fur. His eyes were blue, and they held hers as he came forward. She had seen a lot of wolves in the past two months, but she thought this one was the most beautiful she had ever seen.
He circled her, which she knew now was typical shifter wolf behavior, a complicated sort of greeting, a mixture of hello and I’m watching you. Behind her, the wolf paused, and she felt his cold nose on her right shoulder blade, a brief touch. She smiled. He was touching the tattoo she’d gotten, to match her mate’s. Hers was a pair of wolf eyes, with the letters beneath it: SHE WOLF.
“That’s me,” she said into the quiet.
Heath’s wolf completed the circle and came around the front of her again. He broke into a run, and then in an eye blink he was human, crouched naked in the grass. Heath. He stood and came toward her.
Tessa’s toes curled, watching him. First, he was naked, and there was no sight on earth that she liked more than Heath Donovan naked. Second, even though he’d changed into and out of his wolf form in front of her many times by now, she never tired of it. A shifter’s moment of change was a sacred thing he never let anyone see—not family, not friends, no one. Not until he had a mate. Only a mate was allowed the sight of it. So it always gave her a thrill.
“You brought clothes,” he observed as he approached. He looked her up and down, wearing only her blanket. “And yet you aren’t wearing any.”
“It’s warm out,” she said, smiling up at him. “Clothing is optional.”
“I see that,” he said, getting to his knees in front of her. His skin was golden and perfect, rippling with his lean muscles. She could see the edge of the wolf tattoo on his right arm, and if he turned his back to her, she knew she’d see the D of his Donovan tattoo on his neck and the scar from the silver bullet in his left shoulder. “In that case, I believe I’ll opt out.”
She had no chance to agree with this decision, because he leaned in and kissed her.
Something warm and amazing always happened to her when Heath kissed her. Every time. She was helpless against it, and she’d learned long ago not to fight it. She parted her lips and took him in, ready for him already.
When he finished, she touched his face, brushing her fingers over the stubble on his cheeks. “How was patrol?” she asked.
“Uneventful.” He tugged at where the blanket was wrapped over her breasts. “This is by far the most exciting thing that’s happened to me all night.”
“Is it?” she said, flirting, loosening the blanket just a little, so it drooped down over her breasts without quite revealing them. “It was an impulse.”
“Last week you brought me coffee,” he observed, his gaze on the shadow between her breasts that disappeared under the blanket. “That was nice. This is better.”
“I couldn’t sleep,” she said, shifting her shoulders, still flirting. She’d never been a flirt in her life, but every time she tried it with Heath, he responded like crazy, so now she did it often. Only with him, of course. She loosened the blanket a little more, then ran her hand over his bare shoulder, his bare bicep, feeling the happy zing of electricity she got every time she touched his skin. “I was inspired.”
“Hmm,” he said. “Take the blanket off.”
“I think we should talk first.”
He smiled. “You sit here in nothing but a blanket, and you want to talk?”
She tried to stay focused on his face, but her eyes moved of their own accord. Her gaze dropped down his sleek, strong, gorgeous body, taking in the contours of his chest, his stomach, his hips. No, he was definitely not interested in talking. She bit her lip and forcibly pulled her gaze away. “Well…”
He leaned in and kissed her again, this time gently pushing her to her back and looming over her. It felt extremely naughty, being almost naked outdoors where anyone could see, even though there was no one around for miles. It felt even naughtier having a naked werewolf on top of her, completely unselfconscious as always.
He kissed her deeply and tugged at the blanket, but he didn’t unwrap it. Instead he broke the kiss and moved down her body, taking one of her legs and raising it, bending it, kissing the inside of her knee. The edge of the blanket fell up her thigh and he brushed it away, his mouth moving slowly up her skin, savoring her, moving higher, higher.
She was wet now, completely turned on, her body humming. He’d know that; he could scent it. He reached her inner thigh and his fingers trailed lightly over her skin, taking in its softness and its heat.
“I have a question,” she managed past the overwhelming lust in her brain.
“Yes?” he asked calmly, his mouth against her skin.
“When do we have children?”
Heath went still. He raised his head and looked at her.
They hadn’t discussed this. Not yet. She hadn’t felt the need. She’d never seen herself as a mother, as someone who would raise kids. But the last two months had changed everything. Her life, her future, her self. Everything was different now. And now she wanted to know.
She held her breath, looking at him, but he didn’t freak out. He just kept holding her leg, and said, “Is that what you want?”
“Yes,” she said, and to say it aloud, to have the word come out and become spoken, it was truer even than she’d thought.
Still he didn’t back away from her in horror. “Right now?” he asked.
She bit her lip. “Um,” she said, digging for the truth. “Soon.”
“Hmm,” he said again, lowering her leg and coming over her again. “Now I see why I got this lovely naked gift in the woods.”
“I think you’d be an incredible father,” she said. He would be. He would be affectionate and loving and fun. “And I think I might be a good mother.”
“You will be a kickass mother,” he said, lowering his head and kissing the side of her neck.
Will? What did that mean? “Is that a yes?”
He kissed her neck again. “I have to warn you, shifters are very involved fathers,” he said. “We don’t just wander off and let you do everything. We tend to be very opinionated. In return, we do half the work.”
Her heart was thumping in her chest. She ran her hands over his neck, his jaw, pushing him away and looking him in the eyes. “You mean it?”
His expression was serious in the dawn light. “I mean everything with you, Tessa,” he said. “Just say the word.” He lowered his face and touched his forehead to hers. “I am honored,” he said, his voice choking up just a little. “I am honored that you want to have children with me.”
Oh, she loved him. She loved him. She leaned up and kissed him again, her wolf, her protector, the man who gave her everything and was everything. She had never had a single moment’s regret at the choices she made, mating with him, staying with him. She may be human, but she was his she-wolf. She always would be.
She unwound the blanket, and he helped her. Then the cool summer air was on her bare skin, and she opened her legs and wrapped them around his hips like it was the most natural thing in the world.
He came inside her quickly, and held her pinned for a
moment. Then he began to move. They had perfected sex over the past two months, made it an art form. After the incident at the Sky-Hi, Heath had locked the two of them up in their house and thrown away his cell phone for a full week, which they had spent in bed—and every other surface and floor of the house—with only occasional breaks to get food. By the end of the week Tessa had been sore and happy and had had maybe the first inkling of what it would be like to be mated to a werewolf who liked sex almost more than he liked eating and was better at it than anyone on earth. It required a lot of stamina, which it turned out Tessa had. She had enough stamina to return the favor and jump him frequently, which he never turned down.
The time since had only improved, with practice and creativity and dedication. She lifted her hips, arching into him, and he slid a hand down, grasping her, holding her close as he moved. She felt it build quickly, like it always did with him. Her body just went nuts every time he touched her. So she closed her eyes and let the pleasure wash over her, and she came as the breeze brushed her skin and the dawn lightened the sky above her. He came too, only a minute later, holding her tight.
Heath grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around both of them, and they lay down, his chest to her back, his arm over her, as they caught their breath and relaxed. The sun was rising, and it would be time to get dressed and go soon. But not quite yet. The moment was just too perfect.
She felt Heath’s breath on her skin, and then he gently kissed the side of her neck. “Don’t ever leave,” he said softly.
Tessa closed her eyes and let the happiness settle inside her. She had her town, her pack, her bar, her mate, and soon, her children.
“Never,” she said.
Thank you for reading Lover Wolf!
If you missed Book 1 of the Shifter Falls series, Rebel Wolf, you can find it here.
The next book will be called Warrior Wolf, and it is Devon’s story. Devon embarks on a plan of revenge on the Silverman, only to be hindered by the beautiful sheriff he has a history with. To be notified when it’s released, join my newsletter here!
If you’re looking for more werewolves, check out my previous series, Full Moon Rising. You can read the complete serial in one box set, plus the two follow ups, Blood of the Alpha Part 1 and Blood of the Alpha Part 2.
You can find me at my website, on my Facebook page, or you can click “Follow” on my Amazon page to be notified of new releases. And you can always get the latest news and releases from my email newsletter!
Thanks again for reading,
Amy