that made her laugh, or perhaps it was Wes’s wicked smile was so familiar to her heart and made her happy. Today was a horrible shock, and nothing should be funny right now. But her relieved laugh seemed to fuel his smile until it grew bigger.
“You scared me,” she muttered, setting the bags of take-away food on the small two-person table near the window. The view was the cracked asphalt of the parking lot, but whatever. At least the window wasn’t shattered like the last hotel room. God, she was mortified at the thought of what she’d done to that room.
Anyway, this wasn’t a romantic dinner she was setting out. It was a survival dinner.
“I lived,” he said, locking his arms behind him and leaning back, exposing a perfect set of newly scarred six-pack abs and a light trail of hair that led from his belly button lower, lower, into the towel. He even had those perfect hip muscles that made her want to bite them gently. Bite them? Wolf made her weird.
“You survived thanks to me,” she said saucily. “I saved your life. You owe me.”
Wes jerked his chin at the to-go boxes she was removing from the bags. Steak, loaded baked potatoes, more steak, macaroni salad, brussels sprouts, more steak, with a side of rare steak. “Looks like I already paid you back. I’m guessing you used my credit card for this spread.”
She licked barbecue sauce off her thumb. “Mmm hmm. Stole your phone, too.” She pulled it from her pocket and tossed it to him. “Wesley Kaid, you scared the shit out of me,” she announced, hooking her hands on her hips. “And I will fully admit, I didn’t think anything could scare me and Wolf anymore, but you did it. I didn’t like that.”
He stood to his full height and cocked his head. “Didn’t like what?”
“Thinking I might lose you,” she whispered before she could chicken out.
Cheeks blazing with heat, she busied herself with setting out their food, her back to him.
His fingertips brushed her hips, and then his hands slid to her waist. He was right there, warm and strong against her back, swaying gently. Against her ear, he whispered, “You won’t lose me. You scared me, too. I wanted…”
“Wanted what?” she asked, melting back against him and closing her eyes to better enjoy the feel of him.
He kissed her neck and, oh lord, it felt like everything. “I wanted to protect you,” he said. He kissed her neck again, this time with a hint of teeth. “I wanted to hold on so I could make sure you were safe from Sam. Brave Wolf.” Wes turned her slowly to face him and brushed his finger under her silver eye. He leaned in and pressed his lips against her left cheek so softly. It was like a butterfly wing had touched her. “I saw you fight Sam to save me. The old Summer was loyal, and the new you? You’ve changed so much, but you kept that, didn’t you?”
“My loyalty?” she whispered, her entire body buzzing at their nearness, at his touch and the intensity of his green eyes.
“Yes,” he said low. “You kept that loyal nature.”
Swallowing hard, Summer nodded. “You left me, but I guess I never figured out how to leave you.”
His smile was slow and crooked. “Good girl.”
Wolf made a sound in her throat, but it wasn’t a threatening growl. More like a purr. Summer’s cheeks caught fire again. “Sorry,” she whispered in a shaky breath. Oh, what this man was doing to her.
“Only say sorry if you’ve done something wrong, and you’ve done nothing wrong, Summer.” He leaned in and kissed her other cheek, right under her brown eye.
His hands traced her curves up, up until he cupped her neck, but what he’d said bothered her. It wasn’t true.
“I lured you out from under your pack to hunt a pack on your own. And in the beginning, I dreamed of you fighting Leif alone. Fighting his pack alone. And I convinced myself you could die and I wouldn’t care. So you see, I do owe you an apology. I did wrong.”
Wes shook his head. “You were forgiven before you even said sorry for that. You’re forgiven for everything you think you’ve done wrong to me. Far as I can tell, you only do right.” He was still swaying with her, and now he rubbed his thumbs under her jawline lightly, rested his forehead against hers, his eyes closed.
Just breathe. Just live in