"It's not funny," I snarl, kicking with my heels against his shins again.
He jumps back, still holding me by my pinned wrists. "I know it's not. I know." We continue to wrestle-me kicking, him dodging. "You're just so damn adorable and it turns me on when you fight. I'm sorry-I'm sorry. Please, Angelina." He picks me up and sits me on the hood of my car, crowding up between my legs. He still has my wrists pinned, but instead of wrestling, he's going for an embrace. At least, I think he is. He drops his face down into my hair and breathes deeply.
And stays there.
I'm frozen. I don't know what the hell to do.
He nuzzles my neck, the scruff of his five o'clock shadow brushing my cheek. Our breaths mingle in short pants. I swear I can hear both our hearts hammering as one.
He eases his hold on my wrists and slowly pulls away, like he's testing to see if I'll run again.
I draw my hand back and slap his face, as hard as I can.
He doesn't look surprised. It's as if he saw it coming and decided to let it fall.
My eyes water and I slap him a second time.
Again, he lets me.
And he has the grace to look sorry now, instead of laughing.
The tears track down my face. "Tell me what happened in there," I demand, swiping at them with the back of one hand. "You brought me to a v-vampire? Why?"
"Fox has superpowers too. He can wipe someone's memory."
"But why…" Things are so surreal, my mind is whirring. I can practically hear things clicking into place. "The accident. Your superpowers. You don't want me to remember. You brought me to a vampire to erase my memory."
He closes his eyes and leans his forehead against mine. "Yeah."
"What are you, Jared?" My voice cracks. "Not a vampire."
If I'm perfectly honest with myself, I'd realize I'm terrified to hear his answer.
His large hand cups the back of my neck. Not threatening-soothing. His thumb rubs tiny circles on my skin. "Shifter-werewolf."
"Werewolf? That's… that's impossible."
He blinks and his eyes light with an inner fire. Like, seriously, they're glowing.
"No," I half gasp, half moan. "I'm losing my mind."
"No, you're not. You're perfect. I'm the freak."
My mind feels sluggish. "So your superpowers…"
"Speed. Strength. Super healing. And sometimes… I get hairy."
"Hairy?"
"I turn into a wolf."
"Oh my God." We're standing here discussing the impossible-vampires and werewolves-but it all makes sense. I should want to run screaming but, his honesty calms me down.
"But you can't know any of this, Angelina." I hear frustration in his voice. The memory of him hurling a table at the vampire flashes back. The level of violence in there sickened me. But despite the fact that he was the one who brought me there, he'd also been my protector.
I'm still trembling, and it only gets worse with his admission. "Please… just let me go." I mean it when I say it, but the thought of him releasing me, of me getting in my car and driving away, actually frightens me more. I don't want to be alone right now. Even though he's the one who scared me, there's a solidity to having him here. A certain comfort. And I definitely deserve more explanation.
"I… can't do that, Angelina." His voice is heavy.
"Then what are you going to do with me?" It's barely more than a whisper.
"I don't know." He scoops his forearm under my ass and lifts me so I straddle his waist.
My arms automatically loop around his neck for balance. Even though I want to reject him-reject this, it feels sort of nice. "Take me home." I do my best to keep the wobble out of my voice. To sound demanding, rather than needy. Because despite the trembling, my body has come alive against his, heat building everywhere we're in contact.
"Yeah, baby. I'll take you home." He walks around to the driver's side, but instead of opening the door, he traps my body against the car, his hard cock nesting right between my legs, his lips melding to mine.
I should push him away-punish him for what he's done to me, but my lips have their own idea. I kiss him back, then assert myself by nipping one of his lips.
He laughs against my mouth and goes right back to kissing me.
Damn. Despite my resistance, every twist of his lips, every nudge of his hips fuels me. Power ebbs back into my limbs, builds with the heat in my core.
His hands turn rough, fingers kneading my thighs, squeezing the parts of my ass that are accessible. His tongue sweeps inside my mouth and he consumes me, licking, sucking, nipping, kissing. When he breaks the kiss, I'm panting.
I slap him a third time.
There's no downside to it, really. It satisfies me and only amuses him.
He smiles and captures my hand, bringing it to his lips. "I'll take you home, baby, on one condition."
"What's that?" I shove my hair out of my eyes, trying to stop the world from spinning.
"You invite me in."
I don't know why that makes my nose burn again. His recent betrayal still cuts me, I guess.
"Hey." I don't know how he sees my emotions so clearly, but he does. "I'm not making any presumptions here. I'm not asking to come to your bed. I lost your trust and I'm going to have to earn it back. I know that. I just think we need to talk. I owe you an explanation at least."
I blink rapidly and bob my head, not trusting my voice for speech.
Regret washes over Jared's face and he kisses my forehead, then eases me to my feet and settles me in the passenger seat of the car.