I clear my throat, searching for my voice. "So are you convinced?"
"What?" he blinks.
"That I can take care of myself. Cause if you are, I, um, got to go."
He props himself up on an elbow, beautiful face still composed.
I grab my shirt and practically run from the cage, only stopping when I'm home free.
"I'll see you Saturday. At the vamp club. Eight p. m. If you're not there, I'll wait ten minutes, and go in without you."
"The fuck you will," he growls as I leave the building. But he's not the boss of me.
I just have to remember that.
TWELVE YEARS AGO
Trey
I PULL my beat up motorcycle around to the side exit of Wolf Ridge High and lean on one foot, waiting. Sheridan comes out alone and heads straight for me, not like she's happy to see me, more like she's eager to put distance between her and school.
Her expression is closed and she doesn't smile or kiss me before she swings a muscular thigh over the back of my bike and climbs on.
Something's eating her.
I'm a quiet guy myself, so I don't waste words on asking about it now. She'll tell me when she's ready.
I hand her a helmet and wait until it's on before I take off. I decide to skip our usual haunts-Vitale's pizza or Wolf Ridge Cafe-and drive straight for the mountains.
I know when I'm out of sorts, letting my wolf out heals me. Once we take the turnoff for the mountains, I gun it, letting the sensation of wind across our faces simulate a four legged run. I think that's why young wolves love motorcycles so much. We're physical creatures. We sense everything in our bodies, and keeping them cooped up in buildings or cars makes us tense.
I spin all the way to the top of the first foothill and park. Sheridan climbs off and tosses her backpack on the table, then climbs up and sits on it, her feet resting on the bench. She stares out over the rocky desert terrain.
I sit beside her and gently bump shoulders.
"Hey."
"My brother died today."
Oh.
I understand what she means. Today marks the anniversary of his death, not the actual day he died. Her brother, Zach, had been a rising star in the pack. Four years older than us, he'd been the football quarterback and valedictorian, had a full ride to Pepperdine. He died in a motorcycle accident the summer after his senior year. Even a shifter can't survive getting his skull crushed.
"You miss him?"
Her face crumples and she draws in a hiccupy breath. "A lot. We were close, actually."
I weave my fingers through hers and just sit with her, listening to the birds call, the distant swish of traffic below.
"Do you ever worry about my motorcycle?" I've thought of this before, but hadn't wanted to bring it up. She never acted afraid, so I figured it wasn't an issue. But since we're talking about Zach, it's worth discussing.
"No. I actually love that you ride a bike. It reminds me of him in a good way. He used to give me rides all the time when he was still learning. He even taught me to drive it myself, against our parents' wishes."
I squeeze her hand.
"I don't worry about you, because you're careful. You don't drink and drive. You wear a helmet. You take it seriously."
"He didn't?"
She shakes her head. "He thought he was invincible. No helmet, crazy driving after drinking-you get the picture." She stands up and swivels, surprising me by straddling my waist.
I palm her ass and yank her closer before I even think about whether it's inappropriate considering what she's going through. She seems to be on board, though. She twines her arms around my neck and kisses me.
My hormones kick in immediately and my cock stiffens in the notch between her legs. I slide a hand up her t-shirt to palm her breast.
She rocks against me. We've been playing this way for a while-second base mostly. Dry humping, some groping. I got close to third once-I am dying to give her pleasure with my mouth-but she got skittish and pushed me away. I totally respect that.
"I'm ready, Trey," she whispers in my ear.
My head snaps up, dick lurches painfully against my jeans.
"I bought condoms."
If this was a cartoon, I'd be comically spluttering like a stunned idiot. Never in a million years did I dream she'd spring this on me. Especially on a day like this.
I vowed never to try anything when she'd been drinking, but my girl is dead sober. And sad. And she wants me to make it better.
I sure as hell can do that.
"Are you sure?" It comes out as a hoarse croak.
She leans forward and bites my neck. "Yeah. I want to live. I can't just turn off all fun to get to the future Zach didn't have." She closes her eyes and shakes her head. "Does that make sense?"
"Yeah." I'm breathing hard, my body already springing into animal mode. I spin her around and hold my hand behind her head as I push her to her back on the table. I'm over her in a second.
It's my first time, but my body knows what to do. Or maybe it's my wolf. I kiss down her neck. Nip her breast.
She moans and arches up from the table.
I shove her t-shirt up to her armpits and free her breasts from her hot pink bra. They're fucking perfect. Just enough to fill my hands, youthful and firm. Her stiff nipples grow even harder when I suck on them.
"The condoms are in my bag," Sheridan whispers. "Outer pocket."