Chapter 2 #3
Still, I couldn’t find it in myself to look away from his golden brown eyes that flashed and swirled with black heat before returning back to normal. Swallowing hard, my pulse jumped, making me feel a bit fuzzy. Something was going on here.
Also, had I really still not said anything yet? Still? Seriously. This wasn’t completely my fault, though. Why did he have to be so handsome?
A chuckle broke our staring contest, and I looked down at his sculpted lips, seeing a flash of a tongue piercing briefly before he lightly pressed a hand to my waist and nodded towards the door.
“I will take that as a compliment, preciosa.”
I blinked before swearing under my breath as I realized I had said that out loud.
I turned, stepping down onto the platform, my face blushing bright pink as I considered making a run from my embarrassing slip.
The icy wind from the lake slapped against me, but thankfully my body temperature ran a bit higher than the humans who were racing to get inside, making it bearable as I made the stupid decision to stay and talk to the man who no doubt thought I had problems.
“Did I really say that out loud?” I squeaked out.
“Oh yes.” He flashed me a stunning smile before reaching over and removing my bag from my shoulder, instantly making me sigh in relief. I found myself in a bit of a hazy, lust-induced bubble being so close to him that I didn’t even try to stop him from helping me out.
Did he have some type of magic? That would be the only explanation for why I felt so weird. I had never in my life reacted to a man like this.
My wolf blinked her eyes open as she finally registered his proximity and scent.
It was very clear she didn’t view him as a threat either, because instead of reacting defensively, she went very still, turning her head in a small tilt.
I knew I wasn’t the only one who felt the weird surge going through us, the tightness of the connection, because as if sensing my wolf’s attention, the man literally paused, a weird expression crawling over his face before he shuttered it.
I tightened my hands into fists as a low rumble broke from his throat. I wanted to feel that vibration under my fingers. I wanted to touch him more than I’d ever wanted to touch a man before.
I also found myself glad he was holding my bag, because it had my scent on it, which meant he would smell like me… Oh Goddess, what the actual heck was happening here?
I finally managed to get out some semblance of a coherent question. “You’re a bitten wolf?”
His eyes filled with a bit of understanding as he nodded, seeming to now be the one that couldn’t talk.
Instead, he intertwined our fingers, carrying my bag over one shoulder as if it was nothing as he led me towards the stairs that left the platform.
I had to jog a bit to keep up with him, feeling like I was on some rollercoaster.
I had never felt so exhilarated, confused, and overwhelmed at once.
“Sorry, I’m walking too fast for you.” He frowned, coming to a full stop and looking down at my shoes before making his way up my frame. My body lit up under his gaze. “Goddess, you’re a small thing, aren’t you?”
Insecurity hit me hard. Did he think I was too small? He probably was used to dating women like the ones from my pack. I hated that. I hated the concept of him dating anyone.
Wait, why did I care about him dating?
My lips twisted slightly. “I didn’t exactly ask to be this small.”
His eyes warmed as he squeezed our intertwined fingers. “Don’t worry, preciosa, I think it’s cute.”
Oh. Well… that was a bit better. Did I want him to think I was cute? The men in my pack had always used way more crass terms. I don’t think I’d ever heard a man use the word ‘cute’ or ‘beautiful’ to describe a woman outside of a book.
“My name is Effie, by the way,” I offered as we continued walking, sneaking a look at him as we made our way down the cement staircase. “If you wanted to know.”
It was completely possible he had no interest in knowing my real name, but I literally had no idea what else to say to him.
Plus, we were holding hands, so I couldn’t exactly avoid him.
I examined our hands briefly, knowing that this wasn’t normal.
I mean… I didn’t think it was. Then again, my wolf seemed okay with it, so maybe this was more normal than I realized.
His smile grew, flashing dimples. “I did. I love the name Effie. It suits you.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “Thank you.”
Alright, this man was authentically very sweet.
It was like the Goddess had heard my inner ramblings and decided to prove me wrong.
My wolf offered a small worried noise, looking around for his wolf, who we had yet to meet.
I could feel him pacing inside of this man, but he wasn’t fully out.
Why was he hiding him? Could I ask that without being weird? Probably not.
“My name is Julian,” he explained before we walked back outside on street level, an assortment of taxis and cars pulling to the curb.
A rush of excitement hit me as I got my first view of Kirkwall, the snowy streets glinting off the light reflected by Lake Michigan in the distance.
A splatter of blue and gray on the horizon had me wishing I could somehow capture the moment.
I may not love being cold, but winter landscapes were absolutely stunning.
I just preferred to look at them from a window, wrapped in a blanket with a warm mug of coffee or tea.
“Do you have a ride to campus?” Julian’s voice was soft and near my ear, making me realize he was looking down at me with interest, watching my reactions.
“No.” I offered him a slightly shy look. “We can share a taxi. I mean, if you are going there. You don’t have a bag, so I shouldn’t assume.”
His eyes filled with heat that had me letting out a small, almost dreamy sigh as he cupped my jaw, the touch heating my skin.
“I would be normally, but I have something to do… unfortunately.” I could see the disappointment in his gaze, which went a long way to make me feel as if he was being honest. “Let me grab you a cab. I am meeting someone in five minutes, but I need to know you got to campus in one piece.”
Why wouldn’t I arrive in one piece?
Wait, that was a figure of speech. Wow. Glad I didn’t ask that one out loud. I had never regretted my lack of social interactions as much as I did in this moment.
I should have been way more cautious about this guy, but instead I found myself nodding.
My wolf had never been so calm and curious around another shifter before, so I was hoping that we could trust him.
I liked the warm feeling that he seemed to surround me with, and while that was a bit selfish, I couldn’t lie that his natural warmth and strength had me wanting to curl up against him like a kitten.
Gently ushering me towards a cab, he opened the door and began talking to the man in what sounded like Spanish. I only knew that because some of the characters on my favorite shows spoke it occasionally, and while his sounded a bit different, some of the words were familiar.
Looking around, I noticed a lot of people staring at the two of us, our hands still connected, and I had to wonder why. Was it me? Probably. Or maybe it was because he was so gorgeous. Way more likely. I frowned, realizing that I couldn’t even tell from a distance if they were human or not.
How did humans feel about wolves? Why did no one talk about that in the pack? I felt like that was important for me to know. Did they even know we were different in the first place?
I had come across a ton of fiction about shifters, but none of them held the truth about our packs. Well, at least not what I knew of fenrir and bitten wolves. So maybe the humans didn’t know the truth. And if they did, was it one they accepted?
Were they mad that Silver Falls University only accepted wolves?
At least, that was my understanding of their application process—I had never heard of a human, or even another type of shifter, attending.
I needed someone to ask questions to, and I was hoping that Julian may be that person.
I guess I could also turn on the news, something that had never been allowed back in our home.
Apparently, Gerald believed that it was ‘bullshit’ or something to that effect.
“Alright, Effie.” Julian opened the back door, sliding my bag in and then curling his large hands around my shoulders, looking at my jacket with a frown. “He is going to take you to the registration office on campus. He’s a shifter, so you should be fine… do you have a warmer jacket, by chance?”
I let out a small laugh because the question seemed to come out of left field.
I shook my head, finding this man sort of adorable and sweet.
I didn’t think men liked to be viewed that way, but I had never had someone treat me like this.
It may have been a bit naive to soak in the attention, but I couldn’t help myself.
This was both an unexpected and amazing turn of my day.
I didn’t expect it to last, of course, but for this moment, I would enjoy it.
“Here.” He shrugged off his jacket, revealing a muscular body underneath a long-sleeve shirt as I basked in the body heat that radiated off the coat he had me slide on. It was massive on my frame, and I blinked as I looked back up at him, feeling a bit dizzy with his earthy scent wrapped around me.
“You’re going to be cold,” I pointed out, my voice sounding almost whisper-like.
“Better me than you,” he insisted and then reached into my coat pocket, taking out the phone I had placed in there before standing up on the train.
I frowned, not understanding how he knew where it was, but just watched as he typed something in and then leaned forward, pressing a kiss to my forehead and ushering me into the cab.
I gripped the phone as he gave it back, and tried to figure out what to say.
My skin felt as though it was sparking with heat from where his lips had brushed.
“Thank you for your help and the coat.” I smiled fully, unable to help it as his gaze ran over my face and he offered a sharp nod that had me warming.
“I’m going to call you right after this meeting,” he promised, and then his eyes turned darker, looking at the driver. “Make sure she gets there, safe and right away.”
The man nodded, and Julian offered me a small wink before shutting the door and stepping away. I let out a small exhale, realizing I’d been holding my breath around him. As the cab pulled away from the curb, I looked back at him, his gaze never leaving our vehicle.
“Boyfriend?” the driver asked, amused at something.
“We just met, actually,” I offered as he chuckled. I didn’t know what at, but it was a warm, friendly sound.
Pressing the back of my hand to my cheek, I realized just how red in the face I was and how exhilarated I felt. Maybe Silver Falls wouldn’t be all that bad.
One could hope, at least.