7. Rigg
7
RIGG
Walking beside Niles, I couldn’t believe he’d accepted me and my situation so easily. We’d only met a few hours ago, but he was already one of the four most important people in my life.
Not to mention, I was horny as fuck. My body was half crazy with need to feel him again, feel his mouth on mine and get my mouth on him. All over him.
The relief in his shoulders was visible when I told him what I was. Like he’d been waiting for me the same way I’d been waiting for him. This gorgeous omega wolf with messy hair and a crooked grin had turned my world upside down as completely as the pups had. Did that mean I was rightside up again? Had to be, because I definitely felt right.
Niles stopped just past the treeline beyond the parking lot and pulled off his shirt. “This is far enough.”
“Does it hurt?” My eyes were glued to his body as he exposed it to me. I wanted to be respectful and not gawk, but that was almost impossible.
“Not really. Does it hurt when you shift?” He looked at my face as he lowered his pants and stepped out of them, completely naked.
“Uh, no. Maybe in the beginning but not anymore.” I wanted to close my eyes to resist the temptation to look, but more than that, I wanted to see him shift.
“Same.” He glanced over at me and grinned. “Have you seen a wolf before?”
I shrugged. I’d seen just about everything, but I didn’t want to throw too much at Niles all at once. “Yeah, but not during the shift.”
A moment later, my omega was gone and a beautiful wolf stood in his place. Nature could be so beautiful sometimes, even when it was born of evil and greed. His wolf scooted closer to me and sniffed my hand.
I carded my fingers through his soft fur and wished for the millionth time I had such a powerful beast within me. “You’re amazing, Niles.”
He rubbed my thigh with his head and then licked my hand, before stepping back and shifting into his skin again. The act of shifting was the fastest way for him to heal. His body knew how to keep him healthy and did its job. Again, way cooler than what I could do.
He rolled his shoulders and then stepped into his clothes to quickly get dressed again. I would have been happy to stare at his naked skin a bit longer and maybe join him in his nudity, but we had a lot to talk about. Like, holy shit, we were fated mates.
Having found him inside a random bar still seemed surreal. I never thought I’d find someone who could accept my condition, much less want to be with me. My life was complicated and manufactured. I’d never had genuine relationships outside of Grandpa.
Once he was dressed again, he stretched out his arms and back and sighed. “I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for bed.”
“Yeah, you need some rest.” I wasn’t worried about a concussion anymore, but the thought of leaving him made my stomach twist. But I needed to get back to my family too.
“And you probably have places to be. People to be with.”
“Yeah, I do.” When I saw his eyes go wide, I realized how that must have sounded. “Kids. Um…like you…”
All the blood dropped from his face, and he took a step back. “Oh, I guess I assumed…”
“You assumed right.” I reached for him, and when he didn’t reach for me back, I took a step closer, desperate to touch him and confirm he was real. “They’re adopted. Just recently.” I didn’t know how to word my story, so I kept it brief. “I’ve been waiting for you, it seems. Now that I’ve found you, can I take you back to my place?”
“So soon?” He didn’t seem opposed to the idea, just surprised. “Maybe we should go on a few dates before meeting the family.”
I nodded, agreeing that was what we should do. What normal people would do. But I didn’t think it was something I could do. Leaving him behind wasn’t an option for me, and I truly hoped it wasn’t an option for him. “I just don’t like the idea of leaving you at home after a head injury. Having you close feels like…” I grinned to soften the stalker vibes I was projecting. “Well, it feels like the only way I’ll get any sleep tonight.
He chuckled and stepped closer to my chest, leaning his head back so he could look up at me. “How very alpha of you.”
My face twisted into a playful grin. “Maybe for the first time in my life, I actually feel alpha. Please don’t ruin that for me.”
“Yeah, okay.” He rolled his eyes and then got on his tiptoes to press a soft kiss over my lips. “I don’t really want to be alone tonight either.” It was his turn to look at me, study my face the way I’d studied his.
After a minute, I started to feel self-conscious. “Why aren’t you more freaked out by all this?”
Niles shrugged and pulled back so we could start walking toward the parking lot. “You think I don’t know what it’s like to be different? The second I scented you, I knew you were mine.” He chuckled and pressed his forehead to my bicep. “As you might recall by my little show of indecency in the breakroom.”
“First of all, that was amazing, and there was nothing indecent about it.” I still owed him a reciprocal blow job. “But the fated mate thing was a surprise. I felt the pull but didn’t realize what it was until my friend pointed out the stupid look on my face could only mean one thing.”
He laughed harder this time. “Yeah, you did look a little shocked when I came to the table. Who was your friend?” We stopped at an older car in the parking lot, and Niles leaned against the side with his arms crossed in front of him. “Were you on a date?”
“What?” That seemed ridiculous to me, but I could see why Niles would jump to that conclusion. “No, I just met him, but he’s happily married with a family. It was more of a business meeting of sorts.”
Niles furrowed his brow as he watched me. “What business are you in?”
That was a loaded question since I didn’t actually have a job or career or education or anything. “It’s a long story. Is this your car?”
“Yeah.” He patted the fender. “Did you drive here?”
Yet another long story. “I rode my bike part of the way, but if you don’t mind letting me drive your car, we can grab some clothes from your place and then I’ll take you back to mine. It’s not fancy, but…” I shrugged, hating how corny my next words were gonna sound, but I didn’t have a better way to say what I meant. “Well, at least we’ll be together.”
* * *
“I’m gonna fill up the tank and grab a bottle of electrolytes.” I pulled the old car to a stop in front of a gas pump and killed the engine. “Do you want any snacks?”
He yawned and closed his eyes. “Nah, I’m fine. I’ll hunt if I need to.” After stopping at his place for a bag of clothes and his laptop, he handed me his keys and curled up on the passenger seat. “Wake me when we get there.”
Before I got out, I spent another minute just watching him, memorizing every soft feature and adorable freckle. How had I gotten so lucky?
The drive back to my little cabin went fast because I was so anxious. Doubts about whether I was making a bad decision or moving too quickly tried to take root in my mind, but I didn’t let them. I forced myself to focus on the facts. And the only fact that truly mattered was that Niles was my mate and he trusted me to take care of him.
Everything else was figureoutable .
I couldn’t exactly put Niles through the hassle of taking buses and trains and my bike in the name of over-precautions, so I got on and off the freeway several times and doubled back twice before finally driving directly to the cabin. When I finally pulled his car to a stop behind some trees, my heart was racing and my throat felt tight. “Niles, hon. We’re here.”
He opened his eyes and looked around. “You live in the woods?”
I chuckled and opened my door. “Just past the tree line. It’s a rustic cabin.”
He shook his head and got out with his bag in hand. “I should have known you’d be some kind of prepper or doomsday dude.” He smiled, clearly teasing.
“You have no idea what you’re getting yourself into.” I pulled him to my chest and gave him a kiss. A real kiss. The kind we should have had before the blow job or immediately after realizing we were mates. The kind of kiss that made my knees weak and my heart palpitate. “I would say it’s not too late to change your mind, but that would be a lie.”
He shook his head and kissed me again. “I’m not changing my mind, Rigg. I’m here. Now show me what I’ve gotten myself into.”
When I opened the door, Grandpa was asleep on the recliner and the kids were curled up together on the couch. My heart felt so full with my whole family in the same little space. With a sigh, I closed the door behind us and whispered into my mate’s ear, “Your life just got a lot more interesting.”
He took my hand and squeezed it. “I’m ready for it.”