Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
Lanche
Dinner turned out to be fantastic.
And not just the food, although that was really good too, but it was the company.
Spending time with Dain was a dream come true.
When we finished eating dessert—we’d both wanted some, but for me, it was only because I’d wanted to spend more time with him—we walked to the car, gloved hand in gloved hand.
I wished we didn’t have the gloves on, but honestly, it was way too cold not to.
Well, way too cold for Dain. I could actually stay out in freezing temperatures without issue. I only wore winter clothes and accessories so I didn’t stand out among all the humans, witches, fae, and other humanoids in the city.
We reached the car, and I was reluctant to let him go, but he offered me a small smile before pulling away.
Before tonight, I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen a true smile from him.
But I’d definitely seen a few true smiles tonight. From throwing snowballs to just now, sending me that sweet look.
I could see it in his eyes that he meant it.
It wasn’t the same as the fake smiles he reserved for patrons at the bookstore. Not the same at all, and it made my belly flutter.
“Phew, it’s freezing tonight,” Dain said as he started the car and turned the heat on full blast. Of course, the air was freezing, but hopefully, it would heat up quickly. “Need to let the car heat up for a bit before I can drive it.”
I leaned my head back against the headrest but turned it to look at him. “I don’t mind spending more time with you.”
He glanced at me, then away, looking grouchy again, though I didn’t know why. I hadn’t offended him somehow, had I?
I was debating what to say or ask him when he turned in his seat to fully face me, looked me in the eyes, and asked, “Can I ask you a serious question?”
“Uh, yeah. Of course.”
He chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment. “I don’t want to offend you.”
I almost snorted out a laugh, but managed to hold it back. “I was just worried that I’d offended you somehow. But don’t worry about me. You can ask anything you want.” I’d said that before, but clearly, it needed reinforcing.
“Okay, so… do you… let other people see your, uh, yeti side?”
I was taken aback for a moment, only because in all my years, I wasn’t sure anyone had ever asked me that. “Are you… do you want to see my yeti side?”
After chewing on his cheek for a few beats more while staring right at me, he gave a subtle nod. “Yes.”
My insides did a flip, and I could feel excitement building in my veins. “Really?”
His head cocked to the side. “You… want to show me?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“So it’s okay, then? To show other people?”
I shrugged. “It doesn’t go against my people or anything. It’s up to the individual who we show. Even back before humans knew about magic, snow yetis showed who they wanted, as long as they were trusted.”
“And you trust me enough to show me?”
“Of course I do. You’re my—”
“You barely know me.”
Ugh. Now he won’t even let me say it? I shrugged. “I know you won’t hurt me. Plus… I’m hoping that one day you’ll show me your were side.”
He grimaced. “I usually lock myself up, just to be safe, so…”
“So I’ll come sit with you one night.”
He rolled his eyes. “That sounds so fun. Come sit on the floor in my bedroom while I roll around and growl at you and literally everything that comes near me.”
“Maybe I’ll shift and get your wolf to cuddle.”
He snorted. “Good luck with that.”
I grinned at him. He hadn’t said no. Progress.
Not much progress, but I’d take what I could get.
The car began blowing out warm air, so Dain started the drive back to my house. I thought about reaching over to take his hand, but there were a lot of curves and hills on the road leading to my house, and since he was unfamiliar with them, I didn’t want to distract him.
As soon as he parked at my house, I asked, “Want to see now?”
His eyes widened. “Really? Your yeti?”
I nodded and hopped out. “Come on.”
He followed me out of the car, and since I knew he didn’t want to come inside my house for some reason, I figured I’d shift right in the front yard.
I shouldered off my coat, hat, and scarf, rested them on the hood of his car, then pulled my sweater and undershirt over my head, adding them to my pile.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him staring at my bare chest.
I might’ve flexed a little, though I’d never admit it.
“Oh my Mother, aren’t you going to freeze out here?”
I shot him a smirk. “I’m a snow yeti, Dain. I can’t freeze.”
“Oh. Right. Makes sense.”
I winked at him—when in the world did I start this winking business?—and unbuckled my belt.
Dain sucked in a breath, then sort of choked on his own spit a little before he spluttered out, “I’ll just… turn around.” He faced away from me as I yanked down my pants and underwear.
I was half disappointed that he wasn’t looking at me, but at the same time, I was glad. I wanted to save that intimacy for later when he was more comfortable with me… maybe for when he was willing to get naked too.
Thinking about seeing Dain naked made my cock twitch in interest, but I pushed those thoughts away since that’d be embarrassing if he caught me.
Stay down, dude. Stay the fuck down.
I thought of every disgusting thing I could, but since Dain was right there, it wasn’t really working. So… I needed to cover myself up…
My fur would work for that, so I thought about my shift.
The magic that lived inside of me flared to life, and my bulk began to grow, my muscles expanded, and my body grew taller.
Fur sprouted out of my skin, covering my entire body in thick, white, soft fur.
Even my entire face was covered. At least my coat was long enough to cover anything happening below the belt in this form.
But I still tried not to think about Dain’s bare skin.
Shaking myself out, I lifted a foot and stepped closer to Dain before freezing. My bulk was so big, so heavy, that I was sure he could feel the thump, and I didn’t want to scare him.
He’d said he wanted to see me, not touch me in this form.
So I stood there and said, “You can turn around.” My voice was deeper, grumblier in this form. More guttural.
Dain sucked in a breath and turned back to me, his eyes widening as he took me in, his head slowly lifting up to my face.
When people got a look at my size, most of them backed away, scared of the big hairy monster in front of them, even though I was still me.
For one breathless moment, I thought Dain would be the same. I thought he might jump back into his car, take off, and leave without another word. But he surprised me.
He stepped forward, his eyes roaming over me, taking me in inch by inch. “Wow. Holy shit, Lanche, you’re huge!”
I… wasn’t sure if that was a compliment or not, so I didn’t say anything.
“And so hairy—furry? You blend right in with the snow and trees. Holy crapola, you were probably amazing at hide and seek as a kid.”
A slow smile formed on my face as I realized Dain wasn’t running. He wasn’t scared of me. In fact, he seemed fascinated.
He stepped closer, his hand reaching toward me, before he paused and dropped his hand, grimacing again.
He wanted to touch me, didn’t he?
Giddiness made my belly flutter, but I ignored it and held out my arm. “You can touch me.”
He made a face, glanced up at my eyes, then gingerly took off one glove, reached out, and ran a finger over my hairy forearm. Chills ran up my spine, and I knew if I was in my human form, I would have gooseflesh on my arm.
“You’re so soft,” Dain whispered, almost to himself.
I hid my smile and reached over, gently took his hand, and placed it on my forearm. “I don’t mind if you want to, um… pet me.”
He blinked up at me, and his hand stroked my forearm, almost absently. “Are you sure you don’t mind?”
His pretty brown eyes stared up at me with something like hope in them, and all I wanted to do was gather him in my arms and hold him tight.
I quietly said, “It feels… good.”
The light in his eyes changed to something more… sultry. “Oh yeah?”
I swallowed thickly. “D-definitely.”
He stepped closer and took his other glove off with his teeth before letting it fall to the ground. His fingers brushed against my chest, and I couldn’t suppress the shudder.
I had no idea what he was planning, what he wanted, but I knew I wanted him close.
So I slowly wrapped my arms around him and dragged him into me.
He came without complaint, resting his cheek against my hairy chest, his fingers buried in the fur at my waist. He blew out a breath and rested against me as I held him.
He murmured, “Well, this wasn’t where my mind was headed, but I’m definitely down for big furry yeti hugs.”
“Hugs are the best,” I agreed easily.
He let out a small sound like a laugh, but he tightened his hold on me and rubbed his face against me a little, nuzzling in.
We stayed that way for a long time, simply holding each other.
I wanted so badly to bring him into my home and ask him to spend the night—even if all he was ready for was more cuddling.
But I’d gotten the feeling that something bad had happened to him in the past that prevented him from trusting people easily.
And since he didn’t believe me about being viramores, I knew that trust wasn’t there yet, and I didn’t want to pressure him or make him regret tonight or this wonderful hug.
Unfortunately, we couldn’t stand there together all night, so eventually, we pulled apart.
Dain glanced at my face when he stepped back, and I would’ve sworn he was blushing a little. Although, the pink cheeks could be from the cold, even though my furry coat had been protecting him and keeping him warm while we hugged.
“You okay?” I asked after a moment.
He nodded. “Uh… yeah. I’m good. I, um, I guess it’s time to leave.”
The words you don’t have to were on the tip of my tongue, but I couldn’t pressure him. I knew better.
So instead, I said, “Let me shift back real quick.”
He nodded and turned his back to me, so I quickly dressed so I could say a proper goodbye to my viramore. Ice Goddess, I really don’t want him to leave. As soon as I had my pants and shirt on, not worrying about my boots, coat, scarf, or gloves, I walked back over to him and said, “I’m decent.”
Dain whipped around quickly, and to my surprise, he walked right up to me, grabbed my hips, and tugged me into him. “Just so you know, you’re sexy no matter what form you’re in.”
That was completely unexpected. Wow. My heart fluttered, and my cock twitched as if happy to hear the compliment. “I… um… thank you.”
He rolled his eyes, but I could tell he was hiding a grin. “You don’t have to…” He trailed off with a sigh, then lifted a hand to my cheek. “Thank you for a wonderful date, Avalanche.”
I couldn’t help but smile at that. “I’m glad you had a good time.”
“The best.”
He stared up at me, and when our eyes met, it was like a magnetic pull yanked on me. I leaned down without breaking eye contact, and I felt Dain lean closer to me. We were only a hairsbreadth away now, and I still couldn’t look away from his soulful brown eyes.
Dain whispered, “You better kiss me before I decide to throw another sno—”
I cut him off, pressing my mouth to his—I didn’t need to be told twice—and the second our lips met, I felt sparks of pleasure burst all over my body. It was like my skin was tingling with little explosions of happiness mixed with lust.
Dain moaned and slid his tongue against my lips, and I opened with a gasp, breathing him in, tasting his flavor with my own tongue.
The first brush of his tongue against mine sent another wave of those pleasure sparks all over me, and from the sounds coming from Dain’s mouth, I was sure he felt them too.
My arms held him close, hugging him to me as he deepened the kiss. I let him take the lead, happily, and soon I was whimpering against him and wishing I could drag him into my den and undress him. I wanted to worship every inch of skin. I wanted to pleasure him. I wanted to connect with him.
I could feel my soul reaching out to his, and his was very tentatively reaching back. It was as if his soul was shy or maybe just wary or scared of getting hurt.
But I’d never hurt my Dain. Ever.
My soul, my magic, floated around us in a flurry of snowflakes swirling around, and his werewolf magic, a mix of green and reds, surrounded Dain but didn’t come out to play.
Yet.
That was okay. I was a patient man. I’d waited centuries for my one and only. I could wait a little longer, especially if my soul mate kept kissing and touching me like this.
When we parted, we were both out of breath and panting, and Dain ended up resting his forehead against my chin for a moment. I kissed his forehead as we stood there, soaking one another in. It was different this time since I was in my human form, but just as precious a moment.
Our magics died down as we caught our breath, and I couldn’t help but wonder if Dain had noticed it or not. Would this be enough to convince him of what he was to me?
I doubted it because I was learning that my viramore was a very stubborn man.
Finally, he said, “I should probably head home.”
I nodded, but neither of us let go for another few minutes.
But then Dain shivered, and I knew I had to release him so he could get in his car and warm up.
I almost, almost, asked if he wanted to come in, but he wasn’t ready. I knew that.
So I kissed his forehead again and asked, “Could I take you out for dinner again tomorrow night?”
He leaned back to meet my gaze without releasing me. “I’d like that.”
I smiled and bent down for a quick peck on his lips. “I can pick you up, if you want?”
He shook his head and finally stepped back, out of my arms. I immediately missed his warmth. “I’ll pick you up. Does six work for you?”
I nodded. “Perfect.”
“Great. Then I’ll… see you tomorrow.” He stepped back in for a lingering kiss before he backed away and slid into his car. With a small wave, he pulled out of the driveway.
I sighed and walked inside my house, wishing I could bring back that blanket of warmth I’d felt with him in my arms and get rid of the ache he left in my chest at his departure.