Chapter Six
So, she was a liar. There had been no bad dreams. There had been fitful sleep, and she’d wanted her sleeping partner back. One night with him in her bed and she was ruined. His smell, his warmth, gave her the best sleep she could recall since…. Well, since she could recall.
But admitting that to Matt seemed…inappropriate. After all, she’d never shared a bed with her fiancé. Sure, they’d had sex, but there had been no sleepovers. When they’d begun dating, they were high school students living with their parents. Sneaking around was their only option.
And then she was in college with roommates.
Preston’s visits had been seldom and brief, usually only when he was in the vicinity for work.
Too frugal to pay for a hotel room, Preston had chosen to sleep in the cab of his truck.
He’d claimed he was saving for their future.
How could she argue with that? For the same reason, he still lived with his parents.
Even now. He’d hinted at moving in with her.
Hints which she’d blatantly ignored. When he grew bolder, she began changing the subject until he finally stopped.
She’d found the thought of Preston moving into her space inexplicably unbearable. Her belongings were organized as she wanted them. All the decorations were to her taste. The home was cozy and relaxing with comfy spots to curl up and read.
This was her place. Couples needed to start on neutral ground.
With that thought in mind, they’d done some house shopping.
No place ever felt right to her and Preston didn’t seem to care what they picked so long as it stayed within their budget.
It was when she realized that she didn’t relish the thought of living with Preston anywhere that she knew it was time to call off the wedding.
When Sage woke in the morning, her back was pressed against Matt’s. His warmth surrounded her, and his delicious scent filled her lungs. A smile curving her lips, she wiggled and stretched like a cat.
“Do you do this when you’re in bed alone or are these performances especially for me?”
Sage giggled. She rolled over and Matt did the same. He’d pushed the sheets down to his waist. “I’m so comfy in this fleece, but are you hot?”
“Yeah, but I run hot.”
“We should change the sheets.”
“No. You like these sheets.”
“I’ll have to change them anyway before it gets too warm.”
“But while you’re—” He stopped suddenly, shaking his head, his eyebrows rising. “Wait. Is it your intention that I continue to share your bed?”
“Well.” She blinked. “Just until the nightmares go away. If…if you’re in town that long,” she finished, remembering that he didn’t live here and would likely leave as soon as the mood struck him.
“I’m yours for as long as you want me.”
Whether he was flirting intentionally or trying to be supportive, it comforted her to know she could count on him. “Thank you, Matt, for everything. I’m so glad you came.”
“Of course.” Matt smiled at her, and she couldn’t help but notice how sexy he was fresh from sleep.
His blond curls formed an artfully disarrayed halo.
The golden scruff shadowing his jaw kept him from appearing too angelic and gave him a manly edge.
He could literally roll out of bed and grace the cover of a magazine.
And that was Matt from the neck up. She studiously avoided dropping her gaze to his bare chest and sculpted abdomen.
She shuddered to think about what she looked like. Chandra had braided her hair while she was in the hospital. By now the braids had to be frazzled. She ran a self-conscious hand over her head, checking for loose curls. “I should probably redo my hair.”
He hummed. “You haven’t even gotten out of bed yet and you’ve already put two items on my to-do list.”
“Yours? I didn’t mean—”
“Your only duty is to rest. I’ll change the sheets after I shower and make breakfast. Then I’ll do your hair.”
Her eyes widened. “You’ll do my hair?”
Laughing, he grasped the end of one of her braids and tugged. “I won’t be able to duplicate these, but I can take it down and help you wash it if you’d like. And I can condition your scalp like you taught me to do.”
“You remember that?”
“I don’t forget anything about you.”
“If you put that kind of energy into your relationships, you could be the perfect boyfriend.”
He arched an eyebrow. “Who says I’m not?”
“Um, your string of exes.”
He scoffed. “That string wouldn’t be long enough to make a bracelet.”
“That’s not what I heard.”
“You’ve met half of the women I’ve dated.”
“But I’ve only met three.”
He gave her a significant glance and nodded. “That sounds about right.”
She frowned, mentally reconciling what she knew of his reputation with what he was telling her now. Whether consciously or unconsciously, she’d tried not to learn about his girlfriends and flings. “But….”
Sighing, Matt rolled out of bed. “Chandra likes to exaggerate my rep.” He ran his hands through his hair.
Sage forced herself to look away, finding him entirely too appealing.
“What do you want for breakfast?”
“Nothing too elaborate,” she responded quickly. “Maybe just some toast and juice.”
His eyes narrowed. “And maybe some eggs and bacon.”
She started to protest but his stubborn expression said she’d be wasting her time. “Okay. I’m going to lay here for another minute or two before a bath. Meet you in the kitchen?”
“Yeah.” He bent and kissed her on the forehead.
Sage took down her braids while Matt changed her sheets. She ran her fingertips over her scalp, relieving any itchy spots. Matt came out of the bedroom grumbling. “What’s wrong?”
“The new standard shape for mattresses should be a square.”
“Okay…. Why?”
“That way the fitted sheet will always be the right way round the first time.”
She laughed. “Or…maybe the sheets could come with tags to indicate the top, bottom, and sides.”
He placed his hands on his hips and tilted his head back, appearing to give the idea some consideration. “I guess that could work, too.”
“Glad you agree,” she said dryly.
He clapped his hands together. “So, have you decided what you want to do with your hair?”
“I’m going to wash it. You can grease it. Chandra is coming for dinner, and she will braid it again for me.”
“Hm. I better go take another steak out of the freezer.”
Sage blinked at his back. The man was seriously obsessed with protein. She tilted her head. Maybe that explained his more muscular physique. Shaking off thoughts of Matt’s new diet, she stood. “Matt, I’m going to go wash my hair,” she called.
She worked her fingers through her hair to detangle it before wetting it. Matt popped up and leaned against the bathroom doorframe watching her. “What are you doing?” she asked.
“I’m learning the process,” he said.
Their gazes met in the mirror, and she smiled at him.
“This might get a bit messy.” Minutes later, her words proved prophetic.
Somehow, she blocked the spigot with her hair or her hands and water sprayed down her face and chest. She backed away from the sink so that she wouldn’t hit her head on the faucet and then sprang upright with a gasp.
Water went up her nose and shampoo stung her eyes.
“I got you,” Matt said, handing her a towel.
Sage pressed the towel to her face.
“Are you okay?”
“I’ll be fine once I can see again.” Her eyes burned and her vision blurred as she pulled the towel away from her face. She blinked rapidly until Matt’s face came into focus. And then she closed her eyes tightly and scrubbed with the towel again. “Gah,” she muttered.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, his voice sounding curiously thick and gravelly. Did she get water in her ears, too?
“Eyesight’s messed up. It looked like your eyes were glowing.”
Matt grunted. Slowly, she opened her eyes.
Matt stood before her, his gaze locked on the floor, his hands shoved into the pockets of his jeans.
Jiggling a finger in each of her ears, she glanced down to see if she’d made a mess of the floor as well.
Other than a few splashes by the sink, the floor was dry. “I’ll get that later.”
“What?”
“The water on the floor. I’ll get it later.”
“No. That’s not….” He cleared his throat. “Your shirt is wet.”
She spared her shirt a brief glance. “Yeah. I’ll change it after I finish.”
Matt made a strangled sound. “I’ll…I’ll….” He gestured behind him and then disappeared through the doorway.
Sage glanced down with a frown. Her navy shirt clung to her curves, but it wasn’t transparent or indecent. Was it possible that Matt found the sight…arousing? The idea was intriguing.
Matt flirted with her, but he was a flirty person. She never took it personally. After all, she didn’t resemble the women he dated in looks or personality.
Sage shook off ideas of Matt. Yes, she was single now, and Matt was sexier than ever, but he still wasn’t an option for her. He would be gone soon, and a fling would ruin their friendship. She could see herself falling hard for him while he grew tired of her in short order.
When she finished washing and conditioning her hair, she changed her shirt. She wrapped a microfiber towel around her hair and went in search of Matt. She found him in the den texting on his phone. “Missy?” she asked.
“Hm. No. I got a message from some…acquaintances.” He frowned and slid his phone in his back pocket. “Do you mind if I go out for a bit? I’ll be back in plenty of time to cook dinner.”
“Sure. Let me get my car keys—”
“No. I’m going for a run.”
She looked him over. “In jeans?”
He opened his mouth. Closed it. Shook his head.
“I’ll go change into sweats.” He dashed into the guestroom and returned a minute later in a T-shirt and light gray sweatpants.
The man did wonders for cotton. The material emphasized his strong thigh muscles, the round curve of his ass, and sizable bulge in front.
The sight made her mouth go dry. Fortunately, Matt was in such a hurry that he didn’t notice her agog expression as he rushed out the door.
***
Matt set out on his jog with no destination in mind.
He needed to get out of the house before he pounced on Sage.
There was only so much he could take. He wasn’t a saint and his dick’s sudden return to functionality after a year’s spell of dormancy left him floundering in a quagmire of how to handle his arousal.
Sleeping in her bed, breathing in her sweet scent made him want to howl.
Watching her bent over the sink as she washed her hair had been difficult enough.
And then she’d soaked her shirt, giving him a detailed view of her delectable curves and eviscerating what little control he had left. He’d fled, plain and simple.
So…jogging. At least until he could find a safe spot to ditch his clothes and shift.
Sage lived in the suburbs, the south end bordering a more rural area with enough trees to provide him with a modicum of privacy.
When he got to the part of the sidewalk next to the woods, he veered off the path.
The land sloped steeply downward. Prior to becoming a shifter, he might have rolled down the hill and broken a leg or an arm.
He stopped when he couldn’t see the road anymore. He stripped off his clothes and hung them on the low branch of a tree. Shifting into his wolf form took less than a minute. He did it quickly before anxiety could take hold.
He still struggled to accept this new side of himself. Worry that he wouldn’t be able to return to his human form lingered in the back of his mind each time he made the shift. He took off at a trot the second the transformation finished.
His paws pounded through the underbrush. The scents and sounds threatened to overwhelm his heightened senses.
Matt pushed himself to run faster, needing the physical exertion to expunge the lust thrumming through his system. He didn’t worry about finding his way back as he plunged through the unfamiliar woods. His scent trail would lead him home.
As the trees began to thin again, he ran parallel to a line of houses. Dogs barked from back yards as he passed even though he flew by so swiftly that the fencing blurred.
He kept going until his muscles felt pleasantly loose and his mind emptied of anything but the terrain ahead.
Stopping at a small stream for a drink, he examined his reflection.
Glowing blue eyes set in a furred white face stared back at him.
His large size gave away the abnormality of his form.
He had to be twice the size of a regular wolf.
Thoughts of the text he’d received from Mack O’Connor asking about his location threatened to intrude before he quickly banished them.
He didn’t owe Mack anything and he didn’t intend to reply.
The man had incredible audacity to reach out to him at all.
If it weren’t for their pack’s irresponsible actions, he would never have been attacked.
Unable to take more than a few minutes of looking at himself, he quickly lapped up his fill of water. He stretched then shook himself out before racing back toward Sage. In his rush to leave, he’d forgotten his promise to grease her scalp. If he hurried, he might make it in time.