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Drool from a fucking distance.

Friday morning I’d had enough of it and his normal groupies tripping over themselves to offer him a bottle of water or whatever they made for his breakfast this time. There were ten of them who didn’t even go on the run and just waited for him.

So yeah, I snapped.

Again.

Well, almost.

I was walking over to him to make it clear who he belonged to and swat flies away, but at the last second I stopped, realizing what I’d almost done.

Without his consent.

At work.

He’d turned towards me when I was still ten feet away with an array of emotions in his eyes, on his face, and in his aura. He frowned when I froze and took the last step towards me. “Tell me what I’m scenting is real.”

“I think I just almost lost my mind and did something unforgivable,” I mumbled, blinking up at him and wondering what happened to the Ellie who never cracked. The one who had iron armor and steel in her veins.

Him. Part of it was him and being supported instead of always pushing it down or pushing it to the side.

“I consent,” he whispered, catching on where my head was. His gaze darted from my eyes to my lips. “I consent. Yes, please—you were going to, right?”

“Yes,” I breathed, unable to lie or brush him off.

“But you stopped,” he hedged. “You changed your mind?”

I wasn’t sure how he meant that, my brain a bit of static that I’d been about to throw a fit. “Yes, I can’t just—jealousy isn’t the reason to do it.” I frowned. “You deserve better than—”

“No, I don’t,” he interrupted, moving a bit closer. “Do it because of whyever, just do it.” He seemed to think better of that. “Do it and don’t regret me.”

That broke through my swirling everything. “I wouldn’t regret you. I just—this wasn’t the way.” I looked past him at the women giving me death stares to leave him alone so they could keep flirting.

“I think it’s bloody perfect,” he argued, but then seemed to realize that I wasn’t going to. “Do you give me permission?”

My gaze snapped back to him. “What?”

“Give me permission, Ellie,” he breathed, his voice laced with a begging tone that broke me. “Say yes and let me finish what you started.”

“Yes.”

His arm moved around me, and right there in the huge main atrium, the damn wolf gave me a kiss in greeting. It was soft and quick, butclearlya damn kiss. He moved his forehead to mine. “Best Friday morning ever. What should we have for dinner?”

The whispers were already starting and I swallowed loudly. “I think I’m going to need that funny brownie in your freezer after the bomb we just set off.”

The damn wolf just laughed. He threw back his head and laughed before kissing me again.

Well, we were out and official now. Not sure it was the right way to do it, but at least now he might have fewer annoyances throwing themselves at him.

Probably not.

The End