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Noticing my wide eyes, she asked, “Do you want me to go to the bathroom to change?”

“No! Do you want to go into the bathroom and change?”

She snorted delicately. “Jensen, I think you can handle seeing me in a bra after everything we did during my heat. Or am I reading the room wrong?”

Her scent clouded somewhat, and it dawned on me that she was doubting herself. “Oh no, no, no, Iverymuch would like for you to change here. Tonight isn’t just about that, though. We really want to spend time with you.”

A slow smile spread across her face. “Okay,” she whispered, before gripping the hem of her dress and pulling it over herhead, leaving her in a pair of tiny black spandex shorts and a matching T-shirt bra.

It wasn’t a particularly sexy set, but on her, it was everything.

Frankly, she could make a potato sack look good.

All too soon, she was tugging one of my T-shirts over her head. It fell to her knees and swamped her, but there was something about her being covered in me that was so pleasing to my inner alpha.

“Well, now I’m hard.” I laughed, running a hand through my hair.

“Sorry.” Beth shrugged, but her expression was far from apologetic.

Minx.

Turning to look in my mirror, she started pulling bobby pins out of her hair. Several strands had already been falling out, thanks to the rain, so she brushed it out with her hands until her golden waves were flowing down her back.

Once she was done, I followed her downstairs. Barefoot and wearing my clothes, she fit in perfectly.

We met in the kitchen, where Cullen was already pan-frying something that smelled delicious.

“Nice outfit.” Gideon smiled, handing her a glass of wine.

She giggled. “I suppose it’s a good thing I’m not wearing a dress anymore, considering the last time I wore one around Cullen, he called me a cheap whore.”

All amusement fled from me when she said those words so casually.

Cullen froze, his eyes wide.

“He did what?” I growled.

Bethany nodded. “At the restaurant. When he interrupted my date? Didn’t you tell them about that?” she asked Cullen.

Gideon looked furious. “Why on earth would you do that?” he growled at our pack mate.

Bethany shrugged. “The dresswasa little short.”

Oh dear fucking lord.

In a flash, Cullen was across the kitchen, sweeping her into his arms and depositing her onto the kitchen counter. He stood between her legs, his hands on either side of her, so she was essentially trapped.

“Okay, you and I need to have a conversation about that night,” he said, completely ignoring us. “You didn’t look like a cheap whore. You looked fucking phenomenal. So much so, in fact, that the moment I laid eyes on you, all rational thought left my brain.”

“That would insinuate that you have rational thoughts to begin with,” I murmured.

He ignored me and continued, “You looked so good, and I was trying to be respectful because you work with my daughter. But I realized you were on a date with that lowlife. I couldn’t help myself. I followed you to the bathroom, and before I could even think, I was grabbing you and kissing you. Fuck, the things I wanted to do to you in that dress, Bethany. If I had my way with you, you wouldn’t have been able to use your legs for days.”

Bethany’s mouth was open as she gawked at Cullen, clearly shocked at his tirade. “But…”

“I needed you out of my restaurant fast. Otherwise I would have hiked that little dress up and used my tongue to show you just how much I appreciated it. So, yes, I was an asshat and I very much regret that, but let me reiterate—you looked like sheer perfection, nothing else. Is that clear?”

Bethany nodded while Gideon and I watched in amusement. We would berate Cullen later for his stupidity, but for now, we would leave them be.