Page 11 of Alpha Wolf’s Nanny (Silvermist Wolves #2)

It was amazing Cassie how quickly she had adjusted to life in Silvermist. To living with Felix. When she woke early on a sunny Saturday morning, it was with a grin on her face. A month, that was all it had taken. One month for her to forget what it was like living in fear.

She sprang out of bed, straightening the blankets and throwing open the curtains, stretching wide as the sunlight hit her tanned skin.

For a moment, she debated going on a brief jog, but ultimately, she decided against it.

It was nearly seven, which meant the boys would soon be up and clamoring for breakfast. Besides, she had to save her energy for her hike!

Since she had arrived, she’d been aching to get out into the forest with her camping gear and have a proper exploration of the surrounding area.

Growing up, her parents had always taken her on camping holidays in Redwood National Forest. At the time, she thought it was the best thing in the world.

Just the three of them, off on an adventure.

Now, of course, she knew it was all her parents could afford, but she didn’t mind. She had loved it all the same.

With careful reverence, she picked up her mom’s old telescope.

It was a small thing, battered and weathered, but it was Cassie’s most prized possession, the only thing she really had left of her mother.

She’d checked the weather forecast religiously for the past few days, and by all accounts, it was going to be a clear night. Perfect for some stargazing.

For obvious reasons, she’d never been able to visit her mom’s grave back out West in California, but looking up at the stars was the next best thing.

Her mom had taught her everything she knew, and when she traced the outline of the constellations with her finger, she could almost hear her mom’s voice reciting their names.

Throwing on an old sweater, she opened her door to head down to the kitchen and nearly collided straight into Felix’s chest in the hallway.

“Oh,” she squeaked, bracing her hands against him to steady herself.

His own hands had flown to her upper arms to steady her.

His skin was hot, still wet from his shower, and she couldn’t stop her eyes skirting down the hard planes of his chest to the towel slung low on his hips.

A rush of heat pooled low in her stomach, and her fingers flexed slightly against his muscles.

“Cassie,” his voice was thick with shock, but he didn’t remove his hands. Her eyes flew up to meet his, her breath catching in her throat.

He swallowed, his chin dipping down, his lips parting slightly. His breath, warm and minty, fanned over her face.

“Cassie,” he said again, his voice dropping low.

She couldn’t move. Didn’t dare so much as breathe.

His jaw worked as he stared into her face, his hands trapping her close to him.

Against her stomach, she felt a distinctive hardness.

Color rushed to her cheeks, and she made to pull away, but he stopped her.

With a few steady steps, he walked her backwards until her shoulder blades hit the wall.

Her nails bit into his skin as something low and deep and needy throbbed in her.

His scent, masculine and clean, enveloped her, the hardness of him against her lower belly making her legs go weak.

“Cassie,” he breathed one final time, his voice was almost reverent now, like her name had become a prayer.

She licked her lips, heart pounding so hard she was sure he could hear it. His eyes dropped to her mouth, the corner of his jaw ticking.

Their mouths were inches apart. Less.

Cassie felt her whole world narrow to the warmth of his body, the firm press of his hands, the ragged pull of his breath. She couldn’t move, didn’t want to. Her heart thundered as he leaned in, his lips brushing hers, not quite kissing, not quite pulling away.

She held her breath, not daring to move, to close the distance or to pull away. She was completely at his mercy.

Then Felix’s eyes squeezed shut.

With a low curse, he stepped back, like she’d burned him. The air between them snapped back to normal, sudden and sharp.

Cassie swayed slightly where he’d left her pinned to the wall, blinking at the loss of contact.

He scrubbed a hand over his face, voice rough. “Sorry, that was…I didn’t mean to—”

“No, no, of course not,” she stammered, smoothing her sweaty palms over her jeans and brushing her hair back from her face, her cheeks on fire.

His face hardened, the muscles of his chest rippling as he stalked a few steps this way and that, a wolf barely contained. It sent a shiver down Cassie’s spine. Of excitement or fear, she didn’t know. But it thrilled her all the same.

Felix cleared his throat and tightened the towel around his hips, and quite against her will, Cassie’s eyes flew down to the supple muscles of his lower torso. Her mouth was suddenly dry, her mind blank. God. How much longer could she go on like this?

“The boys and I are going to dinner tonight if you would like to join,” he said conversationally, as if they’d bumped into each other at the grocery store instead of nearly kissing against the wall. The tense set of his shoulders betrayed that he wasn’t as relaxed as he was trying to act.

She blinked in shock, her mind racing to catch up with his words, “But it’s Saturday,” she said, still in a daze.

He raised an eyebrow, not quite able to meet her gaze. “And?”

“Weekends are for you and the boys. That’s what you’ve always said, right?”

He shrugged, still not meeting her eyes, his own glassy and unfocused as he looked instead out a window. “The offer is there all the same.”

She blinked. She’d never spent time with them on the weekends, aside from the occasional pickup or drop-off of the boys to the Pine Shadow Club.

Felix was fiercely protective of his time alone with his sons, a trait which Cassie deeply admired, even despite the slight pangs in her gut at seeing the three of them together, so happy.

A family.

Truth be told, she would like nothing more than to join them for dinner. She absolutely adored the boys, in all their mischief and creativity and light-hearted humor. They reminded her that life was for living and laughter and adventure, something she’d long since forgotten about. As for Felix…

Well. That was slightly more complicated. But she couldn’t pretend like she didn’t enjoy his company.

Cassie shifted her weight from foot to foot. “I actually…I have plans tonight,” she said, hoping her voice didn’t tremble.

That caught Felix’s attention. His head turned sharply, eyes finally locking with hers. “Plans?” he repeated, carefully neutral.

She nodded, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “Yeah. Just something I’ve been meaning to do since I got here.”

Felix’s brow furrowed, his jaw tightening almost imperceptibly. “With someone?” he asked, the words clipped.

“No!” she said, too quickly, then winced. “I mean…no, it’s not like that. It’s just…I’ve been wanting to go hiking. Thought I’d make a weekend of it. Clear my head.”

He didn’t answer right away. Something passed through his expression, surprise, then something darker, something close to disappointment. Jealousy, maybe? Or just disapproval?

“You’re going alone?” he asked.

Cassie tilted her chin, her voice firmer than she felt. “I’ve gone hiking it a hundred times before. I’m careful.”

Felix muttered something under his breath she didn’t catch, then turned his back to her, dragging a hand down his face.

“I just…don’t like the idea of you wandering around those woods on your own. It’s not a damn playground out there.”

Cassie blinked. “You let the boys play out there all the time.”

He turned on her, eyes narrowed. “That’s different.”

“How?” she asked, more sharply than she intended.

He didn’t answer. Instead, his mouth pressed into a thin line, his arms folding across his chest as if he could physically hold back whatever he was feeling. She could see it in his posture. He wanted to say something else, but wouldn’t let himself.

The silence stretched between them.

Cassie swallowed. “I didn’t mean to…this wasn’t about avoiding you. Or the boys. I just…I needed a night for myself. That’s all.’

“I didn’t ask for an explanation,” he said quietly.

That stung more than she thought it would.

“Right,” she said, her tone clipped. “Of course. Well. I should go start breakfast.”

She moved past him before he could say anything else, heart hammering, pulse loud in her ears. The tension between them crackled like an electric wire, and if she didn’t put space between them, she was going to explode.

God. What was it about him? Intense and brooding and angry one moment, and then charming and friendly the next? And that was when he wasn’t pressing her up against the wall and nearly kissing her. It was starting to give her whiplash.

Downstairs, the kitchen was bathed in soft morning light. Cassie threw herself into preparing breakfast for the boys. Pan on the stove, eggs cracked, pancake batter mixed and poured. Anything to distract her hands from shaking.

Why did it matter so much what he thought about her going hiking, anyway?

While her stubborn side was still fuming that he dared question her ability to look after herself in the woods, another part of her struggled to understand where such vehemence even came from.

It surely wasn’t because he cared, right? Because he truly had no right to.

Cracking an egg with slightly more violence than was necessary, she decided that she was, in fact, angry with him.

She shook her head.

The boys would be down soon, full of questions and hungry grins, and she couldn’t let them see her like this, moody and unsure and wanting.

She forced herself to hum under her breath as she sliced strawberries, the bright red juice staining her fingertips.