Page 33 of Can’t Help Growling in Love (Harmony Glen #9)

“Either half or full wolf form, yes.” I let my blunted claws scratch gently over the skin of her breasts and am rewarded with another sharp inhale of her breath.

“It’s not always unpleasant, by the way.

I usually spend the time in my basement because I live so close to town, I don’t want to run into anyone on accident.

It’s sometimes hard to remember everything that happens overnight, and I don’t want any… incidents.”

Her hand lands on my thigh, and she gives me a squeeze. “I understand. You don’t have a pack to protect you.”

I incline my head to the side. “I’ve been invited to join the local pack’s runs. They’re not bad people, but it never felt right to run with them. I don’t know why.”

She flips to the front of the book, trailing her finger down the table of contents. “Where did I…oh yeah, see?” She opens the book to a page toward the end and taps the title. “I think you might be a lone wolf.”

“That tracks.” I kiss her ear, lingering to get another whiff of her scent. “Once I’m no longer so obsessed with touching you at all times, I promise I’ll read these. I can’t believe I never thought to look them up.”

June leans back against me. “Humans learn about human biology in school. It’s unfair that you couldn’t do that when you were a kid.”

My parents should have taught me all about it. But we weren’t exactly known for healthy communication. Everything my father taught me about werewolves was to do with our superior strength and killer instinct, and I learned those lessons well enough. All the rest was unimportant to him.

“And it’s great those subjects are now a part of public school curricula,” June continues. “Our kids will know all this growing up.”

Our kids .

She says it so casually, but my mind snags on those two words, replaying over and over.

I’ll make sure my children know everything they need to so they never feel like outsiders in a strange world. So they never have to wonder if their instincts are wrong or depraved.

After a moment, she freezes in my arms. “Oh, we don’t have to talk about this right now. I mean, it’s way too soon, right?” She peers at me, biting her lower lip. “But just in case you’re wondering, I do want kids someday. Is that a dealbreaker for you?”

I curl myself around her, closing my legs to trap her against me. “Wasn’t it clear from the way I reacted to your mentioning breeding earlier?”

Her breath hitches, and the scent of her arousal spreads through the room, fresh and addictive. “Yeah, but I thought… Some people just like the act. Like, lots of cum and coming inside their partner without protection. It’s not always about making babies.”

Taking her shoulders, I spin her halfway so I can look her in the eyes. “June, I want to have kids with you. If you told me you wanted to have your implant taken out tomorrow, I’d be a very happy wolf. Is that clear enough?”

I’ve never put these thoughts into words, but they’re the truest I’ve ever spoken. The image of June, pregnant with my child, flashes through my mind, and I can barely resist toppling her over and getting started on that straight away.

She gapes at me, her pink lips parted. Then she visibly collects herself. “Yeah. Crystal.” She drops her gaze to my chest, and her voice grows smaller as she asks, “Do you mind waiting a while? I want to just be with you. Learn about you and spend some time as a couple first.”

I nuzzle her cheek. “We can wait as long as you’d like. I’d never push you on this. But I wanted you to know, so you’re not wondering or trying to come up with ways to discuss it with me.”

“Great.” She melts against me and pulls the book she’d dropped closer once more. “Glad we cleared that up.”

She flips through the book, scanning the narrow lines of text. I make myself familiar with her body. I trace the length of her arms, unravel her bun and sift my fingers through her hair, and lick the tender spot on her neck that has her shivering.

“It says here that the full moon’s effect on mated wolves might be stronger than on single ones, but it doesn’t say anything about newly mated ones.

” She drops the book onto the pile at the foot of the bed, giving me a gorgeous view of her ass, picks another, and settles between my legs.

“Oh, here we go. Newly mated couples. Ha, there’s a list of common symptoms.”

I take June’s knees and spread them wider apart under the covers. “Yeah? Tell me.”

“Extreme possessiveness,” she reads, then leans her head back on my chest. “Hmm. Not sure you’re displaying this one. You didn’t bite Gabe’s face off when he shook my hand, so I think you’re doing pretty well.”

A surge of something hot and unpleasant shoots through my veins. “I do hate you saying another man’s name while you’re sitting naked on my lap.”

“Asher.” She turns to glare at me. “You have nothing to worry about.”

“No?” I brush her lips with mine, then give in and deepen the kiss, desperate for a taste of her.

She breaks away, panting lightly. “No. I like you and no one else.”

The jealous tension burns away just as quickly as it appeared. I bury my face in her hair and inhale deeply. “Fantastic.”

“Oh, see, there’s the mention of wanting to feed your mate,” she says, excitement ringing in her voice. “And it says that wolves will get increasingly agitated if they’re physically separated before they’ve exchanged bites.”

I scrunch my eyes tight to fight off the urge to sink my fangs into her neck right now. We haven’t decided on this yet, and I won’t push, I won’t, not until June brings it up.

She pauses, tapping the edge of the book with her finger. “Do you think this means that I’ll have to bite you as well? I don’t know if my teeth are sharp enough to pierce your skin, especially not if you’re in your half form.”

“Baby, if you want to bite me, we’ll figure out a way,” I tell her softly. “But you don’t have to. If you don’t feel the urge, it probably means you’re not meant to.”

“Do you?” she asks, her voice hitching on the words. “Feel the urge, I mean.”

“Yeah,” I confess roughly. “All the damn time. But I won’t. Not until you ask me to. I’d never do that to you.”

“I’ll let you know,” she promises. “I just have to think it through, okay?”

“Of course.” I close my eyes and inhale her sweet scent. “Take all the time you need.”

So we won’t be spending the full moon together. I’ve never completely lost myself during a moon run, but I won’t risk June’s safety. I have no idea what it’ll do to me now that I’ve found my mate, so I’ll be locking myself in the basement and enduring the agony that’s supposed to follow.