Page 58 of His White Moonlight (Dominant CEO Shifter Romance #1)

“She did what I couldn’t, what Mom was afraid to do, and what Dad would have had to do if Miranda hadn’t stepped up. None of us wanted to see you hurt, Wrenly, but Miranda was right. How she hurt you is better than what would have happened.”

My thoughts veered to what Grandma had told me about Bennett seeing me on TV and saying I would disappear forever if they didn’t bring me home.

“Maybe you’re right. Maybe the hell-school you sent me to saved me from something worse, too. I still hate you for sending me there, though,” I said before I could stop myself.

He flinched, and his mask slipped into place.

“That is a mistake I’ll regret for the rest of my life.”

I shrugged and looked down at my arm.

“I have a lot I’m regretting too.” Like coming home , I thought silently. “It’s not going to be fun trying to type with this.”

“You can take off as much time as you need.”

“From work, maybe, but I have my summer course I need to keep up with.”

“I’ll help you turn pages, type, anything you need.”

I glanced up at him and saw the yearning in his gaze. For what, though? To make up for the cut? To be with me? For my acceptance?

Rather than figuring out the answer, I realized just then that Bennett probably understood some of my suffering. At least, more than anyone else. He knew exactly what it felt like to be unwanted. Why did that make me hurt for him?

I looked away again, watching as the waitress grabbed our plates from the cook.

“I wish I could hear your thoughts,” Bennett said.

“It’s mostly a confused jumble that would land you in a padded room within four hours.”

He sighed and didn’t say anything until the waitress delivered our food and left.

“It’s frustrating when you deflect. I don’t know if you’re doing it because it’s a closed subject or if you're doing it to keep us from getting closer.”

“Closer implies we’re close,” I said, picking up my fork.

“We sleep together.”

“Not by choice. Eat your food, Bennett.”

I awkwardly forked a mix of eggs and hash browns into my mouth with my non-dominant hand and fought to keep my face straight. Years of eating posh food had either ruined me, or the cook was using a griddle that hadn’t been properly cleaned since the turn of the century.

Without looking up, I continued chewing and got my next bite ready as I waited for Bennett to take his first bite. It was comical. He froze for two seconds then reached for his napkin. I moved fast, reaching across the table to steal it from him.

“Seventeen stitches. Swallow it, Bennett.”

He did. Without chewing.

“I will have the exact same food waiting for you at home if you promise me we can leave without finishing this,” he said, his revulsion still on his face.

“No deal. There’s no reason to wake Sandy up in the middle of the night. We go home, and you make the food while I shower. And when I go back to work, I get absolute freedom during my lunch hour to do what I want without interference from you.”

“I agree to cooking while you shower, but not absolute lunch freedom. Not while you’re hurt. You don’t have to be with me, but you have to be with someone I trust to keep you safe, like Miranda, Mom, or Grandma.”

“How is Miranda first on your list when she cut me?”

“You know why.”

Because she’d done what everyone else would have hesitated to do. I sighed.

“Fine. Cook for me while I shower, and I’ll do what I want with my lunch hours with an approved escort for as long as I have stitches.”

“Deal.”

“Deal.” I laid my napkin over the food and stood.

Bennett tossed a one-hundred-dollar bill on the table and walked out behind me.

The numbness in my arm was starting to wear off by the time Bennett pulled into the garage. Even though I didn’t say or do anything, he knew I was hurting. I could tell by how frequently he glanced at me.

“Food, Bennett.”

He got out and came around to open the door for me.

“How fresh should the oil be for your hash browns? Is a week too fresh?” he asked.

I snorted and followed him into the kitchen.

“Just make them greasy and good.”

He stopped me when I would have left.

“Wait. Let me wrap your arm.”

He had it plastic-wrapped and taped off before he sent me on my way.

It took some time before I reemerged from my shower.

Bennett was sitting on my bed, holding a steaming plate of food. His gaze swept over me from head to toe, lingering on the towel I had pinned to my chest with my non-stitched arm.

“I can eat downstairs.”

“You could, but I know you’re tired. Did the stitches stay dry?”

“They did. Are you going to leave?”

“No.”

He was right about the tired part because I didn’t care enough to tell him to get out. Ignoring him, I walked into my closet and turned to close the door. A second later, I was pinned to the wall, his hands on my shoulders.

“This is new,” I said. “Guess the hands above the head thing is in a timeout until the stitches are removed.”

His pupils expanded. “I guess I’ll just need to find out another way to sweeten your scent.”

“Is that what you were doing?”

“Do you have any idea how desperate you make me when you respond like this? Calm. Slightly challenging. Unafraid. Kiss me, Wrenly.”

I snorted. “No, thank you. I’ll risk tearing stitches when I try to hit you.”

“You won’t need to hit me. Just one kiss like you promised.”

“When did I promise to kiss you?” I asked, more amused than annoyed.

“You said that you’d willingly kiss me with no timer, and you would initiate it if you weren’t maliciously hurt tonight.”

A laugh escaped me, and I lifted my arm.

He slowly shook his head. “That wasn’t malicious. Miranda was preventing you from being maliciously hurt. And you weren’t hurt before that.”

I lifted my hands to show the scrapes that the doctor hadn’t been too concerned about.

“Those don’t count. They were self-inflicted.”

“And I’m only unhurt otherwise because I ran and climbed fast.”

“A deal is a deal.” He leaned in closer. “Kiss me, Wrenly.”

I considered him and my options. If I refused, he’d never make a deal with me again.

We’d lose the trust we’d gained. But I also saw his current state.

Would he be content with just a kiss, or would his desperation only increase?

I trusted him not to take what I wasn’t willing to give, but I also knew he would try anything and everything to get me to say yes.

And my attraction to him and what he could do to my scent would push him to push me.

He was already a wolf on the edge. I didn’t want to tempt him more.

Or maybe I did.

“You’re right. A deal is a deal, and I won’t go back on my word. Would you consider delaying payment until my stitches are out so I don’t hurt myself if it evolves into more than a kiss?”

He made a choked sound and started to shake violently.

Seismic-level tremors.

I only had a half a second to think, “Oh shit,” before he pushed away and let out a strangled sound. His clothes ripped as he suddenly shifted from skin to fur.

Pivoting, I ran from the closet and slammed the door behind me. The solid thunk of his body hitting it was followed by his claws scrabbling for the knob as I bolted for my phone. Shaking hard, I speed dialed Grandma and locked myself in the bathroom.

She picked up with a serious, “What’s wrong?”

“Bennett shifted. I shut him in the closet.”

“Do you want me to come over or talk to you until he calms down?”

“Will he?” I could hear his clawing through the doors.

“He’ll have to if he wants to come out of the closet.”

Despite everything, I snorted.

“There’s my Wren,” she said softly. “Do you want to tell me what happened?”

“We made a bet that I lost. He wanted to collect on the kiss that I owe him, but I asked for an extension until the stitches are out.” I hesitated for a second. “I said it was in case the kiss turned into something more on purpose so he’d agree to wait.”

Grandma chuckled. The soft sound helped deescalate some of the fear running through me.

“I imagine it will be a while before he can use his hands. Do you want company?”

I looked down at myself, realizing my only covering was the plastic wrap.

“No, I don’t think so. Will he be all right with me once he’s out?”

“Yep. What you need to do is sit outside that door and tell him how much he scared you, and ask if he’s going to shift and risk your safety every time you try to get close to him.

That’ll set him on his heels for a good while.

The last thing he’ll want to do is risk your safety.

And he certainly doesn’t want you to be afraid of getting closer to him. ”

“If he hurts me, you have to promise to be his executioner on my behalf.”

“Without hesitation,” Grandma said. “I love you, my sweet little Wren, and that has nothing to do with who you might be to Bennett. Now go make him regret his frayed control.”

“I will. Thank you, Grandma. And I love you too.”

As soon as I hung up, I eased the bathroom door open, hoping that he wouldn’t hear me. Based on the continued scratching and growling, he didn’t. I streaked out of my room and into his. Then I raided his closet for a shirt that covered my ass.

Less exposed, I returned to my room. I didn’t approach my closet, though. I stayed right by my door.

“Bennett? Can you hear me?”

All sound from inside the closet stopped.

“You told me not to be afraid of you…that you’d never hurt me. But what just happened scared the hell out of me. And the way you’re clawing that door isn’t giving me any safe vibes. Are you going to shift and risk my safety every time I try to get close to you?”

A soft thud came from the door.

“I’m going to take my plate to the kitchen and eat there to give you some time to calm down. When you’re back to yourself and dressed, come find me. Okay?”

I heard a quiet chuff, which I took as a sign of agreement.

Watching the door, I crept around the bed for the plate of food he’d left there. Then I bolted.

Everything had happened so fast that the food was still warm when I sat down at the island. I ate a few bites, then removed the plastic wrap from my arm.

After I finished my food, I put the plate in the sink and debated what to do next. I was tired and just wanted to go to bed, but I wasn’t sure it would be a good idea to fall asleep before I knew Bennett’s state of mind.

I wandered out of the kitchen.

My phone buzzed with a text before I reached the bottom of the stairs, and my stomach dipped when I saw Bennett’s name.

Bennett: I left a pain reliever and a glass of water on your nightstand. If you’re willing, we can talk in the morning.