Page 5 of Whisper Woods (Legends of the Whisper Woods #3)

Seff

Corbin? Cornelius? Cassian? Why can’t I remember his name?

The man is gorgeous, with a too-large nose that fits his face kinda perfectly, a genuine smile and floppy brown hair that keeps falling in his eyes, making him flick it out with a toss of his head in a way that is catching the light just perfectly.

And he’s stacked. Like, seriously, I’d seen plenty of evidence in his photos on Hook’d. Not to mention the things he’d sent in our DM’s before we met up for coffee here at Sugar Melons.

But despite the more than willing vibes this guy is throwing my way, and the way that he keeps finding more and more inventive ways to touch me, I’m just not feeling it.

For the Gods sake, I can’t even remember his name. And now I’ve over-thought it so hard I can barely remember his username and I can’t stop obsessing over what his name is. Is it Chris ?

Fuck, he’s looking at me again. I’m being weird, I know it. I’ve missed whatever it is he’s said, and there is a definite look of expectation on his face. Maybe if I can find a way to look at my phone, I can see what his name is and stop thinking about it so I can get my shit into gear.

Whatshisname’s face slowly changes, his brows puckering in a frown. “You’re not into this are you?” His lips purse as he chews on the inside of his cheek.

Blowing out a harsh breath I lean back hard in the way too-small wooden chair. It creaks perilously as I test its structural integrity under my weight, but I ignore it, instead lifting my navy cap to jam my hand through my hair.

I settle the cap back on my head and lean forward, picking up my iced coffee to swirl in my hands to keep them busy, to keep them from floundering any more. My leg bounces under the table, making the drinks—and the table next to us—jump.

“I’m sorry…” There is a very obvious pause when I let the words just hang there. It’s my last ditch effort to shock my brain into remembering. Obviously, it doesn’t work. I can see the flicker of hurt in his eyes at my rejection. “It’s really not you. I just… I’m not myself lately. I’m sorry.”

“Right. Yes.” There is a loud screech of wood scraping against wood as he jerks his chair back sharply. His lips twist as he stands, patting himself down before stepping back from the seat. “Well I think we’re done here then, don’t you agree?”

As he talks, his words creep up in pitch, the napkins on the table fluttering with his emotions, drawing the attention of those around us. I may not remember his name, but I do remember the fae has a pretty unique gift of being able to read a beings aura to a highly complex level. And that’s on top of the usual fae-tuition. He would be fully aware of my preoccupation. How brutal.

I can feel the heat of my blush burning my cheeks. Nodding, I hold eye contact—even while he blinks back tears that make me feel like a giant asshole. Man, even Wolf feels bad for him and Wolf has had less than zero interest in this guy since I sat down.

“You’re right. I’m sorry.” We have the full attention of everyone in the coffee shop now. Gods, even the humans can hear us. How embarrassing.

He flips his hair one last time, with a deep breath in through his nose, his knuckles white where he has a death grip on the back of his chair. The heel of his shoe squeaks as he turns, but he manages to whip back around just in time to catch my wince at the sound.

His eyes are ice as he looks me up and down one last time, leaning forward ever so slightly over me, which is impressive considering sitting down I’m as tall as he is standing.

“And my name is Alex.”

Different heat rushes over me like waves with every ground out syllable that spits from his lips like a curse as white hot embarrassment makes my cheeks burn with shame. With one final flourish, he spins and leaves, stalking his way through the cafe, that disarmingly handsome nose high in the air.

It then takes a beat or two for everyone to quit their gawking and I wait patiently for them to go back about their business, like my skin isn’t absolutely on fire. When the conversations around me pick back up, it’s almost cinematic in its timing. All it is missing is the record player resuming sound from the movies.

I rub a hand over my face, trying to massage some of the blood out of my cheeks. Gods, out of all the dates so far, this one is definitely one for the record books. I don’t even know why I’m putting myself through this.

It’d been a mistake to tell Mum and my aunts at family brunch that I’ve been dating. And my friends at the bonfire later that night. No idea why I thought opening my big mouth about it would be a good thing.

They are all so excited for me.

I haven’t been out to the Woods in a week. Which, since we got back from the cottage, is almost a record for me. The restlessness is digging in deep, though. It’s growing. Evolving. I can’t blame it all on everything that happened in the Woods.

It feels like something is missing. From my life, from my existence. Even Wolf is restless, wanting to escape into the Woods to hunt for ghosts. Or mysterious men who fulfill your every unspeakable desire and then disappear into the ether without a fucking trace .

Scrubbing a hand over my face, I remind myself that we’re not doing that. I have enough going on without pining over him. There is nothing but misery on that path, which is not my bag at all.

I just want more… something. I just don’t know what that something is.

It’s an itch I can’t seem to scratch. It’s infecting every part of my life. Work, the pack… all of it. I don’t know what to do about it.

“Well, that was brutal. Like, it physically hurt to watch. When you said that you were going to start dating, I never knew you were going to be so awful at it. Like, look at you , how is that even possible?” I groan loudly, turning it into a playful whimper as my head hits the table.

Seldon, another old acquaintance turned new friend in the aftermath of everything drops delicately into the now vacant seat. There is a ruffle of clothing as he settles in, crossing his legs and leaning forward on his elbow on the table expectantly, his chin resting on his hand.

His eyes watch me slyly as I sit up again, my leg bouncing under the table. Bright yellow eyes, pupils slightly larger than normal due to his fox shifter status, watch me intently as he slowly turns my date’s abandoned coffee cup.

There it is, scrawled in black permanent marker in the server's large messy writing. Alex .

It was right there if only I hadn’t been too caught up in my own shit to notice. I cringe back into my seat, bringing my hands up to cup the back of my head into my elbows.

“Gods, this is fucked.” My arms muffle my words.

Seldon huffs sympathetically, his foot kicking my calf gently under the table.

“What’s going on big guy, why are you pushing this so hard?”

I drop my arms from my face and fidget with my coffee, the chunks of ice having melted it into a watery, unappealing mess.

“I don’t know man. I just feel… it’s time you know? Time to stop fucking around or something.”

“Is this because of Caelan? Are you still hung up on him?”

My eyes narrow at him of their own volition, his words cutting too close to my own recent thoughts.

“No.” My voice is firm, because it’s the truth. “I’m not still hung up on him, it’s been like, forever. I guess seeing him with Tor… part of me always thought maybe Caelan and I would find our way back together. But it’s more…”

I can’t find the words for myself, so I don’t even know how to explain it to Seldon.

“You want that for yourself? Not him, but what he has?”

Needing to do something with the energy building up in me, I take a sip of my drink, instantly regretting it.

“Yes! That. Kind of.” Pushing the drink to the other side of the small table out of reach, I fidget with a sugar packet on the table instead. Seldon waits patiently, sipping at his drink. “Do you ever feel trapped? Like you can see your whole life laid out in front of you forever and it feels like you can’t breathe?”

Fuck. Really didn’t mean to just drop that one on him. Seldon obviously didn’t expect it either, his hand holding his drink freezes halfway between his lips and the table. Needing to expel the energy brewing inside of me, I drum out a quick beat on the table and roll my shoulders. It’s nowhere near enough.

“Seff, I went from being a timid dork in ugly sweaters, to the fabulous being you see in front of you.” Seldon’s head tips to the side while he studies me. “I understand the need for a bit of a change in how you do things. But, real talk, how is a mate going to change that? Isn’t that just following the path they set out for you?”

Out of all my friends, Seldon is probably the most understanding of wolf shifter dynamics. Foxes have different things going on, but it’s similar enough that he understands the expectations. Duty. Family. Pack. It’s practically branded behind your eyes at birth.

“Ugh, you’re right. Maybe I just need to leave it. Stop trying to date, stop sleeping around… just be on my own or something.” Across from me Seldon gasps dramatically, cupping his hand to his ear.

“Did you hear that?'' There is laughter in his voice, and I frown at him questioningly. I didn’t hear anything. But then he clutches his chest dramatically, his voice breathless with contained laughter. “It’s the sound of a thousand gay men's hearts breaking. Seff off the market for good!” He collapses into a fit of giggles at his own joke and I throw the now mutilated sugar packet at him. It bounces off his vibrant red hair onto the floor.

“You’re a dick. This is serious.” The severity of my admonishment is seriously diminished by my own smothered laughter.

“Yes Seff, your dick getting a break from having randoms salivating over it every ten minutes certainly is serious.”

I give him a look, letting the mask slip for just a moment. He sobers, but only a bit and pats my hand on the table.

“Sorry Seff. I was only teasing.”

I smile tightly to let him know there are no hard feelings.

“Maybe a break would be a good thing. You’ve been off lately. Not your usual,” he waves his hand around at me, “you.”

Is it bad that him noticing soothes something inside me? To be seen?

He laughs again, like a thought has just occurred to him. Seldon’s laugh is as loud and dramatic as the rest of him. On anyone else it would seem fake or an act, but it’s just who he is. A pang of something hits me, that we had never, ever been attracted to each other, despite both being hot as fuck. I mean, it’s good because he is an awesome friend and I’d hate to screw that shit up. But it would be convenient.

“Or maybe you’ll find the love of your life, your little wolf mate on the dance floor of Slash tonight.”

I smile again, a real smile this time, scratching absently at my stomach through my tee shirt. Slash isn’t really the place for true love. Hot and dirty blow jobs in the toilets sure. But not true love.

“Yeah, sure Selly. And then maybe I’ll be elected Queen of Loqueaur City and unite the Secret Realms.”

Seldon stands, and in a move reminiscent of Alex, pats himself down to check he has everything.

“Well, you never know. Stranger things have happened.”

I snort, because tell me about it right? Things have been crazy lately. I stand too, gathering my things from the table and tidying the mess I’ve made so the workers don't have to clean up after us.

Seldon wraps his arm around my shoulders, only having to reach up a little bit with his height. “And anyway, I’ve been torturing Roan all week with what I’m dressing Theo up in tonight. I purposely started dropping hints about nipple pasties. Man’s going out of his mind. Tonight’s going to be amazing.”

Thank the Gods Theo and Roan seem to be getting their shit together. Especially after the bonfire at Caelan and Tor’s last week where they had to come clean after I dropped them in it.

Gods, I’m looking forward to going out with my friends tonight. And dancing. But after the absolute disaster of an attempt at a date today and this awful feeling sitting in my solar plexus and my fresh new plan of flying solo for a while, the idea of being in the middle of a meat market like Slash doesn’t exactly fill me with the warm fuzzies.

Either way, I’m not going to bail on my friends, especially not because of my own crap, so I wrap my arm around Seldon, and let him lead me through the tables to the door.

“Yeah, you’re right.” I sound determined, because I am. I’m gonna forget all this shit and just have fun with my bros, and that’s final. “It’s going to be amazing.

***

Yes! This is it. The freedom. The vibe.

The chastity .

Shit.

Walking into Slash is almost enough to make me forget my new vows of abstinence. But I’m determined. Especially because the guys have given me shit for it. And for the absolute clusterfuck of a date earlier today with Alex.

Because of course now I remember his name—how could I not after Seldon’s dramatic play-by-play of the whole thing when he was doing Theo’s make up earlier?

Still, I’ll take all their friendly teasing if it means being here, with them. Nothing but freedom, fun, and maybe some flirting.

Completely by chance I happen to notice a thickly built guy, with lots of delicious, furry chest hair peeking out of his shirt and a big soft belly, giving me the once over by the front bar as we enter.

Surely flirting’s not a problem, right? I give the guy a subtle up-nod and return his lingering stare as I throw an arm around Seldon and Theo, Roan firmly on his other side, directing them to a group of chairs on the balcony overlooking the dance pit.

On our way I watch the guy in one of the mirrored pillars, the way he greedily eyes my ass like a lion eyeing a juicy steak. He catches me spying on him and locks his eyes onto mine, licking his lower lip.

Shit. Maybe Mum was right about “that kid at the candy bar” thing. We haven’t even gotten our drinks and already I’m toeing the line of my promise.

“Who wants a drink?” Seldon asks as we claim our seats. “That guy's buying.” He nods his head in a different direction to the buff bear I’d spotted, to a group at the other end of the bar. We rattle off our orders and watch him prance off to work his magic.

“So, you’re really here and not going to hook up?” Theo is half in Roan’s lap, their hands finding their way under each other's clothes, almost unconsciously. His upturned nose is scrunched in disbelief as he stares pointedly over my shoulder.

I suck at my teeth, lifting my cap to run a hand through my hair. “I mean, yeah, that’s the plan.”

Gold-flecked eyes narrow at me, and I can feel the heat of my blush flushing my skin. Theo really needs to stop hanging out with Edith and Mauvy. They are teaching him their ways.

“I don’t believe it.”

I chuckle, rolling my eyes and scratching my shoulder. “You make it sound like I’m constantly hooking up. I’m not that bad.”

Theo only cocks his head, eyebrow raised, his “really” is unspoken.

Roan at least takes pity on me, smacking Theo’s thigh playfully. “Give it a rest, you brat. Seff, tell us how work’s going.”

And so we dive into the topic change and I explain a little about what’s been happening, like the drama between the crews and me butting heads with Dad over him encroaching on my jobs to “help.” I try to remember to add in a few of the good things too. Though I leave out the story about the guy that offered to pay with a blow job.

It’s not like I accepted the offer or anything. That’s a line I’ve never crossed and I’m not about to start. Even I know better than that.

Eventually Seldon comes back with a tray of neon coloured drinks, all way too sweet and deadly potent. He takes a seat on the stool between the two couches we’ve occupied, placing the drinks on the low table between us.

“Drink up, then,” he announces, waving his hand at the tray, picking one for himself. We collect drinks and just as I’m leaning forward, Seldon swings himself about to face me. “I saw Alex by the bar.”

I freeze, my drink halfway to my lips, the hyper awareness slamming into my body. My eyes flare back at Seldon who is smiling at me over his vivid green cocktail. His leg, one crossed over the other, bounces with delight. With absolutely no finesse, grace, or subtlety I slide down on the couch, ducking my head as if that can hide my giant nearly seven-foot frame. I desperately want to look around and check but I don’t want to draw any more attention to myself.

Seldon is snorting with laughter anyway. “I am KIDDING. Gods, your face! I thought you were a great big wolfy predator!”

Theo and Roan join the laughter, so I pull a face at the lot of them, flipping them off as I drink the sugary and extremely potent drink down in one go. Wiping my mouth with the back of my hand, I straighten myself, rolling my shoulders and trying to pretend I have at least some dignity left.

“Haha, Gods. Could you imagine?” I shudder and laugh with the guys. That would be an actual nightmare. Seldon kicks my leg with his heeled boot, the devilish look not having left his eye.

“Seriously, though, I did see that badger shifter you hooked up with a few weeks ago. He noticed you’re here and seemed very pleased about it, too. And Muscle Bro over there asked about you, too.” He stops swirling his drink to lick the straw suggestively, “All this attention on you, and you’re not even interested. I feel rather put out, you know.”

That he stops his dramatic pouting to throw a seductive smile and wink at someone walking past which kind of ruins its effect.

“Yeah, Selly, you look devastated. Real blow to the ego.”

He takes objection to my mocking tone, if the way he playfully kicks out when I pat his boot is any indication.

“Gods, knock it off you two.” Roan groans.

His hand slides back under Theo’s crop top to stroke the skin there. Right on cue, Seldon and I roll our eyes at each other with matching snickers.

“Sure thing, Daddy.”

Under the flashing lights of the club, Roan turns a fiery red at Seldon’s dig.

“No! Absolutely not. Nope!” He can’t seem to get the words out quick enough, visibly recoiling at the label.

“Naw, come on boss, it’s fine when Theo says it!” Heat from the alcohol making its way through me makes my laugh come out a little louder than it should, earning me a glare of my own from Roan.

Showing that he is still the only genius among us, Theo jumps to his feet, grabbing Seldon’s hand. “Yeah, no. We’re not doing this now. Let’s go dance.”

Despite Seldon’s laughing protest, he still lets Theo haul him off into the crowd.

Roan wipes a big hand over his face. “Gods, remember when he was all quiet and timid? I miss those days.”

“Yeah, I guess we all change, don’t we?” It comes out a lot more melancholy than I meant, earning me a far too discerning look from Roan.

But he gets distracted by the sight of Theo and Seldon grinding up against each other on the dance floor. They look good together. So similar yet entirely different, they compliment each other. We watch them for a few songs; the tension rolling off Roan like waves of indecision and competing emotions. He stinks of it.

When a lithe fae, tall and dark-skinned, with buzzed hair dyed a florescent yellow slides his way in between them, positioning himself so his nipples are basically rubbing Theo in the face, Roan looks like he’s going to flip the table between us and charge on to the dance floor in a rampage. To save us from getting kicked out, I lean forward, resting my elbows on my knees and whack his leg to get his attention. I have to do it three times for him to break his focus.

“How’s Mauvy?”

Roan finally looks my way again, his face lighting up in a different way to talk about his best friend. “Yeah, she’s alright. Feel like a right dick with how much I’ve been leaving her with the tavern. Though,” he pauses, poking at the ice in his drink with the cocktail stick, “I’m also slightly concerned that she’s got used to running the place without me and is gonna stage a coup.”

“You know she’d never take you out.” I reassure him, our attention again diverted to the guys on the dance floor, dipping and shaking their asses like they are getting paid for it. “She’d have to do the book work. Dealing with all of that with half the beings there trying to pay in trade? She’d rather see the place burn.”

“Strangely enough, that is not the reassurance you think it is.” He smirks, still nursing his cocktail. But then he looks at me, his dark eyes flitting over my face. “You okay? Really?”

I blink a couple of times, trying to think of what to say. Because I’m fine. I mean, okay, I seem to be going through a thing, and my life feels like I’m hitting a weird crossroads. But it’ll pass. Hopefully.

Just before it gets too long to respond without it being awkward, I bob my head, maybe too enthusiastically “Yeah, man. I’m fine. Just been busy at work. Tired.”

Not exactly a lie. Work has been busy, plus the extra hours helping at the house behind the tavern Theo is helping to renovate. I even managed to find time to get to Matty’s to paint the nursery. Sure I got wrangled into putting together the furniture too. But it’s fine. Even if I had to miss my visit to Nanna B to do it.

Roan’s eyes narrow, like he doesn’t really believe me, but then he nods, leaning back on his couch, throwing his arm along the back of it and finishing his drink in one swallow. He grimaces at the glass in regret once it’s gone.

“That is putrid.” He shakes his head and looks up at me again, his “friendly barkeep” face firmly in place. “Just with everything with Theo… I don’t wanna miss things again. If you need to talk, we’re here you know. We all went through something big. It’s cool if you need to talk.”

After being rescued from the ancient fae Marieth, Theo had struggled big time. We’d made a mistake in leaving him alone when we returned and he withdrew into himself. Hard. It was scary.

“I know, man. Thanks. I’m fine. Like, I get nightmares and stuff. Don’t particularly like when things explode at work or whatever.” There had been an incident on a site, soon after we’d returned, when someone had dropped a pane of glass behind me. I’d half shifted in a panic. It had been more than a little hard to explain. “But it’s not… I don’t know. It doesn’t even feel real.”

Roan swallows hard, scratching at his beard.

“Yeah, man. I get it. Just… keep us in the loop, yeah? Do your folks know wh at happened?”

“They heard. They kind of heard some stuff. I cleared up a few rumours, like we’d faced down a horde of ghost giants or something ridiculous. And that one of us was possessed. Honestly, the stories out there are weird and dumb as shit. But I gave them a bare bones account. They’re kinda pissed that we went into that alone.”

Roan snorts, nodding his head. “Yeah, it was dumb as fuck. I can’t believe Caelan and Tor were gonna do it on their own.”

I smile sadly now, and so does Roan, both of us lost in the memory of that day. This conversation is way too heavy to have over the music of a nightclub, so I nod in the direction of the dance floor.

“He know you can dance?”

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen it, but Roan has moves. Out on the dance floor, Theo and Seldon are winding each other up further and further, their dancing having gotten even more seductive and outlandish. Somehow they’ve managed to get new drinks, even though I know for a fact they haven’t made their way to one of the bars. They haven’t left the dance floor.

Roan winks at me, shaking his head with a grin. “No, no he does not.”

“Think we should go show them a thing or two?” Roan stands—too eager to get his hands on Theo again—and almost knocks over the table. He quickly pats himself down to make sure he’s got everything then smiles in the direction of the dance floor.

“Oh, it’s on.”

***

We’ve been dancing for hours, I’m sweaty and sticky and, Gods, I feel good. Okay, I’ve had to use the guys as a physical shield a couple of times because some people just didn’t get the hint, but the music's pumping, I’ve had just enough drinks to get the perfect buzz and tonight has just been good.

Too hot to tolerate it anymore, I whip my singlet off, to the enthusiastic approval of the crowd around me, and tuck it into my back pocket. There are hands on me, a hard body behind me. I have no idea who it is, and I don’t care to look, too lost in the thumping beat of the music, lost in the moment.

There is something about this time of night in a club, especially here where there are so many beings, when everyone gets a little feral and their restraint slips. I can feel the tendrils of magic floating through the air, whispering against my skin, dragging me higher.

My blood is pulsing, throbbing, I can feel the skitter of heat from the guy behind me as his hands drag over my bare chest, down to toy with the low slung waistband of my jeans. His hair tickles when he leans in to kiss my neck. Instinctively I drop my head back on to his shoulder as he nips at the tendons there.

From between my half-closed lids, I spy Theo smirking at me in Roan’s arms, while Seldon has disappeared somewhere else. I can hear Theo’s sass, just from his raised eyebrow, so I flip him off and continue to grind my ass into Mr. Anonymous behind me.

It feels amazing.

Until… it doesn’t.

After a song, the guy disappears when he realises I have no intentions of turning around or taking it any further. He’s soon replaced by another guy, or three, until eventually I make my way back with Theo and Roan to escape the wandering hands. Together Roan and I plaster Theo between us—well, I keep a slightly respectful distance so as not to piss Roan off. But as I’m dancing, I become aware of something. Something big.

It begins with a tickle at the base of my neck. An awareness of something that has Wolf, who’s been happy and chill until now, on high alert.

Roan and Theo don’t seem to notice it, though. They are entirely in their own world, Theo’s arms thrown up to wrap around Roan’s neck, Roan’s hands firmly plastered to Theo’s ass.

I try to brush off the weird sensation. After all, being in a crowded room, full of beings, some with incredible powers, and others that are also predator types, it can be nearly impossible to distinguish the things your senses pick up, so it’s not unusual to get the wiggins sometimes.

But it doesn’t go away.

The awareness only intensifies. It feels thrilling and familiar, but completely out of place here . I’ve felt it before. In the Woods.

Someone is watching us, and now Wolf is very, very aware of it.

Roan’s eyes open just enough to frown at me, “You alright?” he mouths over the head of Theo who is dancing dreamily now, eyes shut and completely oblivious. Roan’s eyes flick over me, lingering over my shoulders, drawing my attention to how tense I am.

Ready to run.

The only thing is that I don’t know whether it’s to hunt or to hide. Anticipation curls through me. It couldn’t be . Not here. The reality check doesn’t stop the heavy weight of lust flooding my limbs.

Cold sweat breaks out all over me, pins and needles tingling my exposed back. My hands, which had been waving in the air like I just didn’t care, thank you very much, are flexing at my side, primed and ready for whoever is watching me. Gods, if I’m wrong, I am not liable for my actions.

When the smell hits me, sweet, smokey and entirely intoxicating I want to howl to the fucking moon. Filling my lungs, it blurs my mind, the noise of the dance music fading to nothing but a fuzzy tickle in the back of my head.

I want to chase that smell. I want to roll in it. Bask in it. Rub it into my pores and mark myself with it.

The need is so great, so fierce, it sends a quiver through me, making Wolf whimper. The poor bastard is torn. Hunt or be hunted? He just wants to run, the change shimmering just at the edges of my control.

Theo’s hands are like dry ice on my arm.

I drop my head to try and take in his worried face, but I can’t seem to focus on his face. The usually sharp edges of his cheekbones, the bright flecks of gold in his brown eyes are nothing but a hazy outline.

The smell is choking me, invading my senses.

I realise they are talking to me. We’ve stopped moving. We’re still in the swaying sea of dancers, getting bumped and shoved. I can’t pull my focus enough to hear what they are shouting. Is that Seldon? Is he here too? I think I can recognise the shimmery silver chains of his “top” against his white skin under the lights.

Like a vacuum my instincts pull me, blacking out everything else in the room. The absence of everything rushes past me with a loud whoosh.

There.

The entirety of my world focuses on him .

Rafe.

Like a glowing fucking beacon, a lighthouse in the middle of the dark, he is all I can see.

He looks casual, standing there on the balcony, where we had begun our night, one foot propped on a stool, elbows folded on his knee like he is considering me. But from even this far I can see the tension in his stance, the way his body is primed and ready.

His gaze is scalding hot.

I can’t tell if he’s happy to see me. He looks almost as stunned as I feel. It’s been a little more than a year since I last ran into him in the Whisper Woods. And while I’ve always sworn I wasn’t looking for him, I’ve always hoped.

And now he’s here. In fucking Slash of all places.

Like a man dying of thirst I drink him in, the cut of his shirt, the way it clings to his shoulders, the hints of his jewellery under the flashing lights. The feral glint in his eye and the wry twist of his lips. Is he happy to see me? Is he just as shocked as I am? Or is he disappointed? Angry even, that I’m here.

I can’t read anything from his hard stare.

My heart thuds hard in my chest, the pounding of my blood in my ears drowning out the music. The ground feels unsteady under my feet when I smile at him, or try to at least, and he just… cocks his head.

His hand flexes on his knee. A simple stretch and clench.

His eyes trail over me, slow, lingering. I can feel every microsecond of his perusal. It flushes my skin, sending my blood flooding down to my cock. It hardens, painfully so, under his watch.

He licks his lips, his eyes returning to my face and my gut bottoms out.

I cannot believe he is her e. Wolf whines with the need to do something. In the dimmest, lizard brain recesses of my mind I can feel my friends pulling at my arms. Yelling something.

“I’m fine guys. I just gotta…” I bat their hands from my arms like flies, yelling the words over my shoulder. I can’t take my eyes off Rafe, terrified that if I do, he’ll disappear. Gods, I’m not even sure he is real . Maybe someone’s drugged me and I’m just hallucinating on the dance floor. That would certainly explain the insane intensity of this.

Can you watch someone loudly? Because it feels like he’s screaming at me.

Once I’m free from my friends, I hope they’ll understand. I’m sure they will. I’ll explain. Later.

Probably.

My foot raises, I take a step. No direction, no plan.

As I move, so does Rafe. Gracefully, he unfolds, no longer playing at being casual.

Another step is mirrored on the balcony.

Am I the hunter? Am I the prey?

Jokes—I’m both.

I always am.

Adrenaline floods my system, fucking my fight or flight system. Wolf howls with rage inside me to move .

And then I’m off, moving through the bodies, completely blind. My instincts evaporated in the chaotic confusion of the club. I ignore the shouts of displeasure as I shove my way past the crowd on the dance floor. Stumbling out of the crush, my chest heaving with laboured breath, I catch myself, eyes darting around the room trying to find him.

But he’s gone, maybe he’s left? Did I just make a total ass of myself? Was he even here? I shake my head, the fog finally clearing. A laugh punches from me, and I breathe deep, enjoying the sharp, vivid clarity as it washes over me.

Along with a smell. Sweet. Smokey. Wild.

Yes .

A hand lands on my shoulder, the simple touch cracking open the entire universe as it guides me to turn.

And there he is. Right there, face turned up to mine, his mouth a grim line of a smile. I have to look down at him, not by much. But enough. As always, there is something about him that feels… bigger. In that moment our eyes dance over each other's faces, attempting to catalogue every feature.

It is overwhelming, the tidal wave that crashes over me. I’ve battled with too many feelings my whole life, but now I am drowning, a dam broken open, with Rafe the cause and the saviour. The life raft in the chaos he created.

The space between us, not even a hands width, seems electrified with… us.

My dick throbs in my jeans, and he responds. A sharp intake of breath, his eyes growing hooded. And fuck me, those eyes once again hypnotise me into surrender.

He licks that lower lip again, lush and full, framed by the light beard that dusts his jaw. The air is completely sucked from me, my mind blank except for Wolf's desperate howls.

Rafe blinks slowly up at me, finally letting me see his own uncertainty. Is he inhaling my scent? I can’t focus with his hand still on my shoulder. His thumb is drawing circles on the skin there. I didn’t know the shoulder was an erogenous zone, but the feel of his touch is shooting through my system like lightning bolts.

Time has stopped. Or at least it feels that way. The pulsating need to do something, anything, builds in my gut, fighting through the lust. It’s crazy that only moments ago the world was a foggy mess. Everything is now in such sharp, painful clarity, I wonder if anything will ever be soft again.