Laina
Waking up with Keane’s arms wrapped around me after having five mind-blowing orgasms and being claimed as his fated mate was the best thing ever. I wasn’t sure if it was the three-hour nap that had left me feeling so refreshed, or if it was a post-sex thing that I was going to experience on a regular basis from now on. Either way, I was happier than I ever remembered being, and it was all because of the gorgeous hunk of man next to me.
Twisting in his embrace, I smiled at him and realized he was already awake. “Hey, big guy. How long have you been waiting for me to wake up?”
“About an hour.”
“That’s a long time.” I had expected him to say five or ten minutes. “You didn’t have to stay in bed with me.”
He brushed a kiss against my temple. “It wasn’t a hardship, baby. I can’t think of a single thing I could’ve been doing that I would have enjoyed more.”
“I thought you said you weren’t good with pretty words,” I sighed as my heart melted over how sweet he could be.
He shrugged. “All I said was the truth.”
“And that makes it even prettier.” I rubbed my cheek against his chest. “Because I know you meant them.”
“Words are about the only pretty thing I can give you.” His gaze swept the room, and his lips pressed together in a flat line.
“What do you mean?”
“We can add onto the cabin. Put a tub in. Make whatever changes you’d like,” he offered, tightening his hold as though he thought I was going to try to get away from him. “I want you to be comfortable here.”
“Your cabin is already awesome,” I assured him, cuddling closer. “As long as I’m with you, I don’t care where we are.”
“I’m good with roughing it, so I never really worried about the amenities,” he explained. “But now that you’re here, the place could use some sprucing up.”
“Trust me, this cabin is eleventy billion times better than the tent I slept in last night.” I shuddered.
“I meant to ask earlier, but I got distracted by the overwhelming need to make you mine.” Cupping the back of my skull, he tilted my head back until we stared into each other’s eyes. “How’d you end up camping in the first place? I don’t think you’ve had a single good thing to say about the experience.”
“Yeah, because it was awful.” I sighed and shook my head. “I had no clue what to expect. Maybe if I had, I wouldn’t have jumped on the chance to make some friends at work. When I started working at the diner, I thought for sure I’d stop feeling like an outsider soon. But six months later, I still wasn’t getting invited to anything. Until this weekend.”
“My poor, sweet baby. I hate the thought of you being so lonely.” He brushed a kiss against my forehead. “At least you never have to worry about that again now that you’ve got me and our pack.”
I pressed my cheek against his chest so he wouldn’t see the tears that filled my eyes. “I was always kind of a loner in high school. I was hoping that the feeling of being the odd girl out would change after I graduated and moved out of my parents’ house. It just got worse, though, because I didn’t even have them to talk to since they were so mad that I wasn’t going to college or getting married. Even if Sally hadn’t filled my head with stories about how awesome camping was, I probably still would’ve said yes anyway.”
His palm stroked up and down my spine in a soothing gesture. “But camping wasn’t everything she said it would be?”
“The tent was smaller than I expected. It turned out that Sally didn't invite me because she was trying to be nice, and the bug repellent bracelet Bess gave me didn’t do anything. I’m surprised you were able to catch my scent at all since I had to cover myself with yucky bug spray. I swear, the only thing that went right with the camping trip was the food.”
His brows climbed as I ranted. “Shit, I should’ve thought to ask sooner. When did you last see your co-workers? They’re probably out of their minds with worry over you.”
“I highly doubt that.” I snorted. “I ran off because I overheard them talking about me, and Sally made it clear her life would be a whole lot easier if something happened to me while we were out there.”
“She wanted you to get lost in the woods so you couldn’t go back with them?” I nodded. “I’m gonna kill her.”
I knew I couldn’t keep him pinned to the mattress, but I still rolled on top of him and pressed my hands against his chest. “You can’t go around killing anyone who doesn’t like me.”
He glared up at me. “Oh yeah? Watch me.”
I needed to figure out a way to defuse this situation before he really did go hunting in the woods for her, but only one idea came to mind. I hated to give my co-worker any credit for what had happened, but I forced the words out anyway. “When you think about it, we both owe Sally. Big time.”
His brows drew together. “How do you figure that?”
“If she hadn’t been so jealous, I never would’ve run from her. And if I hadn’t done that, we wouldn’t have found each other.”
His eyes narrowed. “I think you skipped a part of the story. Why was she jealous?”