“That was never your decision.”
“She wanted you to stay here,” my mother says. “You were made for so much greater.”
“I wanted to stay here,” I correct my mom. “And even if I didn’t, I would have taken Foxy with me. It’s not every day you find true love, Mom, but I did, and you tried to fuck that up.”
I turn around and leave, carrying the blanket that’s wrapped around me. I drop it at the end of the driveway and shift into my animal form. For a second, I think about leaving the blanket there, but I won’t be a total dick. I pick it up in my teeth and carry it back to the porch and drop it there.
I look back at my Mom. She’s still standing there in her PJ’s looking like she just lost something important, but the truth is, I realize, she made her decision long ago.
So I turn, and I head back to my house.
Felicity and I have some talking to do.
Chapter 5
Foxy
I try for a long time to stay awake after he leaves, but eventually, my exhaustion hits me and I pass out on his couch. My dreams are filled with strange creatures and horrifying monsters, but somehow, an extraordinary lion seems to save me over and over again in every single dream. There’s a part of me that hopes it’s some sort of premonition. When I wake up, though, I realize that I’m all alone, and there’s no lion.
Until there is.
The door to the cabin opens and he comes inside.
Naked.
He’s so fucking naked that I don’t really know what to do. I mean, I showed up unannounced at his place, told him I’d almost been murdered by my date, explained to him that his mother was the one behind our breakup, and then fell asleep on his couch. I’m not exactly setting a precedent as being someone who understands how to win over a guy.
“Hey,” he says, carefully closing the door behind him. He locks it and I realize that I didn’t even do that when he left. I probably should have gotten up and secured the door, but instead, I just sat on the couch until I passed out. Good thing it was him coming inside. Apparently, I’m not exactly good at playing it safe these days.
Shit.
“Hey,” I say. I sit primly on the couch and try not to stare at his damn penis. For fuck’s sake, it’s so not cool that he looks this good naked. I mean, I like the way I look, too, but he…
Well, Brendan has always known exactly how to get a girl’s blood pumping.
I don’t even think that he really has to try. I think that he just naturally looks really amazing and wonderful. Somehow, he manages to look like the kind of guy you want spanking you and kissing you at the same time. He’ll fuck you hard and then bake you cookies to eat after. He’s a sweetheart, but he’s fine, too.
“How are you feeling?” He asks me carefully, gently. He doesn’t seem to notice that he’s naked, or that I’m staring, which is good. I don’t want to feel even more embarrassed about my behavior and my lack of total decorum. The problem is that he really does look wonderful, and it’s been kind of awhile since I had sex. Like, a long while.
“I’ve had better days, but I’m happy you’re back.” I don’t tell him about the nightmares. This isn’t the time to tell him that I was dreaming about him. I don’t know if he’d like that or be upset, but it’s best to keep that to myself for now. I’m not exactly good at saying the right thing these days.
“I’m happy I’m back, too.” He looks at me carefully, and he licks his lips. The gesture is probably just because his lips are cry, but instantly, I start staring at them. Images from the past are flashing back into my brain.
Brendan on top of me.
Flash.
Brendan kissing my neck.
Flash.
Brendan licking carefully around each of my nipples.
Flash.
I try to push the images from my mind, and I shake my head physically to do so.
“Where did you go?”