Page 15 of Rejected Wolf
Eric held his hands up, palms forward, in some kind of placating gesture. “Hey, no need to get defensive. I admit,I got a little worked up talking about shifters, but can you blame me? You’re fascinated too. Besides, I don’t think either of us were at our best that night. I seem to recall you’d needed help getting into a cab.”
I scowled at him. “My behavior isn’t what’s in question right now.”
He pulled a face, sighing. “Okay, fair enough. I just wanted to let you know that my offer still stands. I can help you find your wolf.”
“I don’t need your help. I found him myself,” I snapped without thinking.
Eric’s eyes lit up with a hungry fervor. “You did?”
I realized my mistake when he took a step closer, and I backed into a stand of camping gadgets and knocked a few fire-starter kits on the floor. “I-I mean…” I’d just wanted him to back off, to let him know that I had no use for him, but all it had done was fan the flames of his obsession.
“And?” he pressed, cornering me by leaning an arm across the aisle so there was no chance of easing past him. “Was he aggressive toward you? Protective?” Then he grabbed my shirt and pulled back my collar to expose my neck. “Has he bitten you?”
“B-bitten me?! Why would he—I mean, that’s ridiculous…” I sputtered, slapping his hand away, knocking a few headlamps from their hook in the process. But it wastoo late. The image had crept into my imagination and would live there rent-free until the day I died. My large, shy wolfman hovering over me, sinking not just his cock inside me but also his fangs into my neck, marking me as his forever, inside and out. Was there something wrong with me? I shouldn’t want that, I was a confident, independent omega all on my own, but… for some reason, the thought of being physically owned by him appealed on my most base level.
“Do you think you could find him again?” Eric asked, leaning in, and that strange chemically scent tickled at the back of my throat. “I could go with you.”
“Never,” I growled, bunching my fists at my sides. I wasn’t a naturally violent guy, but I’d never wanted to punch someone as much as I did in this moment. “I don’t know what your deal is, but you will never get your hands on him. He’s mine.”
Over the top of the shelves, I saw the woman at the checkout turning to see what the ruckus was. I tried to make eye contact, indicating that I needed some assistance, and I saw her pick up the phone, hopefully to call security.
Eric’s grin turned sly. “Hmm, I wonder… You seem to have quite an intense attachment to this wolf of yours. I would almost call it possessive.” His eyes seemed to darken. “Yes, I think it’s more likely thathewill findyou. Isn’t that right?”
The floor seemed to tilt, my stomach dropping right down to my toes. “No, you’re wrong. He doesn’t want anything to do with me.”
“Really?” He seemed skeptical.
As much as I wanted it to be true, that my wolfy-poo cared enough to come for me, it wasn’t just unlikely. It was impossible. “He seemed… scared of me, or maybe angry,” I admitted, swallowing hard. “It’s more likely I’ll never see him again.”
Eric examined me for another moment before he finally sighed. “You truly believe that.”
“I do. So you can just fuck off now and leave me alone.” But then I seemed to remember where we were. This wasn’t a chance meeting at a bar. We were in a totally different neighborhood in a very specific kind of store.
I narrowed my eyes at him. “What are you doing here, anyway?” He didn’t look like the type of guy you’d find in an outdoors store. He was wearing spotless tan Chinos and an impeccably ironed button-up and navy blazer. In fact, his skin was so smooth and pale that I doubted he spent much time outside at all. “Did you follow me here?” I gasped, putting two and two together.
He snorted, his eyes skittering away. “You’re being paranoid.”
“That’s not a no,” I snarled. Feeling brave, I took a big step forward until I bumped into him. He stood a good few inches taller than me, but what was he going to do? We were in public. It wasn’t like he could lay a single finger on me. “Don’t follow me. Don’t talk to me or even look at me. Leave me alone, leave my wolf alone, or I will call the cops.”
I waved at the salesman who’d reappeared from the backroom. He came jogging over, expecting commission on a sale. I almost felt bad for what I was about to do.
“Hey, Jerry,” I said, reading the name on his tag. “This is my good friend, Eric, and he’s in the market for a tent. Could you help him out?”
Jerry nodded eagerly. “Oh, yes! Eric, you’re in good hands.”
With Eric temporarily waylaid, I headed straight for the exit and made a quick getaway. I was scared to head straight home, because I didn’t want Eric to follow me. What if he had an accomplice outside the store, tracking me right now! I drove in circles for an hour just in case. I’d watched enough cop shows to be relatively confident that I could lose a tail.
When I finally risked heading home, it was already getting dark. I was totally wrung out after all the stress of the day. I was no closer to solving any of my problems than I had been this morning. I was completely alone and lonely. I didn’t buy any camping gear, so I couldn’t even go back out looking for my man. I still didn’t have a job or enough money for rent. And the most pressing issue of all, my fridge was empty, and I was currently starving.
I half expected Al to be lying in wait outside my door, but he was surprisingly absent. I wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth, so I counted my lucky stars and unlocked the door as quickly as I could. I stumbled into my apartment, running on empty. My stomach was officially digesting itself.
I had just decided to eat (or was it drink?) what was left in the ketchup bottle—I had officially hit an all-time low, don’t judge—but when I opened the fridge, I was surprised to see a jar of peanut butter, a little block of cheese, and a jug of milk. Huh. How on earth had I forgotten I had those? I also seemed to have a loaf of bread. Perfect!
After scarfing down a sandwich and a tall glass of milk, I flopped into bed. It was far too early to go to sleep, but I wanted to see my wolf so desperately, and I knew we would always be together in my dreams. And as I lay my head on my pillow, I could’ve sworn I smelled him.
I didn’t even care if I was going crazy anymore. If he was there, I would gladly leap headfirst into madness.
Chapter 9