Page 28 of Mating Season
“Good.” Ranger motioned with his eyes to my nest behind me. “Can I come in?”
Cue the panic.
“Hang on a second.” I slipped inside, closing the door in his face. My heart thumped too hard in my chest. This place was a disaster.
I hadn’t swept it out enough. It looked so empty with the mattress on the floor. He was used topenthouse suites and Persian rugs. I had home-skinned furs and a plywood box.
Fluff the blankets,my wolf growled.
Of course that’s what she’d focus on.
I fluffed them anyway and smoothed out the wrinkles.
The hinges on the door squeaked as they opened a bit to reveal Ranger, still in all his naked glory, standing outside and leaning against the frame.
“Sorry, it’s…” I looked around, not sure what to apologize for.
“It’s perfect.” Ranger’s reverent expression eased my worries. “Just like you.”
I inhaled deeply, gathering my wits, and held out my hand. “You can come in.”
His smile warmed me from my head to my toes, wrapping my body in praise. I was expecting him to charge into my nest, but he took his time brushing the dirt off the soles of his bare feet.
Smart mate,my wolf approved.
Ranger walked into my nest slowly.
He was too big, too masculine, for this space. His presence filled my nest and his scent was everywhere. My pulse started drumming fast in my ears. Everything was too exposed.
On the cliff behind the tents…
In the woods…
My room in the resort…
None of those places felt this raw and intimate. In my nest, we were sharing the same air. Hecould see my things–or lack of things–bare and laid out for him to judge.
“You’re shaking,” he commented.
I swallowed hard and nodded. “Sure am.”
Ranger’s lips twitched and I swear he almost smiled before he pressed his mouth into a frown. He walked around me like a predator circling its prey. The tight space of the shed trapped his body heat, making the temperature rise, which didn’t explain the goosebumps that broke out on my skin under his perusal.
“Why are you nervous?”
“Besides your giant cock?” When he didn’t laugh at my joke, my cheeks flamed red and I turned my eyes to the ground. “Isn’t it obvious?”
“Isn’t what obvious?” He came to a stop.
I stared at his feet. “You’re you and I’m… me.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Irritation stroked my ego when I realized he was making me spell it out. I raised my chin defiantly, meeting his gaze. “You know what? Never mind. Just because you’re some big, bad Alpha, it doesn’t make you any better than me.”
The knowing smirk on his face had my eyes narrowing. He was pleased with himself for using my own pride against me. And damn it if it didn’t work.
Still…