Chapter 6
I pushed the button on the elevator, and we waited for the car to come up.
“Do you feel like we’ve done this before?” I joked, trying to lighten the mood.
Cain chuckled, and managed to muster a smile. “Just a few hours ago,” he replied.
Finally, we gave up on the elevator again and made our way towards the staircase. I recalled how, last night, we had barely made it up these stairs without pouncing on each other. Now that I was back in Cain’s presence, my head was driving me crazy with the memories of the passion we’d shared. It was everything I could do to keep myself from pouncing on him. then and there in the staircase. I considered it; maybe it would put him in a better mood. Then again, maybe he was someone who preferred to be left alone when he was grumpy.
About halfway down the stairs, I finally reached for Cain’s hand. I wanted to see how he’d respond without pushing things too far. He did pause on the stairs, turn towards me, and plant a kiss on my forehead. It wasn’t overly sexual, and it definitel did not satisfy the intense urge to mate that I was experiencing right now, but it at least assured me that Cain was still feelin
affectionate towards me.
We finally reached the bottom of the stairs, and I realized my headache was starting to subside. Maybe it had been caused more by worry than by a hangover.
As we rounded the corner to the hotel lobby, the pleasant scent of bacon filled the air. After last night’s squirrel tartare, I did not at all mind enjoying some human food for breakfast. I started to grab a plate, but noticed Cain hesitate.
“Aren’t you hungry?” I asked.
Cain shrugged and looked around before whispering in my ear, I am. I’m just not too familiar with this food, and I feel a little awkward eating around….humans” As he spoke, he looked around the lobby, and I noticed that the tables were, indeed, really close together. The only empty ones were near a family with several small kids.
I tried not to giggle. I was so used to living amongst humans myself that I often forgot how awkward it could be for more pack–minded wolves. It was also kind of cute to see Cain being so vulnerable. He was such a strong, burly guy and a very masculine partner in bed. The idea that he was nervous to do something so simple as eat in front of humans made him seem so much more approachable.
“Okay, then. Why don’t I make you a plate, and we can take it back to the room and eat,” I offered.
Cain looked surprised. “We can do that?” he asked.
“Sure. Just stand over here and try not to look suspicious. I’ll go get us some food,” I explained.
Cain shrugged and put his hands in his pockets. I could tell he was doing his best to look confident, but he wasn’t really fooling anyone.
The hotel buffet was filled with all the makings of a classic American breakfast. I piled plenty of bacon onto a plate. I loved it, and even if Cain hadn’t had it before, I could not imagine a werewolf not loving bacon. I also added some eggs, which I thought were another sure thing Then, I came to the pastries and sweets I remembered the first time I went out to a restaurant with my parents and tried cinnamon rolls. I had found them incredibly repulsive. Werewolves do not have a natural affinity for sweets. But my mother had assured me that, over time, my palate would adapt, and I would come to enjoy these human delicacies. She’d been right. The cinnamon rolls and other pastries made my mouth water so badly I almost forgot I was in heat. I added two to the plate, wondering this would be Cain’s first introduction to them.
My arms lull, I walked back over to Cam. He was staring at the floor and still looked a little sullen, but he did smile when he Low me coming back towards him. “Could you hold these while get drinks Lasked.
Cain nodded “Whut there to drink?” he asked.
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Chapter 6
“Coffee and tea for sure: I think I saw orange juice. What do you prefer?” As I asked the question, the thought crossed my mind that it was pretty odd to be staying at a hotel and eating breakfast with a stranger, but I immediately punched that thought down. This wasn’t a stranger. This was my mate. right
Cain shrugged. “I know I don’t like coffee, but I don’t think I’ve ever tried tea or orange juice. So, one of those I guess.”
I filled a cup with coffee for myself, adding just a touch of cream and sugar, just as it had taken me a long time to enjoy sweets, it had taken me a while to adapt to coffee. But my college friends had eventually talked me into trying it, and I had to admit, there was nothing better for late–night reading and studying sessions.. or early morning hangovers with sexy werewolves from the bar. I poured Cain a glass of orange juice, figuring it would appeal to him. Werewolves do tend to like fruit, so juice is not too far of a stretch.
Drinks in hand, I pushed open the door to the stairway and gestured for Cain to follow me. He did so, balancing the plates ast he walked. I heard him chuckle as he climbed the stairs behind me. This made me happy; his mood seemed to be improving.
We finally reached the top of the stairs, and Cain walked ahead of me to open the door for us. “After you, my lady,” he quipped. I smiled, remembering him saying this to me several times last night. His voice was so rich and sexy that it made me swoon, and I almost dropped my hot coffee.
“Oops!” I muttered, regaining my balance.
Cain chuckled. “You know, last night I was having trouble seeing you as a librarian, but now, watching how well you balance those cups while walking up stairs, I can totally see it,” Cain joke
I was pleased to learn he remembered something about me. Perhaps this had not just been a hookup for him, after all.
We reached the hotel room, and I managed to balance one plate in the crook of my arm as Cain found and swiped the key card. Once inside the room, we let the door slam behind us as we unloaded our armloads of breakfast items onto the table.
“So, you’ve never tried bacon?” I asked, sitting down in one of the chairs.
Cain nodded his head “no” as he took a seat across from me.
“Oh, you’re in for a real treat. It’s probably my favorite human food, and I’ve met so many other werewolves who love it, 100, I explained, picking up a slice of bacon from the plate.
I was planning to put the slice of bacon in my own mouth, but Cain leaned over the table and grabbed it in his own mouth before I was able. This surprised me a little. It was a very alpha move, and not one I was used to, having come from a pretty progressive pack myself.
Cain immediately turned red and apologized. “Oh. Oh, Marlie. I’m sorry. My instincts took over and I didn’t even think. You weren’t handing that to me, were you?”
Then, before I could even open my mouth to reply, Cain closed his eyes as if in ecstasy. “Mmmm.. this is delicious, I can see now why humans get so excited about bacon,” he moaned.
I giggled. It wasn’t hard to forgive his greediness now, seeing how much he was enjoying the bacon “Yes, it’s pretty awesome. And don’t worry instinct happens to the best of us.”
Cain smiled and reached for another piece of bacon. Instead of putting it in his own mouth, he reached across the table and offered it to me. I took it between my teeth, willingly.
There you go. Now we’re even, he joked.
Cain and I scarled down all of the bacon on both plates, and then we sat there, staring “So, what are those again?” Cain askril.
the eggy.
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Chapter 6
“Eggs. These ones are called scrambled eggs. They whisk them all together before cooking them,” I explained.
“Ahh,” Cain replied. “We always eat them raw back home, but I’m sure they’re good this way, too.” He reached out and grabbed a chunk of scrambled egg with his fingers, popping it into his mouth. I had to admit, watching him eat in such a wolf–like manner was arousing. Jackson had been so… humanized in the way he ate, always reaching for a knife and fork. I usually ate that way, too, since I had to be so concerned about humans observing my table manners. Around Cain, it was nice to feel like I could let go and be a bit more of my wolf self.
I grabbed a chunk of eggs with my own fingers and popped them into my mouth.
“How do you like them?” I asked Cain.
Cain shrugged. “Take them or leave them. They’re okay.”
Now, only the sweets were left on the plates. “Okay, so this last one is a bit of a reach. You probably won’t like it since you’re not used to human food, but it’s worth a try?” I explained, peeling a piece off the edge of the cinnamon roll.
I popped the cinnamon roll into Cain’s mouth. I could have sworn he took his time taking it from me, sucking on my finger a little in the process. I never would have imagined this was something that could turn me on, but it did. I could tell from the look in Cain’s eyes that it was turning him on, too. But then, his look changed almost instantly as he turned to his side and spit the cinnamon roll out.
“Damn, is that vile or what? How do they eat that he exclaimed continuing to spit into a napkin.
I laughed. “I didn’t like them at first, either, I explained. “But now I can’t get enough.” I took a bite of cinnamon roll, and Cain watched in horror as I swallowed it down
“You… are an incredible woman. In the most obscure way, Cain quipped, shaking his head from side to side.
I laughed, taking another bite of the cinnamon roll. “I’ll take that as a compliment, I suppose?”
“If you knew me better, you’d know for certain that it was.” Cain explained.
I smiled, then realized this was my opportunity to get Cain to open up a little more.
“So, what happened this morning? Why were you so upset when you came back to the room?” I asked, hoping this wasn’t pushing things too far.
Cain groaned. “Ahhh, nothing too important. Just a stressful call with my dad, is all.”
With that, Cain reached across the table and broke off another piece of cinnamon roll. “Dare me to try it again?” he asked, obviously trying to change the subject.
I decided to push just a little bit more.
“Everything okay back home?” I asked.
Cain took the bite of the cinnamon roll, swallowed it, and then visibly cringed.
“Eh, it’s okay. My dad and I just disagree on a lot of things, and he’s not so happy that I’m here in Burlington. I was supposed to call lum last night and tell him I was okay, so he was pretty worried about me. All cleared up now, though.”
I could sense there was something Cain didn’t want to talk about so I decided not to push it
any
further.
Conveniently, there was then a knock at the door, breaking the wkward silence.
Caln nearly jumped out of his chair in response to the knock Then, I saw him take a deep breath and calm himself before walking over to the door
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Chapter 6
Cain opened the door, and standing at the entrance to
the
room was a doorman.
“Mr. Orwolvski the doorman asked, looking down at a clipboard.
“Yes, that’s me,” Cain replied.
Now I at least knew his last name. How did that Carrie Underwood song go again?
“You’re late checking out. It’s about 12:15. Unfortunately if you’re not able to vacate the room at this time, we’re going to have to charge you for another night,” the doorman explained.
“Oh, I.. uhhh..” Cain started to respond, feeling around in his packets for his wallet. “Let me find my card.”
“No need, Sir. We already have your card on file. If you wish to stay another night, we’ll just bill you directly,” the doorman explained.
Cain nodded. “Okay then, that’s fine by me. We’re still finishing breakfast, so if you need to charge us for another night, then go ahead.”
The doorman nodded. “Thank you, Sir. I’ll let my staff know.”
Cain shut the door and started back towards the table.
“You didn’t have to do that. We could have packed up and scooted out of here. Not like we really have much to pack anyways.” I explained, looking around at the empty hotel room. Indeed, my purse was on the floor, and Cain’s overnight bag was on the bed. There was nothing else we would have had to grab.
Cain shrugged. “It’s no big deal. Now we can just take our time.
I nodded. I was on a pretty tight budget and the idea of paying for an extra night in a hotel just to stay a bit uncomfortable to me. But Cain had mentioned that he was here on business, so perhaps the whole experience was
and eat breakfast Was expensed anyways.
Cain reached for the orange juice and took a sip. “Ah, now this I have had before. Orange juice. A few of my pack members actually buy it and bring it back with them whenever they leave the colony,” he explained.
1 nodded. “Yeah, it’s pretty good. I’m a coffee drinker myself, but I can get behind a good glass of orange juice.”
1 sipped my coffee, then set it down on the table and headed over to the bathroom. As I walked past Cain, I felt my neck start to pull and tug again. I closed the bathroom door behind me and sat down on the toilet.
I closed my eyes, trying to regain control, but Cain was all I could see. I could not stop picturing his muscular chest, and it was as if my body remembered the way his arms felt around me, I craved that feeling. I ached to experience it again. A little whimper escaped ray lips. No, Marlie.. not now, You have to hide your heat, remember?
But did I? Or was that just something I had told myself since being around humans? Surely, I had given into my heat urges around Jackson, but they had never been this intense. This was whole other level. I was having trouble even focusing on eating breakfast, for God’s sake!
Another little whimper escaped from my lips, and I clenched my back to keep my hairs from emerging.
“You okay in there heard Cain call through the door.
“Yes, be right on, I replied, my voice cracking into a whimper halfway through. If Cain didn’t realize I was in heat already he surely knew how.
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