Tuesday Teaser 5/15/18 Gina’s Wolf Part 11

Hello! This has been a busy week, and I have more ahead of me. First, my website security certificate got bungled and I had to jump through hoops to get it fixed. It is fixed now, so that is a relief.  I don’t know how you feel about it, but when I came here last week and saw that red NOT SECURE label I about had a heart attack!  But as I said, I got that wrangled. The next thing is to become General Data Protections Regulations (GDPR) compliant. I did set up the cookie notification for the website, but I will need to re-vamp my newsletter.  I will work on that this weekend and send a newsletter to let everyone know what do do to if you want to stay on my newsletter list. I’ll probably do a little Amazon Gift Card Giveaway to make it a little more palatable. So watch for that. 🙂

For the first time since the packing, the move, the packing, the pneumonia, the cleaning, and the unpacking (sheesh, no wonder I;’m so tired!) I was able to set up a writing schedule. I haven’t completely stuck to it as I had planned, but I’m back to writing regularly. Hopefully we’re back on track for the weekly Tuesday Teasers.

Speaking of which, here is the next bit from Cole and Gina’s story.  You are getting a chunk from last week’s because I added a little bit. As always, this isn’t edited. I didn’t even re-read it so it probably has a bunch of typos and tings that will change. I hope you can enjoy it anyway.

She rolled to her side and reveled in the quiet joy of a warm bed. She punched the feather pillow into a more comfortable shape beneath her cheek and snuggled into it. Something on the pillow tickled her nose. She brushed her hair out of the way. Her nose still tickled. She opened her eyes a crack to get a better view of the offending hair.

It was black. Her eyes opened wider. Black? Her hair was mousy brown. The bleary confusion vanished with a jolt when she saw the black hair was attached to a head. Cole. He slumped with his cheek against the edge of the mattress, one side of his forehead pressed to the side of her pillow. His face was relaxed in deep sleep. She could look her fill without him knowing. All the things Nikki had told her about the wolf clan rushed to the front of her mind. If she could believe the other woman, Cole could never, ever have any other wife, even if she refused him. Did she want to refuse him?

She inched away and raised herself on one elbow to look down at him. She could see only half his face. It was dark against the white pillowcase and sheet. His nose was a straight blade, his eyebrow a dark slash. She’d always thought his mouth was hard, but now his lips looked soft. What would they feel like if she dipped her head right now and kissed him? When she remembered what had happened in the mudroom before he left to patrol, a strange warmth spread through her. He was asleep. He’d never know.

That thought was too tempting. She eased a few inches further away and went back to studying him. His eyelashes were unfairly thick and long. Men shouldn’t have such long eyelashes. With those lush lashes and soft mouth, he looked almost pretty. No, his chin was too square for that, his jaw too hard. She nibbled her lower lip, studying him. Not pretty. She angled her head to see more of him. He was handsome in both his face and his body. Strong and sleek. His father was a powerful man. Maybe she was the only woman he could be with now, but Cole had probably had a bunch of other women friends before he came to Omaha and saw her. Had those women stroked along the line of his shoulder and down his arm? Had they pressed their cheeks to his heart? Had they skimmed their hands down his chest to his belt?

She paused to consider the small, jagged pain those thoughts pushed through her chest. Jealousy. Did she even have a right to be jealous? Yes. Well, maybe. He said she was his mate. From he and Nikki had said, his people didn’t share their women like Brother Saul’s commune did. If they were married, she would darned well demand that he leave other women alone.

Married. She wasn’t sure if she wanted that or not. But she liked watching him sleep. He was wearing the borrowed jeans, but his torso was bare. Long, lean muscles showed in his shoulders and arms. She could barely see his belly past his folded arms. She leaned a little forward to get a better look. He certainly couldn’t be called girlish.

Her hair fell from behind her ear. She jerked back too late. A large brown hand shot out and gripped her shoulder. Cole blinked. Eyes the color of melted bitter chocolate fixed on her.

“Good morning,” she squeaked.

His hand dropped away. He lifted his head from the bed to glance at the window. “Not morning,” he said in a low, gravelly whisper.

“Um, no, I guess it’s late afternoon. Maybe.” She coughed and drew herself to a sitting position, excruciatingly aware that he could see her borrowed nightgown. She pulled the blankets high, which was stupid. The worn cotton flannel covered a lot more of her than her dinner dress had. “Sorry to wake you.”

His smile was disarmingly sleepy. “That’s alright. What are you thinking about?”

“You,” she blurted.

His smile broadened. “I like that. I thought about you the whole time I patrolled.”

“Did you see anything?” She swallowed. “Any sign that my stepfather followed us?”

“No.” He lifted his head and straightened so he sat facing her, hands on his thighs. “No, nothing. Tell me more about thinking of me.”

It was an order that for some reason didn’t raise her hackles. Maybe it was the low gentle growl, or maybe it was the sight of his bare chest. Since she hadn’t seen many bare chests, she couldn’t call herself an expert, but his was intriguingly beautiful. The heat of a blush burned her cheeks. She made herself look at her hands. “Nikki spoke to me about your tribe. I mean, your pack. Is that the right word?”

“Pack works.”

“She said that you don’t ever force a woman to accept a mate claim.” She shook her head slightly over the absurdity of mates and claims.

“Never,” he said immediately.

Her fingers twisted in the sheet. She lifted her head to look him in the eye. “You said I am your mate. How do you know that? Are you sure I am your mate? Nikki said you can have only one mate in your whole life.”

“Only one,” he agreed. “When I first saw you in the coffee shop in Omaha, I knew. My wolf jumped around inside me like a young colt running for the first time. He loved your scent. Everything about you woke him up.” He lifted one muscled shoulder in a shrug. “I don’t know how to explain it. He had never done that before. I could feel how focused he was. All of his attention was on you.”

“Oh.” Gina looked away and took quiet breaths to still her heart, which was kicking in her chest. He was being surprisingly non-bossy. She liked it. “Nikki said you didn’t choose the woman; the wolf did. Are you alright with him picking me?”

He used one finger to turn her chin to face him. “Yes.”

Such a simple word; such a gentle, open expression on his face. He was being charming. She wasn’t sure she liked it. Or maybe she liked it too much. She scowled at him. “I am a bad choice. Look at all the trouble my stepfather has caused.”

He smiled. “You are the perfect choice.”

“I’m not pretty,” she blurted.

“You’re not?”

“The only reason any man has wanted to marry me is because of my stepfather.”

He made a noise in his throat. “Do you think I want anything from Todd except for him to go away forever? No, I want you because you’re my mate.”

She pulled her chin away and was quiet for a minute, trying to arrange her words so they would be honest, but not confrontational. “You want me because I am now the only woman you can ever have. Nikki explained that you can’t ever be with another woman as long as I am alive, even if I don’t accept your mate claim.”

“That’s true.”

“That’s why you want me to accept your mate claim. Not because you care about me.”

“I do care about you.”

She had learned many years ago to never appear vulnerable. She licked her lips and steeled herself to say something that would make her vulnerable. “You don’t even know me. I want the impossible. I want what my mom and dad had. Being Gerald Todd’s stepdaughter made that about as likely as walking on the moon.”

“What is it?” he demanded, sounding a little more like his bossy self.

“I want my husband to love me.”

He nodded, looking thoughtful. She liked that he took a minute to think before responding. “My mom and dad are mates. They never knew each other before he won her in a Bride Fight, and they fell in love with each other.” He cupped her cheek with a gentle hand. “I want what you want. I want a mate who loves me. We can take time to get to know each other. We can learn to love one another.”

He made it sound so reasonable. But learning to love one another wasn’t the same as falling in love. Her mom told her that she could learn to love Brussel Sprouts if she just tried. She still couldn’t stand them. Falling in love shouldn’t take effort. It should just happen.

His hand firmed on her cheek. “Gina? Can’t we try?”

She forced a smile. “Sure. We can try.”