Only after Samantha finished eating, her ears twitching happily for the whole time, Rider remembered what he was doing there.
He wanted to find her and ask her about marking him. When she had cancelled their date, he had thought she was avoiding him for that reason: she didn't want to explain her motives!
Yet, after a whole night by her side, he knew she didn't do it on purpose. Moreover, she didn't know what she had done. During her trance, when she had just followed her instincts, she had marked him with her scent. And then, after falling asleep in his arms, she had forgotten.
But... if she didn't fear explanations, what was the reason for avoiding him? Just the fact they were from different packs?
He sighed, displeased.
«You really don't know...» he muttered, seeing how she licked her fingers when she was done.
«Know what?» she inquired, finally moving her eyes on him.
Her period cramps had disappeared thanks to the warm food, and she was as relaxed as she could be.
«What you did.»
«Yes?»
She moved her eyes back on the plate. She had eaten everything, leaving not even a single bite for Rider. He had offered his portion, and she had accepted.
A light blush covered her cheeks as she realised she didn't act very mature. Oh, she had been like a greedy, hungry pup... But if Rider wanted to eat, he didn't have to offer his plate to her! It wasn't her fault, all in all.
«Can't you sense it now?» he added, getting closer so that their entangled scents could reach her. Too bad that, after a whole night sleeping in the same bed, entangled scents weren't as much of a novelty.
«Sense what?» she said. «Your hunger?»
He stopped moving, freezing in place after her low chuckle. She was embarrassed and confused, but she still didn't think twice before teasing him.
A low growl warned her he was being serious, yet she couldn't help but laugh once again. She reached out to him and patted his head as if to soothe a temperamental pup. It was hilarious, given that the one with her ears released was Samantha.
Yet, the way her ears straightened told Rider she was doing her best to stay calm. He was triggering something inside her, that was sure, but he couldn't find out what it was.
He placed one hand on the back of her chair and the other on the table, circling her from his side. When he bent down and growled against her ear, she sighed as a shiver crossed her back.
«Mine,» he added before pecking her hair. Only after doing that, he recalled that he was going to be threatening and overbearing, all to make her confess her wrongdoings.
Still, when her scent - even though different from the usual - had hit him, he had lost his mind yet once again. If she felt like he felt, it was no surprise she didn't know she had marked him.
All his frustrations from the previous couple of weeks disappeared, and he forgot he was angry with her. His ego would have died in pain if only he had time to listen to it.
«Hey,» he said, moving a handful of her hair behind her shoulder, «weren't you supposed to go to work?»
«No one will complain if I'm a little late,» she replied, moving her hands on his chest and attempting a clumsy hug.
He let her do, like always, and he surrounded her shoulders with his arms.
«It's not that late anyway,» he sighed. After all, they had just woken up.
«What is it that you're dying to tell me, by the way?» she said after a few seconds of silence. «You seem conflicted.»
«You marked me,» he spat out without letting go of her. When she tried splitting from him, he pressed her even harder on his chest. «Last time, you lost control over your instinct and marked me as yours.»
«Oh,» was the only reply.
She didn't add words for a while, but he could feel her tense muscles and stiff back. She also started sweating, for those words made her realise what had happened.
Indeed, she had lost control.
«I'm... I'm sorry,» she tried, after a whole minute in that uncomfortable position. Even though Rider was comfortable like no one else in the world, she would have preferred being further from him at that moment.
If what he said was true, then she was in trouble.
She sniffed his clothes and found, entangled with everything, traces of her. She hadn't noticed earlier because she had assumed her scent was from her and his was from him. Yet, they were together, mixed with each other.
«How long does it take to disappear?» she wondered.
«More than two weeks, that's for sure.»
«But then... Oh, I'm so sorry!»
She sniffed herself, curious to check whether he had taken revenge during the night. Still, her own scent was clean from any other.
«I didn't know you could do this, Mine. It's weird that you can mark someone for a month without even noticing. Are you perhaps...»
«I am not!» she exclaimed. «I am nothing strange!»
But then, her expression crumbled in a series of different grimaces, one more desperate than the previous.
«I'm just a regular wolf,» she tried, but her voice wouldn't have convinced anyone.
«It's okay,» Rider chuckled. «It's not like I didn't know earlier you were a little special. Just tell me the truth.»
His hand reached her blond locks once again, and she closed her eyes as if in fear. He snorted, annoyed by her reaction; especially because he knew she could have defended herself from him. What use was there to be scared?
«I'd prefer not to,» she moaned. «It's a little complicated, and no one knows the whole story except for a couple of people in my family.»
«You're full of mysteries, Miss Trouble,» he sighed. How could someone with Samantha Murphy's image show him such a defenceless face? How could she use such a shy tone?
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