Mating Season

Cecilie

Cecilie gasped at the wolf -dark fur and bright blue eyes- and prepared herself for whatever attack it might unleash. She knew fighting it would be stupid. It could probably tower over her standing up, and those claws looked like they could tear through metal. Swallowing, she saw only one escape. Run and scream like hell.

The wolf, however, seemed confused by her actions as she braced herself into a fighting stance, ready for either. It cocked its head to the side, in what could only be described as bewilderment, and released a small whine.

No sudden movements, Cecilie told herself. She took one step back and a branch snapped.

As if out of a heavy trance, the wolf lunged at her. Cecilie's eyes widened as she turned, ready to outrun the monster. Her house was somewhere nearby...she hoped. Her grandmother would hear her screaming...possibly.

With nothing but trees in sight, Cecilie went for option B, which was to hide and hope for escape later, but she couldn't do it if the wolf was constantly at her heels. Thinking quickly, Cecilie shrugged off her sweater and let it drift behind her, over the beast's eyes.

Smiling in satisfaction, she quickly went into hiding. A large log was gratefully nestled on her right. She climbed through. Earth and dirt and bugs occupied the space. She was going to need a good shower after this.

Whining came from the animal as it frantically searched for her.

Sorry, buddy, Cecilie thought to herself, but there's no way you're using me as a chew toy.

The wolf kept up its search for a few moments, staying close to Cecilie. Then the most riciculous thing happened. It...turned...into a guy.

"What the hell?" Cecilie called out before covering her mouth.

But it was too late. He had already heard and turned to her now. Cecilie nearly screamed when she saw what he was wearing, or to be more precise, what he wasn't.

"Jesus!" She covered her eyes with a hand. "If I had known naked men paraded in the forest, I never would have left the house."

"It's you." The guy gasped as he oogled at her.

She didn't quite grasp his words, so she chose to ignore it; one of her better talents "Yes, it's me and I happen to be fully clothed. Why don't you do the same?"

His laughter made chills run up her spine. "Does it matter?" He asked, having no shame at all. Cecilie would have scoffed if she wasn't embarrassed enough for the both of them.

"Yes! It matters! And I refuse to talk to you like this." She turned her back to him.

He chuckled and then his hand was on her shoulder. "Here, let me help you."

Cecilie jumped up, receiving no help from the guy. Looking at him now, he was about a head taller than her, with skin just as light as her own. His hair was a wavy brown, meesy but somehow still put together. She was a real sucker for his eyes though, a piercing dark blue that she couldn't seem to stop staring at.

She glared as she saw what he decided to put on; her sweater tied around his slim waist. It practically showed off his defined body-abs and all.

He followed her gaze. "Sorry, but you did tell me to put something on. I'll wash it and give it back."

Cecilie raised her hands. "Better yet, keep it." She began to take a few steps back. The wolf was gone. He couldn't have possibly been that animal though. Maybe she was hallucinating. "I've got to go, so...yeah."

She ran, but he quickly caught her wrist. Glaring back at him, she realized his eyes were trained where they touched. An almost pained expression plagued his face.

"You can't leave now," he stated. "I just found you."

Cecilie felt a blush creep up her cheeks, but shook her head. "I didn't realize I was hiding," she murmured under her breath.

He met her eyes then, which were the same haunting blue as the wolf's had been. They seemed to do weird things to her, like make her think it was completely okay to stand with an almost naked guy in the middle of the forest.

"But you were," he said so softly she thought she'd imagined it. He took a step toward her, lifting her hand to his mouth and placing a kiss on her fingers. "What's your name?"

Her cheeks were burning now, but she couldn't bring her legs to move. Curse whatever power he had over her. She almost preferred being eaten by the wolf.

"Cecilie," she answered, shocked. She had planned to give him a fake name, hoping to never see him again.

"Cecilie." Her name sounded so sensual coming from his lips. A smirk curved on one side of his mouth as he lifted her arm once more, his lips now at the crease of her elbow.

"W-what about yours?" She really needed to get a hold of herself.

"Asher," he answered simply. His lips finally crawled up her bare shoulder, his tongue lightly tickling her skin. He even bit her lightly, which made Cecilie gasp.

Pushing at his bare chest, Cecilie sperated them at arms length. "What are...you doing?" She demanded between breaths.

Asher cocked his head to the side, a lot like the wolf. "Kissing you." She glared at him. She hated the way he answered so simply, like it was to be expected.

"No," she said between clenched teeth.

"No?" An amused grin spread over his features. "Then what exactly am I doing, Cecilie?"

"I'll tell you what you won't be doing." She managed to push him away from her. "I don't intend to just stand here and let you take advantage of me. I'm going home. And you are going to stay as far away from me as you can."

"I don't think that's possible, Cecilie."

"And why not?" The girl huffed.

"Because you're my mate." He smiled and stepped in front of her again, capturing a strand of her blonde hair. "And I intend to ravish you for quite a while."