Lost Puppy

‹ F O U R ›

‹ K O L B E

I woke up feeling the most rested I've felt in a very long time. As well as the most comfortable. Beau's bed was like a giant cloud, so soft it erased all desire to get out of it completely. Last night's events played through my mind. It is almost unbelievable that just when I was ready to give up on my lonely life, I was blessed with a reason to keep breathing. Seeing Beau for the first time gave my life a new meaning, a new purpose. My mother always told me that mates were special, that they were sacred and that when I found mine, to treat them well. Beau would probably be freaked out by the amount of affection I already held toward him. He was, after all, just a human.

I went to turn over, only to realize that I couldn't. I and Beau were tangled together, and I couldn't tell where I ended and he began. His thick, muscular arms were wrapped securely around my waist, holding me tightly to his warm chest. I titled my head up to see that his face was a few inches above mine. He was still asleep, his eyes were moving under his dark lids and his plump pink lips were parted slightly. He looked completely relaxed. He was beautiful.

My heart did this weird fluttering thing in my chest as my cheeks darkened after realizing the position we were in. Still, I couldn't resist stretching my face up to his and rubbing my face against his beard. It felt so nice against the smooth skin of my cheek that my eyes fluttered closed. A content sigh escaped me and I stopped before my movements could wake him.

I tried not to think of what his reaction would be to waking up holding me but the thoughts came anyways. Would he be disgusted? What if he unconsciously thought I was someone else, like a woman and that was why he was clutching onto me like a lover. That thought made my heart ache a little. Did Beau even like men? My stomach flipped nervously and the desire to remove myself from his embrace increased. It's better that he doesn't wake up to us like this. I tried to reason with myself as I began softly pulling away. However, my chest still tightened and the sparks flowing between us almost seemed to increase in protest of the space I attempting to create.

In response to my movements that had turned slightly more desperate, his arms tightened, pulling my tiny frame impossibly closer to his much larger one. With a massive yawn, he blinked the sleep from his eyes languidly before settling them on me. By this point, I had gone completely stiff. My whole face and neck were pulsing with heat and I wanted nothing more than to look away from his chocolate orbs as they took in our current position.

"Good morning," he greeted, sleep making his voice deeper and scratchier than normal. The sound of it caused a shiver to roll through me and my nipples to harden. I licked my suddenly chapped lips and his eyes snapped to follow the movement.

"Good morning, Beau," I tried to say as calmly as I could, but my voice still shook. To my surprise, Beau had yet to let go and didn't seem like he was going to anytime soon.

"Kolbe," he sighed as he put his face in my hair. I had to be dreaming. My hands, that were placed on his chest between us, clenched. My heart was thudding happily and my wolf was behaving like a puppy who'd had too much sugar.

We lay like that for a few more moments before Beau backed away, disentangling us in the process.

"Sorry about that," he said wiping the sleep from his eyes.

"It's fine," I said shakily, finally able to get myself under control. "I didn't mind," I said honestly.

Beau sat up causing the cover to pool into his lap. I tried not to stare at his bare chest and instead focused on looking at his nose. I couldn't look him in the eyes out of respect and not wanting him to think I was issuing a challenge. As crazy as it sounded it was a natural instinct for me. After eleven years of being a wolf 24/7, it was hard to ignore these urges. Besides I wanted to submit to Beau, I wanted him to show his dominance over me more than anything. I gulped as my mouth dry and my lips parted. To have him dominate me would- My thoughts were cut off as Beau called my name.

"Kolbe, are you okay?" He asked, concerned. "Listen, I will keep my hands to myself from no-"
I quickly cut him off.

"No, I'm fine, thank you," I said quickly. "Please, don't stop t-touching me..." I pleaded. I didn't want to go back to him making an effort to not touch me for extended periods of time.

"Alright, " he agreed, pushing a piece of hair from my face. "I'm glad I didn't freak you out. For some reason, I really like the feeling of you in my arms." He admitted softly, tracing my jaw as he had last night. Me too, I wanted to say but I was distracted by the feeling of his hand on my skin.

"I'll go make breakfast," he announced pulling his hand away somewhat reluctantly. "But before that, let me check your ankle." He threw his legs over the side of the bed and stood then walk to my side. I sat up, tossing the covers off my legs. As a werewolf, I healed fast, but my ankle was still an angry red and a little puffy. Beau prodded the swollen flesh gently and a trickle of pain shot up my leg. I flinched and he quickly retracted his hand. "Something's not right," he said as his brows knit together with concern. "I don't think it's healed properly. I'll have to take an x-ray to be certain." He concluded.

I frowned at my ankle, a little upset that it hadn't just healed correctly the first time. "We'll head to the clinic after breakfast,"

"Okay," I agreed easily.

"C'mon," he said reaching for me. Without hesitation I swung my legs over the side the bed and Beau wrapped an arm around my waist, helping to stand and balance on my good leg. I leaned against him heavily as we made our way toward the door.

•••••

We shuffled through his large living room, where I spotted the large pillow thingy I'd played on the night before, toward his spacious kitchen. It had all chrome appliances and black cabinets and drawers with a large island in the middle of it. Next to the stove stop were two stacked ovens that were built into the wall, the kitchen itself had lots of counter space. Beau helped me climb into one of the bar stools at the island.

"Do you like pancakes?" He asked as he walked over to his pantry that was big enough for him to walk into completely. I couldn't remember the last time I had pancakes, only that my mother used to make them quite often.

"Yes, I think," I answered unsurely. Beau simply nodded and went about collecting all of the necessary ingredients.

I watched silently as he went to work, although sometimes I would chime in to ask what a particular piece of equipment was. By the time he had the batter finished, I'd remembered what a spatula and whisk were. In turn, Beau would ask me things about my past.

"Did you spend most of your time as a wolf while you were living on your own?" He asked as he flipped his fifth pancake. It was a strange question to ask while doing such a mundane task. The thought amused me, causing the corners of my lips to lift in a soft smile.

"Yes," I responded "Not at first, though. I had trouble shifting in the beginning, once I got the hang of it I decided to just stay as a wolf. It was easier that way."

The muscles in Beau's back flexed under the chocolatey expanse as he started on another pancake.

"Eleven years," he said, disbelieving. "Weren't you lonely?" My smile faltered. He didn't know the half of it. At my silence, Beau turned to see my slouched shoulders and the closed-off expression on my face. He walked over to the island and leaned over it to brush my hair from my face. I lifted my chin to look him in his eyes that were filled with understanding and determination. "You won't be lonely anymore," he promised softly, his words dripping with sincerity.

His hand moved to grip my jaw, his thumb softly stroking my cheek. I swallowed thickly as unwelcome tears filled my eyes. It felt as though my heart was as swollen as my ankle. Filled with emotion that Beau invoked. A tear escaped trailing down my face and using his free hand, Beau brushed it away. Our eyes locked and conflict seemed to be raging in his dark orbs. Before I could figure out what it was the smell of something burning filled the air.

Beau released me and whirled around to deal with the burning pancake on the stove. I was frozen however, my heart still thudding as it did every time my mate touched me.

His words filled me with hope.

You won't be lonely anymore.

‹ AUTHOR'S NOTE

Thanks for reading!
Thoughts on the chapter?
-J.T.