“Hey.” Her eyes were sharp, darting from her to Officer McGoven and back. “Am I interrupting something?”
Loren’s cheeks flamed. Her hair was a ragged mess. Mud splattered her clothes, her hands. It was all she could do to wrestle her other arm through the sleeve of her windbreaker and zip it up.
But, if Naomi reached any conclusions, she didn’t mention them aloud.
“I brought your work,” she said. “So, um…”
She glanced at Officer McGoven and then down—namely to the thick tanned fingers Loren could still feel entwined with her own.
“I’ll let you two get to it.” McGoven let her hand fall and turned, taking the porch steps two at a time. “I have something to take care of,” he muttered, before disappearing through the screen door so quickly it was left swinging on its hinges.
“Damn,” Naomi stage whispered. “What the hell happened to you two?”
Cheeks flaming, Loren shoved her hands into her pockets. “Nothing.”
Something had happened. Something that made her dizzy and dazed to think on. Made her clothes feel too tight—not tightenough.
It was confusing. Men were a taboo subject—as was sex. She’d never had a boyfriend, and any mention of the topic in school had been through gossip or clinical descriptions from teachers regarding the mating behaviors of animals. She had no frame of reference to draw upon. Nothing to contextualize the strange feelings rampaging through her.
Or him.
“Earth to Connors,” Naomi snapped. “What is wrong with you?”
“Let’s get this over with,” Loren muttered, mounting the porch steps in a rush.
Inside, Officer McGoven wasn’t anywhere in sight. As they entered the living room, a door slammed, and a quick glance out of the kitchen window revealed a dark figure marching across the field, heading straight for that battered pick-up truck. Seconds later, it took off so fast mud sprayed from the wheels.
“What the hell didyoudo to piss him off?” Naomi’s snarky tones were grating on Loren’s already frayed nerves.
Rather than answer, she snatched a cup from the sink and gulped from the rim. She nearly spit the water back out. The flavor was tainted—tinged with the tastes already on her tongue—mud and pine and a sharp metallic hint that made her belly twist into knots.
Images filled her mind before she could help it, each one more damning than the last.Her. Officer McGoven. Heat. Her clothes being expertly torn off.
Her throat went dry at the memory of the feel of his lips on her throat—his teeth. She reached up, fingering the flesh right beneath her collar. It burned, overly sensitive, painful to the touch.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Naomi wondered.
Loren tried her hardest to ignore her.
“Whatever—” She blinked to find Naomi dragging a schoolbook from her bag. “When you’re done being all psycho, I brought math, and social studies. Let’s get this over with.”
She couldn’t agree more.
* * *
The latest“study session”with Naomi could be politely described as torturous. Not only due to the antics of the evil blond.
It washim—namely, his absence.
Where did he go?
She couldn’t make sense of it. Aside from the weird moments of physical contact, Officer McGoven didn’t seem interested in her more than to fulfill his heroic civic duty—and perform whatever he seemed to think he owed her as a lycan.
But when he kissed her…
There hadn’t been any sense of “heroics” at all. Just a pure, raw hunger that couldn’t be denied.Lust,Loren thought, blushing at the word choice. Not exactly the redeeming quality of a kindly, but much older, benefactor.
What about you?a part of her demanded. She hadn’t exactly been so sweet and innocent, either. After all, she did bite him first.