Way of the Wolf: Equilibrium

Chapter 30 ~ Key

Chapter 30: Key

The weight of an arm around my waist was the first thing my sleepy mind could comprehend. The rise and fall of the chest I rested on, and the sweet floral scent of the male in my bed, was as familiar to me as my own now. Calloused fingers stroked small patterns against my skin, swirling over my hip, following the dip of my waist before brushing against the swell of my breast and sweeping back down.

 I let out a soft sigh of contentment, hating that a gap in the curtains was allowing sunlight to stream right across my eyes, ruining any attempt at falling asleep again.

“Did you really climb through my window last night?” I murmured, splaying my hand over Ebbe’s chest so I could feel the slow, steady beat of his heart.

His fingers paused over my hip, tickling sensitive skin. I tipped my chin up to catch a glimpse of Ebbe’s jaw. His eyes were hidden, head tilted back so he was staring up at the roof and hiding his expression from me.

“The front door was locked by the time I came back.”

I frowned at his answer. Just how late was his return for the doors to be locked? How much had he struggled to find enough control to be able to spend the night caged up within the walls of a house? It also meant my should-have-been nap had turned into nearly fourteen hours of deep sleep. But gods, I’d needed it. Barely awake as I was, I already felt stronger than I had yesterday.

It was only this odd tension between Ebbe and I that had me worried now.

Sitting up, I leaned in to brush my cheek against his, a purr vibrating from deep within my chest. I smiled as I heard him inhale my scent and press against me, his teeth nipping playfully at my jaw.

I wanted things between us to work out, but as I pulled back, I could see the almost fidgety edge he was trying to conceal.

Sitting up and running a hand through his hair, his eyes avoided mine. “Quillan and Bjarke are going to run the inner boundary this morning, they asked me to join. I shouldn’t be too long but it’ll give you a chance to focus on your work.”

Watching him get up with a frown, rejection bloomed in my chest. With his back to me, he grabbed the clothes he’d tossed on the floor the night before.

He was right though. I did have duties to attend to today. Pouting slightly, I dragged myself out of bed too and left him to simmer in whatever weird mood he was in.

Besides dealing with our prisoner again today, I wanted to go around a few members of the pack that lived nearby and make sure everyone was okay.

“We’ll find time to talk later, right?” I asked hesitantly, tugging fresh clothes from their hangers.

It didn’t matter that the prospect of Ebbe and I finally having to make solid choices was a terrifying prospect. But my Dad had been right, I couldn’t let fear of failure, or heartbreak, ruin what I might be able to have. And Ebbe. . .waking up in his arms this morning, in my bed, it had felt so good.

When he didn’t answer, I turned around to face him and swallowed at the sight of pain in his eyes that disappeared once he caught me looking. He nodded slowly, his smile strained. “Of course. Later.” Just as he had yesterday, he placed a lingering kiss to my forehead, fingers grazing my arms and leaving a trail of heat in their wake.

I rocking forward without even realising, drawn to him like the tug of a magnet.

“Let’s have breakfast together before we have to go our separate ways,” he murmured, tipping my chin up. Tingles shot through me as our eyes locked, and I managed a real smile as I thread my fingers through his other hand.