Relief

9- One Step at a Time

Terra's POV

I had to shower in my mom's room since Maggie inhabited mine for about an hour, felt like more, though. After we ate we were ready to go to the park.

I knew Collin was here. Wolf instinct, if you will. When I saw him, my heart was beating a mile a minute and I felt like there were bees in my stomach. Forget the butterflies.

He looked so handsome in his light blue T-shirt and his jeans were hanging dangerously low. I mean, does he want to sexually frustrate me?

'You do that to me just by looking at me,' a foreign voice said.

Who was that? Because it certainly wasn't my wolf.

'It's me T. It's Collin. I can read your thoughts. Now that you have accepted the mate bond, it's getting stronger.' He said.

Shit, he's right. I read about this. That's actually really cool, but I decided to tease him a bit. 'You know privacy is really important to me. You can't just drop in my mind anytime you want.'

He chuckled...in my mind... ahh so cool. 'Then bring down the mind barriers. That's the only way I can't hear your thoughts.'

'And how do you suppose I do that? I'm not a wizard! You know what; I guess I just have to reject you. Then you won't get a chance to read my thoughts.' I teased.

He sounded worried. 'Terra, no! Please, I'm sorry. I'll try not to eavesdrop. It's just... you're just so compelling and-'

I laughed. He's so gullible. When I looked up at him again, he was glaring at me playfully. 'Why you sexy little-'

"Evan!" Maggie exclaimed, running towards him. She gave him a big ol' kiss on the lips. She hugged him and wrapped her legs around him.

I, on the other hand, walked towards Collin and smiled up at him. He smiled back.

'Well this is awkward.'

'Tell me about it.'

"Hello Terra," Collin said. "You look beautiful today."

I blushed. I hope he didn't notice.

'I noticed.'

I scolded him. 'Stop that!'

"Thank you, Collin. So do you... I mean you look handsome. I mean... yeah, you know what I mean." Gosh, why am I so tongue-tied?

Maggie and Evan were watching our exchange quietly. Until Maggie said, "Oookay. So I think Evan and I are going to take a stroll in the park and you guys can... go swinging. I know Terra loves that."

I panicked. They were leaving us alone? "What?" Collin and I exclaimed simultaneously. "I thought this was a double date sort of thing." Collin said.

"What? A date? I never agreed to a date. You didn't even ask me." I told Collin.

He looked at me sheepishly. "I just thought you knew."

"Well I didn't." I began to walk away. 'Way to go, Collin.'

He grabbed my arm. "Terra, I'm sorry. I should have asked you. Look, this doesn't have to be a date. It could be anything you want it to be."

I felt myself give in. I mean if I was going to give 'us' a chance I had to stop busting his balls. I sighed. "All right, fine. Let's go to the swings. I do love to swing."

He smiled and exhaled in relief. "Let's go."

* * *

We arrived at the swings. The first time I encountered it was when my mom first brought me here as a child. The last time I was here, I was running away from my mate. Now, I was here... with him.

It's funny how things work out. I got on the swing and he began to push me. It's nice to feel the cool breeze on your face. It's very relaxing.

We both laughed when I tried to push him on the swing. He saw that I was struggling so he got off.

"Get on. I'll push you again." He said.

After a while I heard the ice cream truck coming our way. "Do you want ice cream?" He asked me.

I contemplated it. "Sure." I guess I got off the swing too fast because my legs felt like jell-o and I would have fell face first if it wasn't for Collin. Instead of falling on the hard ground, I fell on his hard body. We just stayed there for a while, basking in the warmth of each other's body.

I saw Collin's eyes darkening, reflecting my own. Our wolves were calling to each other. They wanted to take control. He began to rub my back until he reached my waist. In that moment, I wanted him and I knew he wanted me. But it was too soon.

"Collin," My voice was a soft whisper.

"Terra," He said, huskily.

"We have to take this slow, remember. One step at a time."

"I can go slow, baby. As slow as you want." I knew he wasn't talking about our relationship. He began rubbing my back, again. Up and down. It was sending shivers down my spine and... other places. Up and down.

"Collin, please. We need to stop. It's too soon." I put my hand on his chest. 'Please Collin, rein in your wolf.' I told him through our mind link.

He seemed to catch on because his eyes turned into they're natural hazel-green hue. He let go of me and I got off his body. The warmth was gone along with the desire. I breathed in and exhaled. Our wolves were under control.

We stood there awkwardly. I knew he wanted to apologize. I can see it on his face and I read his thoughts. But, there was no need to apologize.

'I wasn't just an innocent bystander.' I admitted. I wanted him, too.

I heard the ice cream truck come closer. I decided to break the silence first. "So... how about that ice cream?"