Everlasting

Chapter 17

Griffin

I always imagined I would be sadder on my first night spent moved out from my parents' house. I wasn't sad at all, though, and I knew I had Wulfric's company to thank for that. Even without the anticipation of getting him in my bed tonight, I think just having him by my side would have chased away any potential loneliness or doubt. It was a little weird to park in the lot behind the pack house instead of driving deeper into the forest to the house I had grown up in. The strangeness only added to the thrill of it.

Wulfric and I made our way up to my room like we were in a cheesy supernatural movie. He pulled me along at preternatural speed, stopping after only a few doors blurred by us so he could press me against the wall and plant hot kisses down my throat. I felt teeth skimming the sensitive skin there and felt an extra thrill at wondering whether those were his fangs.

I pushed him off me and across the hall, slamming his back against the wall and jumping to wrap my legs around his waist. He spun me around and dashed a bit further down the hallway, stopping again to swirl tongues with me. Even though we were full-out running between stops, it took us longer to reach my door than if we had just walked there.

I fumbled with my keys, almost dropping them in surprise when Wulfric said, "I didn't think there would be locks on the doors here. Don't you trust your packmates?" He was so close to me, I felt his hot breath down my neck.

I frowned at him over my shoulder as I finally found the right key. I'd need to get one of those colored key covers so I could distinguish it better from the others. "I do trust my packmates. But there's trust, and then there's stupidity."

"What do you mean?" Wulfric asked as we passed through the doorway.

I shot him a wry look. "You grew up with a bunch of siblings, didn't you? Are you seriously going to stand there and tell me you never needed a lock with them?"

That made Wulfric smile. "Fair point."

"Besides," I said. "This guarantees us some privacy."

That made Wulfric's gaze heat again. He reached for me, but I stepped back. I knew the value of putting on a good show, and I had never been shy in the bedroom. Or, as we were now, in the living room. My fingers skimmed the lower edge of my shirt, toying with it just a bit before hitching it up to expose an inch of skin. I was just starting to slide it further up when my phone vibrated in my pocket to signal an incoming call. I dropped the shirt and Wulfric actually looked disappointed until he realized I wasn't stopping to answer my phone; I was stopping to take off my pants so it wouldn't be a distraction anymore.

I threw my pants onto the couch. It was small and sagged a bit on the left side, but I wasn't going to complain about the furniture that had been left here by the prior occupant. It would save me the trouble of having to buy my own. My shirt joined the pants seconds later, leaving me standing in a pair of tight, lacy red boxer briefs. They were one of my more daring pairs, and I was rewarded with Wulfric's mouth falling open just a little.

Without any warning, he dashed to me. I laughed as I dodged his reaching hands, his fingers just barely skimming the skin of my hips. "Not so fast," I teased. "You're not really dressed for the occasion."

That made Wulfric smile, and I was glad he was willing to have some fun with this. All of my favorite parts of sex had to do with feeling connected to another person for a while. I'd learned over the years how to stretch those parts out, delaying for as long as possible the uncomfortable aftermath, when I felt dirtied and used and worthless for sharing something so intimate with someone I knew didn't matter to me. I was counting on that feeling not happening again, not with Wulfric.