My Childhood Friend is a Werewolf

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Emma's heart was pounding as the sound of the door closing and locking hit her ears. Dren had been teasing her in the car the whole ride back to the cottage, his hands caressing any part of her body not covered by clothing, light teasing touches that had goosebumps rolling over her skin. His lips were always at her ear, the low timber of his voice making warmth pool in her belly while he told her over and over how beautiful she looked and how much he loved her.

She knew she was a sap when hearing him declare his love for her over and over was the thing that made her the most aroused. Blushing heavily, Emma escaped into the bedroom and locked the door behind her.

A gentle knock came soon after. "Emma?" Dren asked. Emma leaned against the door, her face absolutely flushed underneath all the makeup.

"G-give me a few minutes!" she called back to him, her hands anxiously reaching for her dress zipper and pulling it down. As much as she would have loved to just let Dren in and let him have his way with her, especially after months of waiting to mate with him in order to have it coincide with the wedding, Emma really wanted this night to be special.

Her wedding dress slipped off of her easily and she properly hung it in the closet to prevent it from wrinkling, knowing this was the only opportunity she had to make sure it didn't spend the night on the floor. Once that was done, Emma quickly went to the bathroom and started the arduous process of taking all the makeup off her face and letting her hair free from its intricate updo. Those bobby pins were seriously stabbing her head.

Her hair fell around her in beautiful, but slightly frizzy, curls. The makeup took the longest to get off, requiring several wipes and a double-cleanse with her favourite face wash. She hated having to do all of this when she would much rather have Dren's arms already around her, but she also knew how gross her foundation would taste and hated the idea of her and Dren's first time being anything less than amazing.

"Emma?" Dren called again from outside the bedroom, but this time his voice was pitched lower and oozed authority. There was no doubt in his tone that he was getting tired of waiting and he would probably barge in regardless of what she asked of him.

"I'm almost done!" she replied hurriedly, towelling off her face and then running into the bedroom and grabbing the white, lacey babydoll that she had embarrassingly bought from a boutique lingerie shop in the city. While she also had plans to light some candles, Emma didn't think Dren would be willing to wait quite that long so she hurriedly shimmied on the lingerie and then grabbed the door handle.

Her hand stilled right before turning it, taking the extra moment to catch her breath. Her chest was heaving like she'd just run a marathon and she was thinking about what Dren must be feeling on the other side. He was right there, just outside the door, waiting for her to let him in. She needed the moment of calm because they both knew that once she opened that door, it was happening for real; they were going to truly become mates.

Her heart was thrumming in her chest so much so that it felt like a hummingbird flapping its wings. Emma couldn't help but think about how she'd waited for this moment for so long, to open the door and see Dren on the other side, her real and true husband. Even thinking the word in her head felt surreal, like a dream she was going to wake from at any moment.

Dren's presence was felt on the other side of this flimsy piece of wood. He was staring at it just as she was, staring at it like he was staring at her, like he had x-ray vision; like the door wasn't even there. The journey to get here had felt so long, and yet now that they were here it felt so soon.

The door handle was cold to the touch and the click of it opening was louder than the buzzing in her ears. It swung open easily but their gazes never broke from each other.