Sliced Trees and Dead Words

19 - Oh, please. Even Medusa knows you're the ball-breaker here.

- LUNA -

It actually worked.

He's walking on over to that gorgeous redheaded cow, tail between his legs, and handing over my card.

I would say that I've never been so successful in seducing a man into doing my bidding before; but I also haven't ever really tried before now, so it probably doesn't count. Seduction is more Siella's style, not mine.

Still, as Wolfe saunters back to me, his tall and strong body carrying a box of food I never really wanted, I feel a little victorious. And smug victory mixed with unexpected nervous energy is making me a little more terrified of each step he takes in my direction.

"As begged for," Wolfe said, handing me the white box and throwing my card on the dashboard. "Using unfair, coercive tactics, mind you."

He seemed annoyed, but also kind of amused. I couldn't help but smile at him, which widened as soon as he smiled back, my cheeks no longer taking heed of the directives passed down from my brain to not appear affected by him.

"Come on," he sighed, leaning his forearm on the roof of his car. The move lifted his shirt up fraction exposing his stomach, his jeans sitting just as low as his tracksuit pants were this morning. I still couldn't see a waistband underneath, and a really unfamiliar, confident part of me felt the sudden urge to capitalise on his exposed vulnerability and send my hand searching further south to see whether I could find one any lower. The car was suddenly too small for this newfound boldness, and it was a really big car. "Climb over, Lune, and let's get going."

The idea of climbing over Wolfe while he called me Lune was enough to make me melt, and if it weren't for me trying to maintain the upper hand here considering he seems to be invading every aspect of my being at present, I probably would have done what he asked. But, I did need that small amount of power, and he genuinely looked completely exhausted, so I didn't move.

"Do I actually have to haul your ass over my shoulder and carry you around to the other side of the car to get you to move, Luna?"

No guy apart from Wolfe has ever carried me anywhere, any which way; and if I'm being truthful, the thought of him doing just what he threatened is something I've wanted to experience all my life, seeing it in just about every rom com ever made. I almost want to defy him just to see if he would, but the tired yawn that just took over his whole body was even more convincing.

"No, Wolfe. I'm driving," I said, speaking over his protests that I was still probably too drunk to drive. "Seriously, I don't think I've ever been more sober, and I know you're tired. You wouldn't have slept much last night, nor I'm sure many of the nights before that either. Sleep. I'll drive the rest of the way."

He eventually came to the silent realisation I wasn't going to back down, and muttered under his breath the whole way around the front of his car to the passenger side. "Medusa, get in the back," he growled rudely, causing the beautiful dog to climb over sadly, little whines escaping her throat at being yelled at and relegated to the back seat. I stared at him waiting for him to apologise, and it took six seconds for him to figure it out and make amends—I was counting. He reached between our seats, took Medusa by her head and scratched behind her ears, apologising quietly for getting angry at her and placing all the blame on me for it; the 'new, evil temptress set to destroy him.'

I chuckled as I turned his car on, only slightly terrified about driving a car this big in a city, backing out of the park as Wolfe buckled his seat belt, resting the side of his head defeatedly against the headrest to look at me. "You know it's a really distracting road hazard to have someone staring at you while you're driving a rich, fancy car that's not yours, right?"