Her Shadows

3 - Bad Decisions

NATALIA 

I don’t get out of the car immediately. It's like actually being here makes me more hesitant. It feels more real all of the sudden, and I am … nervous. I have a bad feeling.

I am just letting Max get to me. I will be fine. Buck up woman.  

I raise my lips into another half-assed grin, and hop from the car, walking swiftly over to the driver’s side window that Sam has rolled down. He gives me a worried look, pushing a breath out through his teeth. I wait for him to say something. Anything. Honestly, I think I would give in if he tried to get me to go home now. I have made my point. Max saw me leave the house. I could feel his gaze lingering on my skin. I could feel his anger filling his room as I walked by. 

He's pissed. Maybe I don’t have to actually go on the date for him to do something about it. He doesn’t even have to know I didn’t go. 

But Sam doesn’t try to get me back into the car. He just turns around, feeling around the back seat for a moment, and turning back to me to sling a leather jacket over my arm. 

“Wear this. Stay warm. You will prove your point just by being here. Don’t provoke him, Nat.” He says exactly what I'm thinking, but the last sentence curdles my stomach. 

I just need to act disinterested. Unaffected. 

Which should be easy considering I have no interest in this man at all. 

“I got it, Sammy.” I press a kiss to his cheek, winking at him before sauntering into the campus restaurant. 

Cody told me he made a reservation, so I give the hostess our names, and am thankful when she immediately takes me to a table in the far back corner. He isn’t here yet and the area we’re seated is empty. I could slip out and no one would know. Just as I am about to chicken out, a thick voice speaks behind me. 

“Oh, please tell me you are wearing lace under those shorts.” 

I grit my teeth, spinning around slowly to come nearly face-to-face with what may commonly be known as a “prince charming.” Messy blonde hair and bright blue eyes are the first things you notice. His angular cheekbones from his flawless skin, and his lean body stands at six foot four. Easily a perfect specimen to look at. 

“He’s not Max,” Ivy whispers. 

Cody is perfectly attractive, but no, he isn’t Max. 

What am I doing here? 

Ivy huffs. It's like I can feel the bratty wolf rolling her eyes at me. 

I raise an eyebrow at Cody, his smirk searing me to my core. He steps into me to trail his fingers down my arms, tickling them across my fingers to rest at my hips, eight fingertips pressing into the flesh of my ass. And his thumbs? Way too close to my groin. I take a jerky step back, ridding my body of his debauched touch.  

“Let's take a seat,” I say indifferently, blatantly ignoring his comment. His smirk doesn’t falter. He just simply nods, and moves to the table to take a seat across from me. Those blue eyes easily peruse my chest, silently defiling me with his eyes until a young waitress pops up beside us. 

“Hello! I am Mary. I will be your server today. What can I get you started with this evening?” her voice is perky and excited, strictly opposite of the mood at this table. 

“We’ll take two beers and the bread basket,” Cody answers before I can. 

“I will actually just have a water,” I retort quickly. But Cody just grins and flashes those blues at the girl. 

“We’ll take the beers, please, darling.” She giggles and nods, flitting away without even asking for ID. I roll my eyes. This date already sucks. What the hell was I thinking?

“What do you think you want to eat?” I ask casually, trying to be pleasant. He hums quietly. 

“I think I will have a steak and potatoes plate for dinner. And a little white wolf for dessert.” 

Vomit. No. 

“That is probably not a wise food choice,” I hedge. 

“Neither is chocolate, but cake is still the most popular dessert on their menu.” 

I am about to tell him not to hold his breath when the waitress appears with two bottles plus a dripping water cup. At least she listened to me a little bit. Cody once again orders for us both, and whisking the girl away before I can speak. I have not been on many dates, but I know this one isn’t going well; we’ve been here for thirty minutes, and I want to punch him. Everything out of his mouth is perverse, and his eyes keep obviously wandering to my breasts. If he only wanted to get laid then why even bother actually asking me out? 

“I have a question for you, Natalia,” he muses after gulping down some beer. 

“Shoot.”

“What exactly is up with you and the Douglas boy?” He pauses. “Everyone is wandering. You aren’t sleeping with him are you?” 

“No. Me and Sam are just friends. I’m not sleeping with anyone.” 

“No one? Never?” 

“Never.” I clarify as clearly as I can. A troublesome look comes over his face, his eyes taking me in like it's the first time. his gaze sends shivers across my skin, and the grin that lights his face tells me that he saw. And that he thought it was for him. He crosses his wrists, leaning forward on his elbows, closer to my side of the table. 

“So, you have never felt a man’s touch? You’ve never had the slickness of a man’s tongue between your thighs? Never had the exhilarating release of orgasm?” He leans forward even more, the table shuddering beneath his weight as he brings himself close enough to whisper. “You’re telling me that you’ve never been f****d?” 

“Crude, Cody,” I deadpan. “But no. I have not. I am waiting for my mate.” I tell him clearly. 

“Mmm. I wouldn’t be so s—” his words are drowned out by porcelain plates dropping to the table in front of me. a bit of sauce spills over the edge, though his are placed gently and with care; the waitress leaning over more than necessary. 

“She can have him,” Ivy snorts. I just roll my eyes. 

Thankfully, he starts eating without picking up our conversation. I happily oblige, digging into my steak that I loathe to say is actually very good. Cody’s eyes continue to intimately peruse my face and chest while making quiet, suggestive noises as he slowly eats his food. I do my best to ignore him, focusing instead on my own plate, and avoiding my perspiring beer bottle.

Finally, after a meal that lasts way too long for a couple of wolves, he picks up the check and we head out. I pull out my phone, preparing to call Sam to come and pick me up, but Cody’s voice in my ear distracts me. 

“I had a nice time,” he murmurs. “Let’s walk home. It's such a nice night out.” 

I glance at him from the side of my eye, weighing the options here. I’m not particularly worried about being able to hold my own, but is it truly smart to continue to encourage him? Though, I have made it clear that I don’t want anything physical tonight. He may try, but I'll tell him no and it’ll be fine, I'm sure. 

A walk could be nice. 

I'll just keep my distance. 

He presses a hand to the base of my spine, and I quickly flinch away, putting at least two feet between us as we start towards the woods separating the college and the pack house. We walk silently for most of the distance; him constantly straying closer to me, and me constantly avoiding his closeness. Why he doesn’t get the picture, I don’t understand. 

I start to feel the slight buzz of the pack line; the border of our pack. The whole Alpha family can feel it buzzing beneath our skin when we near it. It's always a comforting feeling, but right now, it's the most amazing feeling ever. This date is nearly over. Until he stops. 

Dammit. 

Can I just keep going? 

“Nat?”

“Guess not,” Ivy whines. I sigh. I turn to face him, raising an eyebrow in question. He steps close into my space. I attempt to step back, but am immediately stopped by a tree at my back. He pushes in closer, narrowing the space between the front of our bodies. 

“I have been waiting for this moment all day long,” he purrs. 

“To go home?” I ask hopefully. 

“We can finish at home.” He steps in closer, our bodies now pressed tightly together. “But we are starting here.”