Wonder: A Soul Savers Collection of Holiday Short Stories & Recipes by Kristie Cook Page B
Authors: Kristie Cook
tingled in her nose, but now almost pleasantly.
She couldn’t believe she’d told him all that she had, but she felt a sense of relief at letting it all out. Of course, she couldn’t tell him that the so-called family was really a werewolf pack, and that the values they differed on had to do with the sanctity of human lives and souls. He didn’t need to know the true horrors of her past life, but there was still a release in being able to tell him what she did.
“I was so worried about leaving you like I did,” he said. “I felt like a major douche bag, taking off like that. But something happened with the ... the family business, and my sister needed help. If I would have known, well—” He chuckled softly. “Well, I would have let you stay at my place. And I certainly would have made sure you had more food.”
“Why?” Rissa asked, her voice muffled against his chest. “Why are you so nice to me?”
Gray pulled back, just enough to look her in the eye. He raised his hand to her face, and she immediately missed his arm around her. At least, until his knuckles brushed lightly against her cheekbone and his thumb over her lip.
“Because there’s just something about you,” he said. “Something that makes me want to take care of you.”
Rissa swallowed. “I don’t need your charity.”
His eyes squinted. “Um, yeah, you do. You’ve been helping yourself to it.” He smiled at the flush that rose in her cheeks. “And I’m glad you do. I like it—taking care of you. Providing for you. I’m serious about not being able to stop thinking about you. I’ve been wondering what you’ve been doing, where you went, what I could have done to make sure you were okay. You don’t even want to know the anger I felt when I thought about how I found you—naked and dirty—and the visions that ran through my head about how you got that way. I couldn’t help but worry that you’d go back to that, whatever it was, and I didn’t have any way to get a hold of you to know. I really set myself off, worried about you so much, until I couldn’t stand it another moment. I skipped classes to come up here to look for you.”
“You really shouldn’t have.”
“Yes, I should have.”
“I was fine.”
“I see that now. But I wasn’t.”
She looked up at him with big, brown eyes. “Are you now?”
He smiled, bringing out his dimples. Then he gripped her chin with his thumb and finger and leaned in toward her. Without even the slightest hesitation, his lips skimmed over hers, sending a jolt down to her navel. The light kiss became firmer and then urgent. Their mouths parted, and his tongue slid into hers, tasting like cinnamon gum. The kiss went on until they were both left breathless.
“Come on,” Gray said, taking her hand and pulling her toward the house. “I’ll make you dinner.”
He skipped the next day of classes, too, and stayed with her through the weekend. Before he left, he made sure she had plenty of food for the week, and then he returned the following Friday. The weeks passed as the leaves fell, leaving the trees in the woods as naked as Rissa had been when Gray first found her. As naked as he left her in bed every Sunday afternoon. The days grew shorter, but seemed to drag on during the week, and the nights grew colder, but at least on the weekends they could snuggle under the blankets, sometimes outside on the porch swing as night fell, and other times inside by the fire. Thankfully, the full moon came during the middle of the week, and Rissa was able to run the woods those nights without Gray ever knowing.
“I tried to apply for a couple of jobs in town,” she told him one Friday night over dinner. She’d been worried at first that her old pack would find her, but they hadn’t come around since chasing after her over a month ago now. Maybe they’d finally given up. So she took the chance and walked to town, hoping to earn her own money so she could pay Gray back for all of his
She couldn’t believe she’d told him all that she had, but she felt a sense of relief at letting it all out. Of course, she couldn’t tell him that the so-called family was really a werewolf pack, and that the values they differed on had to do with the sanctity of human lives and souls. He didn’t need to know the true horrors of her past life, but there was still a release in being able to tell him what she did.
“I was so worried about leaving you like I did,” he said. “I felt like a major douche bag, taking off like that. But something happened with the ... the family business, and my sister needed help. If I would have known, well—” He chuckled softly. “Well, I would have let you stay at my place. And I certainly would have made sure you had more food.”
“Why?” Rissa asked, her voice muffled against his chest. “Why are you so nice to me?”
Gray pulled back, just enough to look her in the eye. He raised his hand to her face, and she immediately missed his arm around her. At least, until his knuckles brushed lightly against her cheekbone and his thumb over her lip.
“Because there’s just something about you,” he said. “Something that makes me want to take care of you.”
Rissa swallowed. “I don’t need your charity.”
His eyes squinted. “Um, yeah, you do. You’ve been helping yourself to it.” He smiled at the flush that rose in her cheeks. “And I’m glad you do. I like it—taking care of you. Providing for you. I’m serious about not being able to stop thinking about you. I’ve been wondering what you’ve been doing, where you went, what I could have done to make sure you were okay. You don’t even want to know the anger I felt when I thought about how I found you—naked and dirty—and the visions that ran through my head about how you got that way. I couldn’t help but worry that you’d go back to that, whatever it was, and I didn’t have any way to get a hold of you to know. I really set myself off, worried about you so much, until I couldn’t stand it another moment. I skipped classes to come up here to look for you.”
“You really shouldn’t have.”
“Yes, I should have.”
“I was fine.”
“I see that now. But I wasn’t.”
She looked up at him with big, brown eyes. “Are you now?”
He smiled, bringing out his dimples. Then he gripped her chin with his thumb and finger and leaned in toward her. Without even the slightest hesitation, his lips skimmed over hers, sending a jolt down to her navel. The light kiss became firmer and then urgent. Their mouths parted, and his tongue slid into hers, tasting like cinnamon gum. The kiss went on until they were both left breathless.
“Come on,” Gray said, taking her hand and pulling her toward the house. “I’ll make you dinner.”
He skipped the next day of classes, too, and stayed with her through the weekend. Before he left, he made sure she had plenty of food for the week, and then he returned the following Friday. The weeks passed as the leaves fell, leaving the trees in the woods as naked as Rissa had been when Gray first found her. As naked as he left her in bed every Sunday afternoon. The days grew shorter, but seemed to drag on during the week, and the nights grew colder, but at least on the weekends they could snuggle under the blankets, sometimes outside on the porch swing as night fell, and other times inside by the fire. Thankfully, the full moon came during the middle of the week, and Rissa was able to run the woods those nights without Gray ever knowing.
“I tried to apply for a couple of jobs in town,” she told him one Friday night over dinner. She’d been worried at first that her old pack would find her, but they hadn’t come around since chasing after her over a month ago now. Maybe they’d finally given up. So she took the chance and walked to town, hoping to earn her own money so she could pay Gray back for all of his