People like you and me do not go together, and I’m not buying it just because I might have the right scent. You would have never been attracted to me otherwise. Admit it.” She crossed her arms over her middle and glared at him.
His jaw ticked. “I have told you over and over how beautiful you are.
You are not fat. Your body is exquisite, just like a woman’s should be. And, yes, you are my mate. I don’t think it. I know it, but it has nothing to do with me finding you attractive.”
“Bullshit! You would have never given me a second glance if it weren’t for my scent. It’s what draws you to me, isn’t it?”
“It does draw me to you, but it can’t make think that you are beautiful unless I think so for real.” He blew out a long breath of agitation.
“No. I’m not for you, Raze. There’s been some kind of mistake. I’m a plain girl with a plain cupcake business and a limp. I’m so not for you.”
“You are a beautiful woman who is obviously intelligent enough to make a living at what she loves and who has a battle wound in memory of a tragic event that took some of the people she loves from her. You were smart enough to play along after being kidnapped, which allowed us to escape, and your kisses make me so hot, I want to rip off our clothes and ravish you.”
His eyes glowed bright.
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And just like that, her body heated again and ached for his touch. “Surely you can see that we are not a good match. Even if you don’t mind my extra weight, you cannot be strapped with someone who can’t even run with you.”
“That’s just it. You can run with me. If I changed you, your leg would be healed after the first time you shifted. It would be like you had never broken it.”
“I don’t want to be a werewolf. I don’t want to be like those monsters that kidnapped me,” she cried out.
“If that’s truly what you think of me, I guess I cannot change your mind.” He turned and started for the door.
“No, Raze. I didn’t mean you.”
“Yes, you did. I am a lycan, but you don’t seem to be able to differentiate between me and Damon. We are just like people. There are those of us who are good and those who are bad. I would never hurt you or anyone else unless I had no other choice. Yes, we can do things you cannot, like hear, see and smell better. We are much stronger and do have a predatory nature, but we are not, in general, ‘bad.’ We live much longer too. That is why we change our mates, not because we are selfish or want to hurt them, but simply because we do not want to lose them sooner than we must.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to imply that—”
“Forget it, Janine. I promise I’ll clear this mess up as soon as I can, and get you back home to your perfect life. I’ll see if anyone here has a cell phone so you can call home.” He turned and started for the door again.
“No. I have a cell phone in my purse, but I’m not calling my sister. As far as she knows, I will be gone for three weeks on vacation. Until things settle down, I’m not calling her. She’ll be able to tell something is wrong. I’m a terrible liar.”
He shrugged. “If that’s what you want.”
She watched as he left the cabin. What had she done? He’d been nothing but gentle, kind, and caring with her, and she’d just called him a monster.
She’d been raised to not discriminate against others no matter their skin color or circumstances, yet that’s exactly what she’d just done to him, and she felt terrible.
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She thought about how he touched her and watched her. His eyes glowed each time they kissed, and his stare scorched through her as if he could see into her soul, as if he longed for her. Would he look at her like that if he didn’t honestly find her attractive, if he didn’t want her? But how could she know for sure that it wasn’t because of her scent? The answer was, she couldn’t ever be sure. It was one of those things she’d have to put blind faith in or not ever believe.
She tightened her arms around her waist and walked toward the bedroom, knowing that Raze would never let her sleep on the couch.
* * * *
Raze shifted and hit the ground running. His heart ached and anger beat through him with a rhythm that matched the pounding of his paws on the dirt floor of the forest. He loved Janine, loved everything about her, but she obviously would never feel the same way about him. He’d been careful and respectful with her even though the need to take her had clawed at him. Was there any way he could convince her that he wanted her regardless of her scent?
He couldn’t understand the warped image she had of herself. Her lack of confidence dumbfounded him. She was perfect, beautiful, sexy, and she made him want her like no woman ever had his entire life.
He howled and sped up, trying to outrun his pain and anger. Surely he was not destined to a mate who would never see him as anything more than a monster? He had to find a way to make her see him as a man. He had to prove to her that he wanted her and found her attractive. He would woo her, and make her his if it was the last thing he ever did.
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S. K. Yule
Chapter Nine
Janine was cooking dinner in the small, but well-stocked kitchen when she glanced at the
