Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11

O livia sat alone in the library lost in her thoughts, Tiernan having left right after he told her to think about it. Was he really suggesting they mate and have children? Was she nothing more than a solution to the werewolf problem? If this was the puzzling mystery to solve, how did it help make her decision easier?

Her arrival here a few days ago held such promise. Now it held nothing but confusion, and she was stuck here. Yet with all the confusion, she still wasn’t ready to leave… Tiernan. It all came down to Tiernan and how she felt about him, but how did he feel about her? Or did he feel no more than an attraction for her? Where she, however, had fallen in love with him. Did he feel as strongly or was it his concern for the pack that took priority and the reason for the job offer?

Supper came and went, and Tiernan was nowhere to be seen. Olivia didn’t mind. She needed time to think and perhaps he realized that and let her be. She read some before turning in for the night, though she barely recalled what she read, her mind too busy to concentrate on the words.

She lay there twisting and turning, not able to sleep.

She heard the heavy footsteps and listened as they grew closer to her door. The door swung open and Tiernan stood there naked. His rugged scent preceded him into the room, and it flared her desire as usual.

He walked to the bed and stood a moment looking down at her, then threw the blanket off her and scooped her up into his arms. He didn’t say a word. He simply carried her to his bedroom, dropped her down on the bed, his strong hands making quick work of her pajamas and socks. Then he got in bed, pulled the blanket over them, and wrapped himself snuggly around her.

“I missed you,” he whispered, as if that was explanation enough for his actions, then he brushed his cheek faintly across hers. “You belong here with me.”

Strangely enough, she agreed with him. She missed him as well and she missed lying naked in his arms, his heat keeping her more than comfortably warm. That he didn’t attempt to have sex with her made it all the more satisfying. It showed her that it wasn’t sex he was after, it was having her there with him, in his arms, sleeping with her. He missed her, not just the sex, but her.

Of course, that stole her heart even more. She was really in a pickle now.

What does a woman do when she’s fallen in love with a werewolf?

A poke to the side followed by a quick kiss woke her.

“Get dressed while I start breakfast,” he said and got out of bed and dressed.

She stirred, some, not eager to leave the warmth of the bed, Tiernan’s heat and scent still lingering there and she still wishing to enjoy it.

He returned to the bed, leaning over her to give her another quick kiss. “Hurry up, we have much to discuss.”

She was eager to talk with him, though she was more eager to share a quicky with him. Where this sudden, hungry, sexual appetite came from she didn’t know, but she intended to enjoy it.

He turned when he reached the door and sent her a wicked smile. “I’ll see to that need of yours after breakfast, mo ghràdh , but first we eat and talk.”

She smiled as she stretched herself awake like a lazy cat unfurling from a satisfying sleep. It always touched her heart when he called her my love. She bolted up to sit, the blanket falling off her, leaving her bare chest to chill fast. She did not care. She was too consumed by her sudden revelation.

“He’s been courting me from the beginning,” she said as if saying it aloud somehow made it sound probable. “Courting me like a wolf would an intended mate—to a human—a wife.”

Did he want her as his wife? Or was she crazy?

They had found each other appealing from when they first met at the train station. He had even offered her his gloves, touched with wolf hair, his wolf hair, and she had accepted, letting him know she was interested, that he could approach her. And he had that first night when he entered her bedroom as Laird. He had whined as a wolf did when he approached a female wolf he was interested in mating with, and he nuzzled her face and neck often another show of affection, of love.

Could he really love her? Had he fallen as hard for her as she had for him?

A wolf would not approach a female unless she allowed him to, and he would not have sex with her unless she agreed. Once they mated that was it. They were joined for life.

Being his mate, his wife, would also explain the job position, second in command. The female wolf had almost as much authority as the alpha wolf, the pack obeying her. She wouldn’t be an employee of the preserve, but more a partner, leaving no restrictions when it came to her.

She smiled at how easily the problem of having sex with her boss was solved. But what of the werewolves’ need for an infusion of human blood? Where did that fit in? Had that come first? Or had love been the driving force for his reason to mate with her?

She needed to talk with him and settle this once and for all. She hurried to her room and dressed, leaving her hair loose, not wanting to waste time finding the clip that usually held it, and then rushed to the kitchen.

Olivia halted a few steps into the kitchen, Tiernan’s back to her. The room was filled with delicious scents, but his rugged scent dominated and set her heart to beat faster.

He turned and stared at her as he dried his hands with the towel he held, then dropped it on the counter.

“You figured it out,” he said as he walked toward her.

She held her hand up to stop him. If he got too close, she wouldn’t be able to think straight and went to speak, but he spoke first.

“I had hoped you would realize that I properly courted you as a wolf would when he found a female he wished to mate with, spend his life with, and love with all his heart before you realized there was a problem with the werewolves. I fell in love with you at first sight, if you can believe that. You stole my heart as soon as you got in my vehicle and looked at me and I could tell, sense, that I appealed to you. I started thinking then of how I would court you and offer you a position beside me as my wife, my mate. Maybe I should have been more forward, more transparent, but as alpha as I am, I think I feared you might refuse me, and I wasn’t sure how I would handle that since I had already lost my heart to you.”

Olivia got teary-eyed and was at a loss for words. All she could do was stare at him.

He walked toward her slowly. “I want you in my life, Olivia. I cannot bear the thought of you leaving here. I love you. I want to marry you, have children with you, and since I can feel my life strength waning, I hope to live only as long as you do so that we can spend the afterlife together.”

Tears began to roll down her cheeks.

“Please tell me those are tears of joy,” he said, reaching her and wiping her tears away with his thumb, then resting his hand on her wet cheek.

She placed her hand on his wrist and turned her face into his palm to caress it with her cheek, then looked up at him. “I believe I fell in love with you at first sight as well. Though it does sound crazy, I can’t argue with myself at how I felt when meeting you and how that feeling grew. I came here hoping you might hire me and instead I fell in love with you. Though,” she said with a tilt of her head, “I never expected the werewolf issue.”

“Will it be a problem?” he asked cautiously.

“I think it will take some adjustment, but since I love wolves, I think I can adapt.”

“I and the others will make it as easy as possible for you,” he assured her. “Fay warned me not to let you get away. She knew when first seeing us together that we had strong feelings for each other, and she insists that I have been alone too long, as does my brother, Sim.”

“I would love to meet your brother.”

“You will and others as well. There are homes throughout the preserve where many of the werewolves live and the regular wolves live peacefully among them. There is so much for you to see and learn and I can’t wait to show it to you and to see the wealth of knowledge you bring to the preserve.”

She threw her arms around Tiernan and hugged him tightly. “You’ve made my dream come true.”

“You did that, Olivia, with all your hard work. You earned your dream, and I am thrilled and grateful to be part of it.”

He kissed her, not a breath-stealing kiss but one that somehow, in its own way, sealed their love.

When it ended, she smiled and said, “I’m starving, and I think I should cook.”

Tiernan laughed. “So am I, and I agree. You should cook.”

They worked together, laughing, hugging, and kissing, so it took a bit longer than usual to get breakfast cooked.

They sat across from each other at the table, their hands reaching out often to take hold.

“I have to return home to see to leaving my job, packing my apartment, and ending the lease,” she said, not happy with the prospect of leaving him.

“You won’t be going anytime soon with this snow. You may not be able to leave until after winter, which, of course, I don’t mind. But I do understand your responsibilities. Maybe there’s a way we can take care of it from here, so you don’t have to leave.”

“As much as I don’t want to go, there are things I need to see done there in person.”

“I suppose I can travel with you if it isn’t for too long,” he said.

He sounded doubtful, so Olivia asked, “Why is travel difficult for you?”

“I cannae go long without shapeshifting. I get agitated, angry, if I go too long without being able to run free.” He reached out and took hold of her hand. “Though understand one thing, Olivia, I would never, not ever, under any circumstances harm you. I would, however, do everything in my power to keep you safe.”

“I have no doubt about that, and you don’t need to travel with me back home. I can see to it and be back in about a week.”

“A week without you will be like an eternity,” he said seriously.

The way he squeezed her hand felt like he had no intentions of letting her go and she didn’t want him to let go. “I will see what I can get done from here. I have a friend who is looking for a position where I presently work. Maybe I can talk with my boss and see if she would be interested in hiring him, if he is still looking to get a position there.”

“He?” Tiernan questioned with a slight growl.

Olivia chuckled. “Do you always growl when you’re jealous?”

“Alpha male. Territorial,” he said.

The two words were explanation enough and something she took seriously, knowing wolves.

“Jared is a friend I met at one of the places I worked. He has a wonderful wife and two beautiful daughters, both in college, who he loves dearly. And when he hears where I have settled, I would not be surprised if he asked to visit with his family. Would he be welcome?”

“Aye, it would be nice to meet a friend of yours and his family.”

“His one daughter has an affinity with wolves, though we need to make sure Chad doesn’t meet her. I have a feeling it would be love at first sight.”

Tiernan rolled his eyes. “That’s all I need.”

“It would be good practice for when our children reach their teen years,” she said with a light laugh.

“That I look forward to, though I look more forward to making those bairns.” He stood and walked around the table, pulled her chair out, and scooped her up off it and into his arms. “I think we should start now.”

“We’re not even married yet.”

“We’re not getting any younger,” he said and kissed her as he carried her out of the room.

“We’ll discuss it.”

“Alpha male,” he reminded with a laugh.

“Alpha female,” she countered with a playful tilt of her chin.

He smiled. “We are going to have a good life together, Olivia.”

She kissed him softly before saying, “Aye, my lord, that we will.”

The End

Watch for more Sexual Appetites of Unearthly Creatures !