She’d already fallen asleep.
Mark carried her to his bed, depositing her on the mattress before stepping back to debate what came next.
Stripping her down seemed…dirty. If she’d been awake, he could have asked her what she wanted, but there was a line he refused to cross now that she’d drawn it in the sand.
Instead, he pulled off her shoes, put them on the floor in the closet. She’d hung up a bunch of her things, and he smiled at the sight.
When he turned back to the bed, it was to discover she’d nestled into the covers, curled up and purring.
Seriously purring.
Mark sat on the edge of the mattress next to her, and stared. Rosy colour in her cheeks, one hand lying comfortably beside her head, the other stretched out toward where he intended to crawl in later.
To a human it might have seemed strange—that she’d said no to mating with him and yet was snuggled into his bed. Made sense to him, though. There was a huge difference between sex for fun and sex as mates and plain old cuddling. He wasn’t as sure about cats, but wolves were pack animals. Being with others satisfied something deep inside.
So far, so good. As long as he could keep them moving in the proper direction.
They’d discussed many ideas for the B&B, but she’d never promised to stay forever. Until she did, he wouldn’t be able to calm down, even though she’d admired his supposed placid exterior. Inside he was a bundle of concerns, wanting more. Needing more. One step at a time, he had to convince her they belonged together.
The sound rising from her increased—that cute little cross between a snore and a purr, and Mark smiled.
There was another thing he could add to the list of things he knew about his mate. She had two speeds: full and off. He grabbed a light quilt from the cupboard and covered her up for the night.
Chapter Five
Eyes wide open.
Ouch.
Eyes snapping shut in self-defence as sunshine hit her face. Tessa threw back the covers and leapt to her feet.
When the floor didn’t seem familiar, it took a few seconds to complete the mental whirl through everything that had happened the previous day. She glanced down, spotting the well-wrinkled clothing she’d slept in at the same moment she caught sight of Mark.
He was asleep, sitting upright in an oversized wingback chair, his temple resting against one support.
Her gaze darted over the room, taking in the messed-up bed sheets, her disheveled condition and his awkward sleeping arrangements.
She hadn’t meant to kick him out of his own bed.
Guess that conversation would have to happen today. She slipped into the bathroom, washed her face, admired the view out the window then shot herself into the kitchen to discover what he might have in the fridge. She needed something she could pull together for breakfast without ruining the food, burning the house down or poisoning them both.
Cereal and milk. That she could handle. Digging through the cupboard turned up bowls, spoons and cups. Which made her think of coffee.
Cofffeeeeeeeeeee.
She ignored the little warning twinges her brain shot at her. While she didn’t need coffee, it was clear from the impressive machine sitting on the counter that Mark wouldn’t mind a cup. After being rude enough to keep him from a good night’s sleep, the polite thing was to do a little extra work on his behalf. He would probably love to have a nice cup of joe to wake up to.
Tessa dragged the silver and black monstrosity away from the wall to look it over. Seemed simple enough. She pulled a lever, and a small compartment opened up, the scent of ground beans making her toes curl.
Nope, not a good idea, sniffing anything stimulating. She’d learned that back in college after a particularly horrifying event involving Red Bull, chocolate and an all-night study session.
But for Mark? She’d find a way to escape the buzz she could get just preparing a pot.
A bit of digging through the freezer brought up a bag of small dark ovals. She hurried to avoid getting more of a head rush than necessary. She loaded the hopper, closed the lever and pushed the big red button. A satisfying whirl filled the air.
Between the cranking noises and the bubbling she soon had going, Tessa was pleased.
Transferring the ground beans into the little cup holder she was sure she’d seen people on television use, she paused. Something didn’t seem right. A bright flashing light distracted her from her misgivings and she rushed ahead and flicked the final switch.
Dark liquid poured from the machine’s spout. And continued to pour. She grabbed another cup and watched anxiously as it approached the point of overflowing as well. Tessa scrambled in the cupboard and pulled out as many cups as she could reach, falling in to a comfortable routine of slipping one cup after another under the unending drip.
Pulling the power cord might have seemed desperate, but soon it was her only choice. She’d run out of cups.
Tessa ignored the mess and picked up the original coffee, stirring one final time to add a pretty swirl to the foam.
Her attempt resulted in something closer to a fish head than a flower. She shrugged off her disappointment and headed to the bedroom. Mark would appreciate the gesture. She was sure of it.
He was still in the chair, eyelids fluttering as she approached. His smile brightened, his gaze taking her in. “Hey.”
She put the cup down on the side table and dropped to her knees beside him, hands resting on his thighs. “Hey yourself. You silly puppy. Why didn’t you come to bed properly?”
Mark stretched. “You were in the middle of the bed, and I didn’t want to bother you or make you uncomfortable.”
“Awwww.” Something went soft and squishy inside. “That’s so sweet of you. Unnecessary, but sweet.”
“It’s not silly to want the best for you,” Mark insisted. “Don’t ask me to not do what I think is right.”
He’d got her on that one. “You could have slept in the other room.”
He shook his head. “Nope. Wolf wouldn’t let me.”
Tessa paused. “I’m sorry. I’m making your life awkward, aren’t I?”
“Thrown my world for a loop. It’s okay, though.” Mark sat up to the edge of the chair and patted her hand gently. “I’ll live.”
Now she was even happier she’d found a way to do something nice for him this morning. “I made you coffee.”
He took a deep breath and…cringed? “Really? Umm, thank you.”
He picked up the cup and brought it to his nose to take another, more cautious sniff.
“Is something wrong?”
“No, not at all.” Mark blinked hard. He put the cup to his mouth and took a sip. His throat seemed to work hard as he swallowed. “Thank you,” he repeated.
Only he held the mug and didn’t drink anymore, just stared at her, a hint of a smile on his lips.
Nice-looking lips, she noted.
“Well. Plans for the day.” She rose to her feet and snuck to the closet, shifting a few garments around. “You have a couple drawers for me to use?”
He put his cup down and followed her, pulling open a space and removing the T-shirts. “Have at ’er. If you need more room, I’ll build you your own dresser.”
“Awesome.” She stripped off her dirty clothing and reached for clean undies, stopping when this strange gurgling noise met her ears. She straightened and looked at him with concern. “Mark, you okay?”
His pupils were huge, his nostrils flaring. The tension in his body screamed out, if she’d happened to miss the fists clenched at his sides. “No worries.”
Deep and low, his voice whispered through barely opened lips.
She pulled on panties and adjusted her bra, tugging the closet open to grab a fresh pair of jeans. “What would you like to do this morning?”