Page 20 of Bred By the Beast

“The bees okay?”

He stopped in his tracks for a minute, then went along with it. “Yes, the bees are secure.”

“That’s good, because I know how much you love your honey.” She barely looked up from the pages.

Wilder sat on the wooden coffee table he’d built, taking the book from her hands and placing it carefully beside him. “I want to show you something. Are you up for a bit of cooking?”

“Well, after everything, I’m not very sleepy.”

She followed him over to the kitchen area. He’d been wanting to share different things with her, and he couldn’t keep waiting. “Have you ever had honey marshmallows?” he asked, as he got all the simple ingredients together.

“Definitely not, but they sound amazing.”

After adding the ingredients to the pot, he instructed her to keep stirring. He stood behind her, telling her what to do every step of the way. She was so small compared to him. He breathed in her scent, closing his eyes to savor the delicious smell. His mate. He snaked his arms around her waist from behind, bending over to breathe deeply along her neckline. She didn’t pull away or flinch from his touch.

Wilder kissed her neck just below her ear. “They’re perfect with hot chocolate.”

He heard her breathing change, and felt her desire like perfume in the air.

“I’m excited to try them,” she said. “I love trying new things.”

They’d gotten to the final step and had to let the honey marshmallows cool before cutting them. She washed her hands, then turned around, drying them on her pants.

“Can we talk?” she asked.

“Yes, what about?”

Did she know about him? Did she question if he was human? Did she want to move away from his cabin and back to the city and her comfortable lifestyle? He tried to keep stoic, terrified of her talk.

“About us.”

Fuck.

“Okay. Let’s sit down.” He took her hand, leading her to the plaid sofa.

They were close, and he couldn’t stop staring at her. Her blonde hair was almost dry, and she looked so beautiful and natural. Like an angel.

“I know you said I could stay here, but I don’t want to be an inconvenience or something to be tolerated. I just want to know your real feelings for me, no matter what they are. Please don’t lie or tell me what you think I want to hear. If there’s any chance of this working, it has to be two sided. I hope this all makes sense.”

“This is what you wanted to talk about?” His hackles eased.

His little mate actually wanted to be here, and only worried about being accepted. Happiness and relief flooded his body. He thought he’d been fucking up his mating, but maybe things were going better than he’d thought.

“I’ve made you uncomfortable.”

“No,” he said quickly. “But I haven’t done my job well if you have to second-guess my intentions.”

“What are your intentions?” she asked.

“Poppy, everything that’s happened before now was leading up to you. You’re the one I’ve been waiting for. My mate. The only woman I want in my life.”

“But you barely know me. And I’ve caused so much trouble.”

“We’ll change that,” he said, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles. “But never doubt how far I’d go to protect you.”

Chapter Eight

What did he mean by how far he’d go to protect her?