Dire Wolf Mates - Chapter 33: Chapter 33

Sheila huffed out a breath and sat down at the booth with him. Leo the lunatic Lion.
You mean Leo the luscious, lip-smacking, long-tongued, lengthy if the bulge in his pants can be trusted, loquacious because yes, she had heard the man speak, limber, lithe, lusty, and lucky sonovabitch who made her panties wet, her heart race, and her she-Wolf howl like a banshee.
Shit.
She couldn’t think straight. That kiss had certainly thrown her for a loop. Loopy for a certain loveable Lion. Dammit to hell. Sheila was turning into Motherfucking Goose with all this rhyming and alliteration.
Grrrr.
She’d vowed to steer clear of the man, but here she was, sitting in a cozy little booth with him. After she’d spent the last fifteen minutes making out and letting him feel her up like they were a couple of horny teenagers. The man had moves. She would give him that. And yeah, maybe this was long overdue. Sheila listened to him order, and with surprising ease, she gave herself permission to enjoy this opportunity to just eat lunch with the man.
Kelly was staring, but one sharp look from her, and the female yelped and hustled to the kitchen. Good thing too. Sheila did not need an active audience. She was simply going to eat with the man. An idea that was surprisingly appealing to her.
True, she’d been actively avoiding the big ol’ pussycat ever since she’d gotten his scent. A fated mate. Her. She could not believe it. What were the Fates thinking? Pairing her up at all, never mind the fact he was a Cat Shifter.
She grinned and shook her head. She’d tried to keep her distance, hoping she’d gotten it wrong and the by the book detective wasn’t really hers. But there was no chance of that now. This was no mistake. Fear turned her stomach until she felt queasy. That kiss, that wonderful kiss, had definitely pulled the plug on any hope she’d been holding onto that he was not her mate.
Gulp.
So, yeah, she’d agreed to lunch. Maybe they could come up with a viable solution for this thing. Some kind of temporary fix, or something that wouldn’t end in ruin and heartbreak for the two of them. Also, as a little bonus for herself, maybe Sheila could spend part of this lunch date covertly studying his new look a little.
Tight jeans. Big muscles. Hot, hot man.
She had to admit, Leo the Lion looked good as hell in regular clothing. She’d only ever seen him in suits and ties. Yes, he looked good in those too, but something about a man in a threadbare t-shirt and tight jeans that molded to his powerful frame, showing off his carved muscles and the sheer size of him to the best of their ability, really whetted her appetite.
Sheila’s Wolf approved. Her human side was having one heck of a hard time keeping her eyes and hands to herself. She pinched her leg under the table and shook her head.
What the hell am I doing? Eating lunch with this arrogant male who thinks he can sweep me off my feet just because he threw on some blue jeans!
Hell. No. Stay strong, Sheila. Do not give in. This is how girls get got!
Her she-Wolf snapped her jaws in annoyance at Sheila’s wayward thoughts. According to her other half, this big ol’ pussycat was most definitely her mate, and her inner bitch thought it was about time Sheila started acting like it.
Roll over and assume the position.
Fuck that.
Yes, please.
Not what I meant, Wolf.
Sheila growled softly, but Leo’s attention snapped to her. Pussycat had really good hearing. Good eyes. Good mouth. Hot body.
The better to listen, see, eat, and fuck you with…
I’m the big bad Wolf here, not him.
Potato, potahto.
Sheila had just about had it with her inner Wolf. She didn’t want a mate. Not now. Not ever. And definitely not him. Right?
Not that there was anything wrong with Leo. He was a good man, honest, hardworking, with a moral compass that seemed to pass most Shifters. Plus, he seemed genuinely interested in more than getting into her pants. Or he usually did.
What was up with him, anyway? This was probably the longest he’d gone without pinning her with that golden stare of his. Just the thought made her shiver in anticipation. He had the thickest, longest eyelashes she’d ever seen on a boy. Dark too, despite his blond hair. There was just something about that long, unblinking gaze that melted her in certain spots. Not that she would tell him that.
But for some reason, Leo was not looking at her at all. He’d already ordered but was still looking over the menu. What the actual fuck?
He’s not going to just sit there and ignore me. That’s my shtick.
Sheila wiggled in her seat. Next, she fluffed her hair. Then she licked her lips. Finally, she adjusted her tatas in her bra, dipping her shirt low enough to flash him. But the bastard still didn’t look up. Not a peep. Not one fucking glance.
She glared at him with her lips pursed and eyes narrowed. She tapped the table with her long, hot pink painted fingernails. Nail polish was her one vice when it came to expensive grooming habits. It was a weakness of sorts.
Her mama had always told her material things would weigh down her soul. Best to keep the load light when you lived on the road. But things were different now. Sheila had a permanent place to lay her head, and finally she could indulge.
So, maybe she went a little wild with the old one-click button. Thank fuck for Prime delivery options. Her first online shopping expedition landed her a professional quality manicure set complete with all the tools and instructions she’d needed to care for her supernaturally enhanced nails. That meant only the best stainless steel files and clippers—the kind zoologists used for predators.
Of course, she’d added a dozen top quality polishes to go with it. She liked the stuff so much, she now boasted over two hundred premium bottles of paint in every shade, from daffodil yellow to the hot crush pink she was wearing.
Thor, the Dire Wolf Pack Enforcer, and total sweetie on the inside, had merely grunted as he’d lugged the brown cardboard box full of goodies to her bedroom door. Phoenix had laughed, Brock too. Their teasing had grated on her nerves, but it stopped right after they’d both woken up to aqua-colored nails on their feet and hands. The hard to get off kind. Neither of those boys had anything further to say on the subject.
So, what if she spent an entire month’s wages on the stuff? A girl had to have some fun now and then. Why the hell shouldn’t it be on something that made the rough and tumble Dire Wolf Shifter feel pretty? It might have shocked her Pack mates, but there was more than one side to Sheila. Besides, she didn’t have to explain herself to anyone.
Especially not this usually prim and proper police officer. Who did he think he was, wearing sexy jeans and a t-shirt, messing with her very staid view of him? He was supposed to be a stuffed shirt. For fuck’s sake, this was silly. Truth was Leo filled out anything he wore to perfection with that hard, muscular body and ruggedly handsome face of his.
He was hot as sin and the bastard knew it. Usually, he was the one begging for attention, not her. Sheila raised an eyebrow. Yes, he was hot, but so was she in a curvy girl, badass kind of way. Being good-looking was kind of mother nature’s way of ensuring survival of their species. Not that all Shifters were graced with pretty faces, but hers was more than okay.
Her red hair had mellowed from the flaming days of her youth to a darker, more sultry shade of auburn. Her blue eyes were still big and bright, framed in long dark lashes. She had an okay nose, a little bigger than she would have liked, but whatever. Nicer than average lips. And her body, while a bit chubbier than most Shifter females, was still good to look at, and even better to touch.
She was not embarrassed by her size in any way, shape, or form. Sheila had long ago made peace with the softness of her belly. Her long legs, which made it easier to ride her Harley, firm breasts, and squeezable butt more than made up for it in her opinion. Yes, she had a couple of belly rolls, but fuck it, a girl had to eat.
She didn’t believe salads and celery counted all that much when it came to meals. Sheila’s Wolf was a carnivore, and right then, this meat-eater was getting angrier by the second. It annoyed her that Leo wasn’t looking at her. The man who claimed to be wildly in lust with her was calmly perusing the menu, in the midst of all her rapping. He didn’t even flinch when she raked her nails, scoring the hard wood of the table.
Oops.
Derrick was gonna be pissed. Sheila shrugged one shoulder up. She would deal with him later. The damned pussycat was going too far this time. Why was he even bothering with the menu? He’d already chosen the grilled King salmon with Brock’s spicy cilantro sauce. It was the detective’s favorite dish. He typically paired it with a cold micro-brewed IPA or, when he was on duty, a tall glass of iced tea with a slice of lemon.
She blushed at the fact that she knew so much about the man. Okay, so maybe she kinda, sorta spied on the big pussy whenever he came in. Which was often enough.
Cause he’s ours, her Wolf supplied.
Whatever.
Sheila wasn’t stupid or blind. Yes, she noticed him. She’d have to be dead not to. He was just so big. Massive really. With wide shoulders and rippling muscles cording his tall frame. He walked with the slow, self-assured swagger of a Cat who knew he was hell on women no matter how old or young.
Damn females practically drooled at the mere sight of him. All of them stopped to admire and stare whenever he came to Serious Moonlight. It was all Sheila could do not to unleash her beast and smack down on those bitches.
Mine.
The enormous animal inside her paced back and forth on that metaphysical plane where she resided, while Sheila was in her human skin. Her Wolf’s agitation was enough to make her start picking at her nails.
Fuck no.
She liked that polish too much to chip it. It was just that she felt uneasy. She’d never had her Dire Wolf so pissed at her human side. The two of them were usually completely simpatico. But not lately. Not since he showed up on her radar.
Grrr.
Sheila mentally gave her she-Wolf the finger and stuck her tongue out for good measure. It was just too damn bad. She might not be able to fight this whole fated mates thing forever, but she wasn’t claiming him. It just wouldn’t be fair to him or to herself.
Sheila didn’t want to face those demons just yet. She’d much rather busy herself staring at his chiseled features while he wasted time reading today’s specials. She snorted at the thought. Whatever. It was his time to waste, she supposed, but sooner or later, she’d have to get back to work. Might as well enjoy the scenery.
She’d never gone for pretty boys, but Leo was definitely that, in a strictly macho way, of course. Sheila couldn’t have abided anything less. Her personality was just too damn strong. It was a turnoff for most men she knew, Shifters too, to have a woman be so dominant. So far, Leo didn’t seem bothered. Time would tell, she supposed, that is, if she were to give it to him.
Maybe she would, Leo was a hottie. Leave it to the Fates to send her a man after her own heart’s design. She had a thing for faces, and his was near perfect. Bodies were one thing, but if Sheila couldn’t swoon at a man’s face, he wasn’t worth her time. Leo was worth it.
His nose was straight and long, but it didn’t dominate his face. Still, it was nice, with no sign of ever being broken. Unlike several of her Pack mates. He had a broad forehead, and thick eyebrows two shades darker than his light gold hair. Her fingers itched to run through the smattering of stubble along his square jaw and back to those full lips she’d nibbled on just minutes ago.
His face was good and honest. Okay, fine. She liked it. Very much.
Her curiosity about Leo grew stronger by the second. This was the first time she’d been next to him for so long. Minutes, but they were ticking by so slowly, she felt like hours had passed. His hair was getting long, she mused. The ends were starting to curl around his neck and hang over his forehead. He was usually neater than that. Staid and proper, like the lawman he was.
Nice, she thought. Sexy, too. She’d have something to hold on to now, she thought, picturing him settling those massive shoulders between her thighs, lapping at her sex with his long tongue. Fuck, yes. Nothing like a Big Cat licking between a girl’s legs, in Sheila’s opinion. Leo would be good too, she could tell. He’d have her screaming his name, gasping for air.