Dire Wolf Mates - Chapter 81: Chapter 81

When Tracey left her new hotel room, the manager of the Oasis had suddenly found for her, her first thought was to go straight to the beach. So she did.
There was no one to tell her not to, after all. No one to remind her she was not beach body ready or to scold her choice of bathing suit. Years of Mother’s constant criticisms were ingrained in her brain, but Tracey had been working hard to push them right out of her head.
She was her own person, and that might not be what Daniella Donner wanted in her daughter, but that was too bad for her uptight mother. Tracey was worthy of love and respect, and she deserved to be happy.
It was a hard lesson, learning happiness did not grow on trees. There would be no happy ever after within easy pickings for Tracey. But those were lessons she’d learned early. Tracey always knew she would have to endeavor to find her own happiness. Good thing she didn’t mind a little hard work.
Giggling like a child as the cool Atlantic bathed her unpolished toes, she tried not to picture her mother. The woman who birthed her would be horrified her only child had failed to get a pedicure before stepping onto the beach. But Tracey didn’t care.
In fact, she realized in the short time she’d been in Maccon City, a lot of her stress and anxiety were caused by the same thing. Fear of displeasing her parents. Blame them as she might want to, truth was, this was Tracey’s fault. Her mother and father were not bad people, but she had failed to define her boundaries.
By not speaking up, she had allowed them to pick at her very soul. But no more. She needed time away from them so she could like herself again and get her feet on solid ground. It was a blessing that Tracey was financially independent.
Fact was, she did not require her parents’ approval to be happy. She could live her life as she saw fit, pursue her craft, and just be happy. Tracey was just not anything like her parents, and that was okay.
She was fine with being different. It didn’t make her bad or less than in any way at all. She’d made peace with that a long time ago, and yet she’d failed to convey her feelings to the two people who should have cared about her most of all. Maybe her unfortunate confrontation with her mother had been necessary.
It was just the push she needed to go out there and do the things she liked and wanted to do with her life. It was scary leaving home, but she was a big girl in more ways than one.
“You’re gonna be alright, Tracey,” she told herself in a low whisper.
Maccon City had one of the prettiest beaches she had ever seen, and it was no wonder so many tourists flocked to New Jersey to visit every year. Tracey sat and watched the waves for hours, spying a pod of bottlenose dolphins a few hundred feet out into the blue Atlantic. The constant breeze was soothing to her soul, as were the warm rays of the afternoon sun. Children laughed, lovers held hands, and the ambience was like a balm to her hurts. She had definitely come to the right place.
Beautiful. Peaceful. Magical.
After a while, she stood and walked along the shore until she saw a private property sign. Feeling a little reckless, she continued on, making sure no one was around. Something about the water was just so inviting, enticing even.
In a completely uncharacteristic move, Tracey stripped off her cover up and bathing suit, allowing the summer wind to caress her warm, naked flesh.
The act was like making a statement. A proclamation that Tracey was in the here and now. She was alive and in the world. She was her own person. Worthy of love and respect. A familiar refrain played itself over and over in her mind.
I am woman. Hear me roar.
Tracey grinned and took off at a run, diving between the beckoning waves of the still cool Atlantic. Smiling and bursting with pride at her sheer nerve, Tracey kicked her feet and used her arms and hands to slice through the water in a clumsy breaststroke. She flipped over, floating on her back and allowed the water to surround her. She couldn’t hear anything but the sound of her own breathing and the rapid beat of her heart with her ears beneath the surface, and that was fine with her.
The Atlantic was doing a good job, lifting her up and washing away all her cares and worries. It felt so good, so invigorating. The salt water caressed her naked skin, and wow, she felt so free without a stitch of clothing on.
How many times had she been taught to hide her body as if it were something shameful? How many times had her parents set her up with gym memberships, personal trainers, dieticians, and fat camps?
Some of her worst memories centered on her parents’ reactions to her weight and body shape. She’d tried it their way for years, and even when she had lost weight, she never kept it off. Her body just seemed to like chub. What could she say?
She ate healthy almost all the time. Choosing fish over steak, plenty of leafy greens, lean poultry, whole grain breads, and the like—but yes, she also occasionally indulged in mint chocolate chip ice cream, chocolate covered strawberries, and coffee with cream.
She exercised, sorta. Tracey loved to go for walks and got a few miles every day, either outside or on the treadmill. She was a real woman with real curves. Tracey had friends who were thin and naturally slender, and they were still not a hundred percent happy with their bodies. The way she saw it, every body was a work in progress. And regardless of what Mother said, every body was a beach body, too. Yes, she carried some extra pounds, but she refused to feel sad about it.
Lost in her thoughts, Tracey did not realize she wasn’t alone until she collided with what felt like a wall floating in the ocean—albeit a warm, muscular, living wall.
“What the hell? Oh damn! I’m sorry, I thought I was alone,” she shrieked.
Tracey was completely mortified. How had she not seen this gorgeous man getting into the water?
Crap.
This was a private beach. Was it his? She had never done anything as reckless as this, but Tracey couldn’t seem to help herself. With the sun dipping low in the sky as afternoon mingled with evening, she’d been sort of inspired—and then she’d been caught.
Double crap.
Tracey should get out. She couldn’t, though. Holy hell, she had almost forgotten she was totally and completely naked. All her girly bits were hanging out. Thank goodness the water was not crystal clear. New Jersey had clean beaches, but the algae and whatnot tended to be more opaque than the tropics.
I AM NAKED WITH A STRANGER. OMG. OMG. OMG.
“S’fine,” the gorgeous stranger grumbled. He was super handsome, and his grin had her tummy doing somersaults as he flashed it her way. “You are mostly alone. Just me and a hungry shark.”
“Shark?” Tracey screeched again, practically jumping on the man.
Thank goodness, she remembered herself before she did anything else humiliating. Nerves wracked her body, but one look in the man’s crystalline gaze had her calming right down.
Holy cow. He is beautiful.
He really was the best looking man she had ever seen. Even better, he seemed to enjoy talking with her. Could she handle a little casual flirting? She wouldn’t know if she didn’t try.
Eeeeek!
After some minor discussion, she convinced the hunky man to turn around while she got out of the water. It took a second, but she pulled on her bathing suit and called out to him.
He’d stayed turned around the whole time—at least she thought he had. And for some reason, that disappointed her.
Good manners are nice. Dirty boys are nicer, though.
Unfortunately, Tracey did not offer him the same courtesy. He strode from the water naked as the day he was born, and holy freaking hotness, the man was glorious.
She was dumbstruck as the man stepped out of the darkening waters, looking like a sea god about to embark on his reign over the dry lands.
He can reign over me anytime with that body. OMG. Did I just think that? I am a total slut.
She shook her head and dropped her gaze as he pulled on his trunks. What kind of person was she? Ogling a stranger—not a stranger, his name is Phoenix Tala—like he was some prize stallion was not becoming of a person with morals.
She should be ashamed of herself. Would be, too, as soon as she got the image of his perfect body out of her head. Which would be like two weeks from never. The man was packing some serious heat between his thick, rugby player thighs.
A person had to work out to have legs like that. Was he a professional athlete? It would not surprise her at all with his muscular build. Unfortunately, she knew fuck all about sports. Holy cow! Tracey was even cursing in her thoughts now.
“I should go,” she mumbled.
“You wanna leave me, already? After all we’ve been through?” Phoenix replied and gave her a panty, er, swimsuit melting grin.
She was shocked at the easy banter that followed, and found herself agreeing to have dinner with the man. Phoenix caught her hand in his and sent her pulse racing with the simple gesture. Had anyone ever wanted to hold hands with her like that? She could not remember a time. He made her so nervous she couldn’t even walk in a straight line.
“Sorry, I’m clumsy,” she said, almost tripping once they got to the sidewalk. She was embarrassed and tried to laugh it off, stepping away from the man. But Phoenix held strong.
“You’re not clumsy, Tracey.”
“No, seriously, I am. And I’m so sorry about all this, roping you into dinner⁠—”
“I was the one who asked you,” he reminded her gently, and she warmed to him a little more.
“Why are you so nervous now? After a little trespassing and skinny dipping, dinner should be no problem for a badass like you,” Phoenix said.
“Me? I think you’re getting a little ahead of yourself. I’m no badass. More like a short, chubby, stick in the mud, who still lives at home with her parents and never does anything for fun, or at least, I did up until a few hours ago,” she admitted to her shock.
“Well, I don’t know who you’re talking about, but the Tracey I know—and yes, I consider myself an expert by now—is daring, courageous, beautiful as fuck, and has me completely captivated,” Phoenix said, and damn, her stomach was doing somersaults at his praise.
Holy cow. The man’s smile should be classified as a lethal weapon. Tracey tucked her damp hair behind her ear with her right hand, her left firmly encased in his. She licked her lips, cheeks were burning with embarrassment.
“Captivated, huh?” she asked.
“That’s right. Now, I wanna get to know you, Tracey Donner.”
“Why?”
“A hundred reasons, and yet, they all amount to the same thing.”
“What’s that?” she asked, wondering what kind of spell he was weaving around her to make her ask such questions aloud.
“I’ll tell you,” he said, clicking his tongue behind his teeth and looking slightly nervous for such a jaw-dropping gorgeous man. “After we eat, though. So, what do you like?”
“I like everything, obviously,” she murmured.
“I don’t know what you mean, why is it obvious?”
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah,” he said, cocking his head to the side.
Holy crap, she could tell he was really serious. The man was not making a rude comment or joke about her weight, and she had no idea what to do with that information other than stand there in awe.
“Um, it’s been pointed out to me before that I was overweight. So, when I said it was obvious, I eat everything, I guess I was being self-deprecating. Phoenix, I would like to apologize for that now⁠—”
“You don’t have a damn thing to apologize for, and anyone who ever made you feel less than is not worth a minute of your time, Tracey. Now, I like the way you look. Hell, I more than that, and if you need proof, well, I’ve been rocking a boner since I laid eyes on you. Now, I’m not telling you that to scare you,” he continued, unrushed. “I have no intention of doing anything you don’t want, you control the pace, I’m just throwing that out there, so there is no misunderstanding. I want you to know I find you incredibly hot.”
“Wow. Well, first, thank you. That was quite the compliment,” she said.
Tracey paused, casting a quick glance towards his swimsuit clad nether regions, and sure enough, the evidence of his admiration was right there, filling out his trunks with what had to be ten to eleven inches of long, hard man.
Yep, he’s got a boner. And I gave it to him.
“But I wasn’t apologizing for anyone else. I was apologizing because I should never have said anything like that. I’m turning a new leaf, Phoenix Tala, and you caught me right at the cusp.”
“Really?”
“Yes, you see, I decided I like myself, curves, and quirks, and all. I won’t be apologizing for myself anymore. And I am not looking for a man to save me or change me. Just thought you should know that up front.”
It was the boldest statement Tracey had ever made, but she meant it. Sure, it was way too early for her to speak so plainly to the man, but maybe it would save her a little heartache to get it out in the open now. She stopped walking and looked into his face, expecting rejection and maybe even anger. Instead, Tracey was floored when she saw something closely resembling pride in his glittering green gaze.
“Good for you. Don’t take anyone’s shit, Tracey. Not ever. Least of all mine.”
“You are the strangest man,” she mused, and Phoenix tossed his head back and barked a loud laugh.
“Yeah,” he murmured. “I get that sometimes. How about Mexican food?”
“I like Mexican,” she replied as they fell into an easy rhythm side by side.
“So, what brings you to Maccon City?”
“Oh, well. That’s a long, boring story,” she replied, liking the feel of his warm hand around hers.
Rarely in life had Tracey ever felt small or dainty, but next to the behemoth of a man, she felt positively petite. The way he looked at her warmed her insides, and raw attraction flooded her system. It was pretty difficult to ignore the physical awareness blossoming between them. With his boner statement and all, it was a wonder she hadn’t melted into a puddle of needy woman at his feet.
“I doubt any story about you could be boring,” he returned.
“Why? You don’t even know me,” she stated, laughing a little at his bold reply.
Men didn’t usually flirt with her. Especially not men who looked like him, so she couldn’t be entirely sure that’s what was happening.
“I’d like to get to know you, Tracey. Really, I would,” he replied, taking care to look both ways before walking her across the street.
“Wow. So, you fake save me from a shark, get naked with me in the ocean, listen to part of my sob story, and you’re still here, wanting more? I am not sure what you want from me, but you are wasting your time if you think I’m desperate enough to fall for a line like that,” she said bluntly.
“It’s no line,” he growled, turning to face her. “I apologize if I offended you with my blunt talk earlier, but I meant everything I said. I want to spend time with you.”
“You really do?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, then. Let’s get some Mexican food.”
“Good,” he said, and seemed to relax once more.
They started walking again, and she did her best to stay even with his long strides. Impossible really, since it took two of her shorter, less elegant steps to make one of his.
The man moved like a dancer. Or maybe a professional soccer player. All grace and understated power. No awkward stumbles or half steps for him. She couldn’t imagine what it was like to be born with such innate dignity. He was really perhaps the most beautiful man she had ever seen.
Which begged the questions—what was he doing here? And why was he alone?
Sexy, puzzling man. I wonder what he’s searching for.
With any luck, Tracey might find out.