Dire Wolf Mates - Chapter 85: Chapter 85

Tracey woke up the next morning with her heart pounding a steady tattoo in her chest. Her dreams were feverish, dirty, erotic—all the above. And they featured one man. Phoenix Tala.
The gorgeous, not a stranger anymore, hottie had walked her to her door after dinner and dessert, which, ironically, happened to be next door to his own room at the Oasis.
Oh, she’d wanted more than the delicious kiss he’d given her, but Tracey was new to this sort of thing. Insecurities had threatened to send her packing, but the big, beautiful man shook his head and grabbed her chin, stealing one last, deep kiss before forcing himself away.
He liked her. She felt it to her bones. And dammit, she liked him too. It was way too soon for these feelings, but Tracey had never been good at playing games and waiting. Another thing her mother and her rich friends made fun of her for. But Tracey could not care less about them.
He kissed me.
Her skin buzzed with anticipation as she showered and dressed. Phoenix had asked her to spend the day with him, and she couldn’t wait to start.
“Oh my, who is it?” Tracey asked when someone knocked at the door.
She’d just pulled on a floral printed sundress and was still scrunching her hair when she pulled it open. There he was, looking tempting and hot with the sunshine lighting him up from behind.
“Good morning, beautiful.” Phoenix smiled, handing her a to go cup of coffee from the posh place down the street.
“Thanks,” she replied, taking it from him. “I really need this.”
“I know. You said so last night,” he replied with a sexy chuckle.
Last night was the best date Tracey ever had. It was the first time in memory that a man hadn’t mentioned her weight or eating habits, and she had actually enjoyed herself. Thoroughly.
About damn time, girl.
“Ready? I have some plans for us today,” he told her, and his grin was infectious.
“Well then, let’s get started,” she replied, taking his offered hand.
That was another something new. Phoenix couldn’t seem to help it. It was like he enjoyed touching her, and wasn’t that new? Even better, she liked it, too.
Last night he’d held her hand when they walked, and at dinner, he seemed to find excuses to brush her fingertips or touch her shoulder or leg while they ate. And not in a grabby pervy way, either. He made her feel special—pretty, too.
Tracey liked those feelings. A lot. The man was weaving some sort of spell around her, and as she closed her room door, her coffee in one hand, his hand in the other, she wondered if he knew it.
“Do you believe in magic?” she asked out of the blue.
“Yes,” he replied instantly. “Why?”
“You’ll think it’s silly,” she murmured, walking down the stairs to the street with him beside her.
“I won’t. Promise,” he said, nudging her shoulder and squeezing her fingers carefully.
He stopped walking, and she was forced to stop, too. Her eyes met his, reluctantly, jade green to glittering Columbian emeralds. Damn, he was beautiful. Like some hero from a book. She might as well get this over with. He would probably laugh it off, anyway.
Find your backbone, Tracey. You got this.
“Talk to me, beautiful,” he whispered, and she relaxed.
He was the only man who’d repeatedly called her that, and her heart melted a little more with every utterance of the word. With Phoenix, Tracey felt beautiful. Even more so, she felt confident, and that was a good feeling. One everyone deserved to experience.
“It’s just, I feel like this whole thing, you and me meeting in this place, is kismet,” she whispered, eyes widening as heat seemed to fill her.
Phoenix moved closer, brushing her body with his as he let go of her hand and moved it to her neck. He’d already tossed his coffee cup into the trash can at the foot of the stairs. Both hands were on her now and as his head lowered and he nuzzled her lips with his own, Tracey gasped. Sizzling zaps of electricity raced up her spine, and she swayed on her feet, needing him to kiss her more firmly.
“Me too, Tracey. I feel it, too.”
Then he kissed her, hard and deep, tasting of coffee and man. The combination was delicious, and she loved every second of it. Too soon, he ended the kiss, and they continued down the street with him holding her hand.
They grabbed some Jersey shore breakfast sandwiches—pork roll, fried egg, and cheese on a roll with salt, pepper, and ketchup. Delicious.
After they’d eaten, they headed for the beach. Phoenix had a cabana all booked for them, and she was glad she wore a bathing suit beneath her sundress.
They spent the afternoon swimming, and talking, sharing tidbits of information about each other. She learned his likes and dislikes, discussed movies, books, and random pop culture factoids.
He was so interesting, and he seemed eager to get to know her better. They were treading water, enjoying the low tide, and Tracey was so focused on his answer to her latest question, she didn’t see the wave sneaking up on her. Phoenix’s head shot up.
“Tracey, watch out!” he yelled.
Before she could blink, he swam half a dozen feet of water and pulled her beneath the rough wave, keeping her safe in his steel embrace. She clung to him as the wave passed over them, gasping for breath when he dragged her up.
“Are you, alright?” he asked, hands going over her worriedly.
She was sputtering for air, but nodding her head as she took in the scene around her. Other swimmers had been knocked sideways, and lifeguards were blowing whistles and helping bathers get their bearings. The Atlantic Ocean was infamous for sudden changes in roughness, and soon things had returned to calm.
“Let’s get out a while, okay?” he suggested, and she nodded, still trying to find her air.
“Phoenix?”
“Yeah?” he asked, grabbing a huge beach towel and wrapping it around her shoulders as he helped her sit in one of their rented chairs.
“How did you do that?”
“How did I do what?” he replied, but he wouldn’t meet her eyes, and was busying himself grabbing waters from the cooler.
“You practically blurred across the water to reach me.”
“I’m just a fast swimmer, I guess.”
But that was not entirely true. She hated he was not giving her a real answer, but she took the offered bottle, watching closely as relief crossed his face when she took a sip.
“I’ll accept that answer for now, Phoenix Tala. But I know you are keeping something from me. Secrets are never fun and always discovered,” she murmured.
“I promise I will tell you everything you want to know, it’s just, let’s just have today.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I don’t want you running from me before you get to know me,” he confessed, kneeling in front of her and rubbing her towel covered arms.
He looked haunted and unsure. It was the first time she’d seen the man look anything other than confident. It rattled her, but Tracey wasn’t willing to end her time with him over some vague response to what was probably a trick of the mind.
“Hey, you’re growling,” she whispered, placing her hand on his chest.
Phoenix trembled under her touch. His aquamarine eyes were wide with some unspoken emotion, but before she could question it, he sat back, leaving her hand hovering in the air, and ran a hand over his face.
Trouble. The man was trouble.
If she was not careful, Tracey was going to lose her heart to this man with so many secrets. She could be patient if she wanted to be, and for some reason, she did. This all felt too right to dismiss. He felt right to her.
“You okay now?” he asked.
“Yes, much better. But I think I’m done with the beach for the day,” she replied, and smiled.
“Alright. Come on, let’s go change for the rest of our adventure day.”
Phoenix stood up and pulled her up with him. He tossed some bills at the rental station, taking her hand as he led her off the sand.
She went with him easily, but her curiosity warred with her need for caution. It was a sour note on the otherwise perfectly delightful day. Tracey hated the distance between them after that wave incident. She should have zipped her lip, but she could not go back to being the scared girl taking whatever crumbs of affection the people in her life offered her.
If Phoenix wanted to be in her life. He was going to have to give her more. She deserved that.