The Maverick Pride Tales - Chapter 192: Chapter 192

Megan woke up freezing. The small apartment she was renting was part of a complex made up mostly of retirees. Her neighbor, Mr. Salvatore, was also her landlord. The old man was kind, but he failed to mention her utilities were not part of the rent. She thought she’d squared it all away last week, but once again her electricity and, more importantly, her heat had been turned off.
“Mr. Salvatore, this is Megan Sudak in 2G. The electricity and heat are out again in my apartment,” she said into the receiver. “I see. Well, can you please call? I have plans today and it’s too cold to move.”
After twenty minutes, the old man returned her call and apologized profusely. Apparently, one of the apartments was recently made vacant, and the gas and electric companies kept mixing up which apartments were occupied, and which were empty.
“Sorry, Ms. Sudak, they say it will take a few hours, but you should have everything back on by five tonight.”
“Five? Oh, um, okay, thank you,” she murmured.
What was he supposed to do until five in the frigid apartment? Well, at least the water would be hot. She took a scalding shower, then hurried to get dressed, blow drying her hair before it froze on her head.
She was tugging on an extra pair of socks when her cell phone lit up. Warmth spread through her as she saw the name flashing on her screen. It was him. Cole. Or as he labeled himself in her contacts, Cole the solid 10.
You up? -Cole
Yes. I mean, obviously. -Megan
Ha! Snarky in the morning. Have you had coffee yet? -Cole
No. Actually, they shut off my electricity and gas by mistake. I was lucky to have enough hot water left over for a shower. -Megan
Hell no, that won’t do. I’ll be there in ten minutes. -Cole
Oh, you don’t have to do that. I’m okay. -Megan
She worried her lip with her teeth, wondering if he was going to be put off by her last comment. Three dots appeared on the bottom of her phone, but the message never came. Ugh. Why couldn’t she just keep her trap shut? Her brother always said she was awkward with boys, and maybe he was right. Gods knew, she never had a boyfriend for long. Not that Cole was her boyfriend. Even if she wanted him to be.
No! Bad Megan. He has put us firmly in the friend zone and we should be grateful.
She scolded herself, nearly tripping over her feet when her phone rang. She’d been waiting for him to text his reply, but it looked like he was calling her instead. Ohmygah! Cole, aka Hottie McHotStuff, was calling her. Megan yelped, clicking the button for a face-to-face chat by accident.
“Good morning, lily. Damn, you look good in the morning.”
Cole’s handsome face grinned at her through the screen. His tawny skin was practically glowing with masculine radiance. His long, black hair was loose and hanging down both shoulders in glossy thick waves. Wow. She never got her hair to look that good. he had day old scruff on his cheeks and chin, but that only made him look hotter. And those creamy gray eyes held glints of silver that sparkled at her when the sun hit him just right.
The man was a walking talking centerfold. Had she called him a ten? Nah. He was a straight up eleven. Megan had already had about seven naughty dreams about him last night. And there he was. Bright as the morning sun.
The sound of a truck horn beeping rang her out of her momentary stupor and Megan shrieked, wincing as the sound hurt her ears. His too since he hunched his shoulders and ducked his head.
Oopsies.
Cole seemed to have the phone propped against something, and it dawned on her. He was in traffic. Ohmygah! He was driving. And on the phone.
“Ohmygah! Cole, hang up! You can’t talk and drive.”
“First, thank you for caring. Second, I’m a Dire Wolf, my reflexes are like a zillion times better than normals. Third, I’m pulling up to your curb now.”
“What?!” she shrieked.
“Ouch, my ears, lily,” he said, but he was smiling so she figured he wasn’t mad. “Come downstairs, woman, and let me take you to breakfast.”
“You’re here?”
“Yup.”
Megan raced to the window, but it was the wrong one. She wound up looking at the alley. She snorted and found the front of the apartment. Megan wrestled a little with the old ass window, then managed to push it up without breaking it. That was the thing about her strength, she needed to be really careful or sometimes stuff broke. She stuck her head out into the bitter January cold and saw his big ass truck down below. He’d driven her home after dessert last night, and she recognized it easily.
“I see you out the window, lily. Now, I know a diner that makes the best coffee in the world, and a mean stack of peanut butter and chocolate chip pancakes,” he said.
Oooh. That sounded good. Megan eased back inside the apartment and closed the window.
“I’m sorry you drove all this way, Cole, but um, I’m not hungry.”
She hated the lie in her voice, but what was she supposed to do? With any luck his Wolf wouldn’t be able to tell over the phone. Of course, her stomach would choose to growl right then, and loudly too.
“I heard the lie and the belly growl. You can’t shake me off, lily, I’m like a tick. Come on, let me feed you.”
“Maybe I’m allergic to peanut butter.”
Megan had to put some distance between them. She was getting dangerously close to mega crush territory, and for a woman who was as careful and loyal as she would be to her future mate, that was simply not okay. She shouldn’t confuse her Tiger like this, and spending time with Cole was likely to get the silly feline addicted to him. The Wolf was off limits. But telling that to her animal was like talking to a wall. Damn thing was purring like a house cat for the man!
Purrrrrr.
“Considering you ate half of my PB&J explosion last night for dessert, I’d have to go with a hard no, lily. You are not allergic to peanut butter. And you’re a terrible liar. Besides, this diner has the best candied thick-sliced bacon ever.”
Her Tiger roared hungrily, and her stomach growled again. Megan should have been embarrassed, but what could she do? Shifters had big appetites, and she was a big girl. She liked food, dammit, and breakfast food was her favorite.
“You sure know a girl’s weakness. Now, did you say candied thick-sliced bacon?”
“Yep. They make it with brown sugar and cayenne pepper. They completely coat it, then pop it in the oven at 400 degrees and bake until crispy.”
Cole’s deep voice sounded good over the phone. Maybe it was the food he was describing, or maybe it was just him. Megan closed her eyes and prayed for willpower. Oh, she was going to breakfast. She knew that already. But when she closed her eyes and whispered to the gods or whatever omnipotent beings were responsible for answering such things, Megan asked for something else.
Please, oh, please, oh, please don’t let me fall in love with him. Friends. Just friends. We’re just friends. Who am I kidding? I am so fucked.
“Come on, lily. What do you say?” his gritty voice asked, and she rolled her eyes against the pang of longing that spiked in her veins.
“Okay, okay. Sheesh. Anyway, peanut butter and chocolate chip pancakes are my weakness, besides, I got no heat and I am freezing my nipples off,” she mumbled.
Cole laughed at that, and she exhaled. Friend zoned or not, could she be any more awkward in front of him? Megan cleared her throat and looked around for her things.
“See, it’s kismet. Now, hurry up and get your ass down here, lily. I haven’t even seen your nipples yet, and I sure as fuck don’t want them freezing off before I do,” he teased her.
“Well, that’s rich, Mr. Friendly McFrienderson. What makes you so confident you’ll be getting some face time with my boobies, huh?” she replied.
“I admit I am a tit man at heart, and I wouldn’t bet against me seeing your boobs. But I gotta say, if it was a choice between wanting to see your ass or your tits first, I’d need to do some serious thinking. You know, to make a list of pros and cons for each side. That kind of thing.”
Cole said all that with the gravity of someone discussing politics or important world health issues, and Megan barked a laugh in response. Outrageous man! Funny, though. He was definitely funny.
“Ohmygah, you are the worst, Cole Mingan!”
“Take me as I am, sweet tiger lily with the undoubtedly pretty, but almost frozen nipples.”
“Ohmygah,” Megan said and laughed like a maniac.
She ended the call. She had to stop his insane tirade before she went and did something stupid. Like develop more than a crush on her new friends-only friend.
Too late, her she-Tiger chuffed.
She grabbed her coat and shoved her wallet and keys in the pocket before traipsing down the stairs with Cole still on the phone. She was smiling like a loon, but she didn’t care. This was fun. She’d never had fun with someone she wanted to date before, but Cole put her at ease without even trying.
He was waiting outside of his bright red, classic pickup truck, holding the passenger door open for her. His eyes narrowed as she approached, and she faltered a step. It was cold as a witch’s tit, and Megan had donned a pair of fleece-lined leggings, knee-high boots with fur inside, with a gray hooded sweatshirt on top.
“You look good,” he said, closing the door after she hopped inside.
“Thanks.”
The ride to the diner was fast, and Cole was absolutely right. The candied bacon was to die for, and the PB and chocolate chip pancakes were absolute heaven. Megan wasn’t some dainty female who ate lettuce and acted full after one bite. She was a Shifter. A motherfucking Bengal Tiger, and she ate like one.
After her second order of bacon, she polished off the rest of her pancakes and drank an enormous glass of strawberry milk. Cole, gentleman that he was, didn’t even blink. In fact, he smiled and offered her a bite of his nine-egg omelet. He’d ordered that along with a stack of pancakes and a side of bacon and corned beef hash. It was the first time Megan had been outdone in the food department, and not only that, but the man shared.
He reached out with his fork more than once to offer her bites of this and that from his side of the table. The entire time, he talked and asked questions. He was funny and outgoing, more so than she would have thought from the quiet stern impression she had of him last night.
Dangerous boy.