sightseeing 30
1774 Words
Chapter 30
Alice POV
The second Ice pulled out onto the road, I tightened my arms around his waist. I had never ridden on the back of a motorcycle before, and I wasn't about to admit that I was nervous. Okay, maybe I was a little nervous.The bike roared beneath us as we headed down the road, and the wind whipped against my face. I couldn't help but smile. There was something freeing about it. For the first time since I'd arrived, I wasn't thinking about work. I wasn't thinking about Randy.
I wasn't thinking about the strange things I'd overheard. I was just enjoying myself. I rested my head against Ice's back for a moment.
He smelled really good. That was becoming a problem. A very big problem. I had already admitted to myself that I had a crush on him, but sitting this close to him was making it ten times worse. I could feel the muscles in his stomach every time he moved, and his body was warm beneath my hands.
“Damn it,” I whispered.
“What?”
I nearly jumped. “Nothing!”
He laughed. “I heard you.”
“You didn't hear anything.”
“Oh, I definitely heard something.”
I tightened my arms around him. “Just drive.”
“Yes, ma'am.”
I rolled my eyes, but I was smiling. For a while, neither of us said anything. We rode through town, and I started looking around.
There was so much more here than I had realized. Small shops lined the streets. Restaurants were packed with people. There were tourist attractions everywhere, and farther down the road I could see mountains surrounding the area. “This place is actually beautiful,” I admitted.
“I told you.”
“I guess I've been hiding upstairs too much.”
“Yeah, you have.”
I smacked his shoulder. “Hey!”
He laughed. “What?”
“You've been here a month and barely know anything about the place.”
“I've been working.”
“You work at night. You have days off.”
I sighed. “Okay, okay. Maybe you're right.”
“I usually am.”
“Oh, don't get cocky.”
He laughed again. I couldn't remember the last time I'd laughed this much. Then something caught my attention. A large wooden sign stood along the side of the road. Hiking Trails — River Access — Camping
I pointed toward it. “There! That's where I want to go.”
Ice slowed down. “You want to go camping?”
“Eventually.”
He looked over his shoulder at me. “Eventually?”
“Yeah. Maybe for a few days.”
His body suddenly stiffened. I noticed. “What's wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah.”
He turned back toward the road. But something about his reaction bothered me. Why did the idea of me camping make him nervous?
“You don't think I should go?”
“It's not that.”
“Then what is it?”
He was quiet for a moment. “There are some areas you shouldn't go into alone.”
I frowned. “Why?”
“Wild animals.”
I laughed. “That's it?”
“That's it.”
I wasn't convinced. “You guys really have a lot of wolves around here.”
His hands tightened around the handlebars. “Sometimes.”
“That's what I heard last night.” He didn't answer, “I heard them howling for a long time.”
“Probably nothing.”
“Nothing?”
“Just wolves.”
I leaned closer. “Ice.”
“Yeah?”
“Are you hiding something from me?”
His shoulders stiffened. There it was.
That reaction again. I could feel it. He was definitely hiding something. “No.”
The answer came way too quickly. I smiled to myself. “Okay.”
He glanced back at me. “You don't believe me.”
“Nope.”
He laughed nervously. I didn't push it. Not yet. We continued riding until we reached the tourist area. Ice parked the motorcycle and helped me off. The second my feet hit the ground, I stretched. “Wow.”
“What?”
“I can't believe I've been here a month and never came down here.”
“I told you. You need to get out more.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
He held out his hand. I stared at it. Then I looked at him. “What?”
“Come on.”
I hesitated. The memory of what happened in his office came rushing back. That strange feeling when he touched me. The sparks. I still couldn't explain it. But I slowly placed my hand in his.
The second our skin touched, that same strange sensation ran through me. It wasn't exactly electricity. It felt warmer. Stronger.
Almost like something inside my chest recognized him. I quickly pulled my hand away. Ice looked at me. “You felt that again, didn't you?”
I stared at him. “You felt it too?”
He froze. For the first time since I'd met him, Ice looked genuinely nervous. “I…”He stopped. “It's nothing.”
“That's twice now.”
“Alice…”
“No.”
I crossed my arms. “Don't tell me it's static again.”
He sighed. “You're not going to let this go, are you?”
“Nope.”
He smiled. “Stubborn.”
“Damn right.”
He shook his head. “Come on. I'll show you around.”
I followed him. We walked through the tourist area, and Ice pointed out different attractions. There were shops selling souvenirs, restaurants, entertainment venues, and all kinds of things I'd never even known were here. Then we reached the aquarium.
My face lit up. “You weren't kidding.”
“I told you.”
“This place is huge!”
He laughed. “You're like a kid.”
“I don't care.”
I grabbed his arm. “Come on!”
He looked down at my hand wrapped around his arm. His expression changed. For just a second, he looked almost… peaceful. Then we walked inside. I spent the next hour looking at everything. Fish swam above us in giant tanks, sharks moved through the water, and colorful tropical fish darted between rocks.
Ice watched me more than he watched the animals. I caught him staring.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“You're staring.”
“Can't help it.”
My heart skipped. “Why?”
He leaned slightly closer. “Because you're beautiful.”
I stopped breathing. Nobody had said anything like that to me in a long time. “Thank you,” I whispered.
He smiled. We continued walking. But something had changed. The air between us felt different. Closer. More intense. I found myself wondering what it would feel like to kiss him. I immediately shook the thought away. Get it together, Alice. After the aquarium, Ice took me to the 3D roller coaster he'd been talking about.
“You're seriously going on this?” I asked.
“Hell yes.”
“I'm warning you now. I scream.”
“I'll survive.”
“You don't know that.”
He laughed. We climbed into the ride. A few minutes later, the machine started. I screamed. Ice laughed. I screamed louder. By the time it was over, I was laughing so hard I could barely stand. Ice reached out and steadied me.
“You okay?”
“Yeah.”
I looked up at him. “You're actually fun.”
“Actually?”
“Yes.”
He raised an eyebrow. “I thought you were just some grumpy biker.”
“Grumpy?”
“Very.”
He smiled. “Maybe I just needed the right woman around.”
My cheeks heated. Before I could answer, my stomach growled loudly. Ice burst out laughing. “Oh my God.”
“Shut up!”
“You're hungry.”
“I haven't eaten since this morning.”
“Then we're getting food.”
He took my hand again. This time, neither of us pulled away immediately. The strange warmth returned. But instead of being scared of it, I found myself liking it. I looked at our hands. Then at him. Something was definitely happening between us. And I had a feeling it wasn't just a crush anymore.
Ice POV
Today was supposed to be simple. Take Alice into town. Show her around. Keep her distracted. Don't let her discover the truth. That was the plan. Unfortunately, nothing about today was going according to plan. She felt the mate bond. Twice. And now she was holding my hand like it was the most natural thing in the world.
My wolf was going crazy. “Mate.” “Our mate.”
I wanted to tell her. Goddess, I wanted to tell her everything. But every time I looked at her, I remembered what could happen if she found out. She was human. She didn't know about werewolves.
She didn't know about packs. She didn't know that the man she was falling for was an Alpha. She didn't know she was my mate. And she definitely didn't know that everyone back home already considered her their Luna.
I watched her laugh as we walked toward the restaurant. She looked happier than I'd seen her since she arrived. That made me happy. But it also scared the hell out of me. Because tomorrow night was Nattie's first shift. And tomorrow night, Alice was supposed to be at work. That was the only thing keeping the secret safe. For now. I looked at her. She caught me staring.
“What?”
I smiled. “Nthing.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You've been saying that a lot today.”
I laughed. “Maybe I just like looking at you.”
She smiled. “Maybe I like you looking at me.”
My heart nearly stopped. My wolf howled inside my head. “Tell her.
Tell our mate.”
But I couldn't. Not yet. I reached for the restaurant door and held it open for her. “After you.” She walked inside. I followed. And for the first time, I wondered if maybe I was making a mistake by keeping the truth from her. Because Alice wasn't stupid. She was already asking questions. And sooner or later, she was going to find the answers. The only question was… Would she still love me when she found out what I really was?
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