A Wolf's Kiss

Chapter : 7

Mark is losing it. The whole house smells of Cole, and Mark can hear his little whining. Small moans that go high each time, accompanied with a faint wet squelch. It’s barely there, it would be inaudible for a human, but Mark can listen to the way Cole’s breathing grows erratic, and he smells so good. He has never smelled this good.

Mark takes deep breaths as his wolf urges him to stand up. The same wolf instinct that guided him to scent Cole earlier in the kitchen, to growl at him and nuzzle his neck as if Cole were his mate and not some human who is kind to Mark. Shifting during two nights didn’t give him any answer about Cole’s confusing scent; all it did was make Mark’s wolf more aware of Cole, and now it’s getting harder to ignore him.

Mark doesn’t understand why he feels this way. In his pack, he’s run across other shifters in the woods, smelling the same, doing the same Cole is doing right now, and he’s walked past them, unaffected. But Cole’s scent, his sounds- Mark can’t help but think of him in whatever position he must be right now.

If the situation was different between them, Mark might think Cole is trying to seduce him, but they’re not courting, and Cole is not a wolf.

Cole is not a wolf.

Cole is a human, and perhaps this is how humans seduce. But even if Mark’s wolf is interested, Mark tries his best to keep his composure. Mark moves until he’s lying on his

stomach on the couch, he presses his erection to the cushion of the sofa, and he grips the border of the couch until his knuckles turn white. Cole smells so good.

Mark won’t look at Cole the following morning. Cole avoids his gaze, too, and goes through his day silently. He hopes Mark didn’t hear him- or, even worse, smelled him.

Mark’s escapade to the woods and Cole’s escapade to his bedroom didn’t seem to do much for the tension still building between them.

❦

Cole tries to ignore Mark because of the happenings in the kitchen and after his nightly doings. They just greet each other in the morning, and Mark stays in the living room reading the books Cole got for him. Sometimes Mark goes out in search of more shifters, but he returns with no news. Cole is doing quite good at ignoring the werewolf, but it's a lot more complicated when Sunday comes around. Cole doesn't have to go to the veterinary clinic, and he's alone with Mark all day. Last week, before things turned awkward, their weekend meant playing board games together and laughing at him for getting so competitive. However, this week the tension has grown unbearable.

In search of a distraction after Mark says he'll shower, Cole video calls Arden. He leaves the laptop on the kitchen counter and sits on a stool.

Arden is happy to see Cole. He calls Cole ungrateful for not checking on him these last two weeks. All Cole can do is nervously chuckle because he didn’t have time to contact his best friend after sharing an apartment with a werewolf. However, they quickly fall into conversation. After all, good friends don't need to talk all the time.

“I wanted to argue, but I can’t because I’m just an assistant at the moment and if I get in trouble they might fire me,” Arden is in the middle of a rant, complaining about the veterinary clinic where he works. “But I wanted to call my boss out on his bullshit! He was acting like a jerk!” Cole nods while listening, head resting on his palm. “At that moment, I envied you for running your own business.”

Cole is loudly laughing as Arden goes on with a reenactment of an argument they had in the clinic when suddenly Arden stops talking. Cole gets confused, and tilts his head left.

“Arden?”

Cole can see Arden looking behind Cole’s shoulder with wide eyes and lips set in a straight line on the screen.

“Uh, Cole...” Arden murmurs.

Before Cole can register what’s happening, he sees it. Cole gasps when his gaze falls on Mark’s figure on his screen, behind Cole’s dumbfounded face. The werewolf is walking out of the bathroom, damp and semi-naked from a shower. At least he has a towel around his hips because then this situation would be a lot worse. Cole quickly looks over his shoulder, and his and Mark’s eyes meet.

Cole is too flustered to say anything, so he only stares. Mark gestures at the wound on his side, though seemingly unaware of his effect on the veterinarian. “Cole, I took off the bandages to shower. The wound looks good. Do you want to see it?”

Cole can only blink at the droplets of water on Mark’s skin, and then he yelps. “I’ll come in a moment! Wait for me in the bathroom!”

Mark squints his eyes at Cole’s loud reaction, but he nods and walks back inside. Cole stares at the bathroom door and then shyly returns his attention to the screen.

He wants Arden to return to his work rant, but Arden doesn’t seem to want that at all. “Umh, Cole, so who’s that?”

Cole knows he’s blushing brightly- he can feel his cheeks grow warmer, and Cole is glad he’s using earbuds to talk to Arden, and Mark can’t hear the question.

“No one."

The silence stretches between them before a crazy smirk grows on Arden's face. “Cole, is that the person you hired to work at the clinic?”

“Ardie,” Cole tries for him to drop it.

“Working in your bed too?”

“Oh my God! No!” Cole shrieks, yet he is flustered.

Arden’s eyes glint in mischief, and years of vet school together have taught Cole to be careful around that particular expression. Arden sits back, and he’s smiling widely, so Cole knows he won’t get away from this one.

“A special friend?” With benefits, he means.

Cole looks over his shoulder to make sure Mark is not around. “No! He’s just my new roommate!” Cole shrieks. Judging by Arden’s expression, Cole knows that won’t be a

good enough answer for him. He turns towards the door to yell, “Mark, I’m going to take a while, just put on some clothes! Please!”

Mark walks out of the bathroom after hearing his name. He doesn’t have clothes on yet, only the white towel, and instead of listening to Cole's pleas, he steps closer. “What takes a while?”

Mark stares at the laptop curiously once he reaches Cole’s side, and before Cole can tell him to go back to the bathroom, Mark comes close enough to support himself on the counter, caging Cole between his arms. Cole takes a short intake of breath, and his gaze falls on the big hands clutching the border counter on each side of the laptop. Mark presses his chest to Cole's back as he studies the laptop’s screen.

Arden is only gaping on the video chat, and Cole's cheeks are red.

Mark probably doesn't know what a video call is; Cole didn't show him his laptop until now, and that explains his confusion. Cole would love to explain it to him, but Mark is too close right now. Cole grabs the computer in one hand and stands up; he twists around until he's facing Mark. The werewolf doesn't move his hands from the counter, so he's still caging Cole, but now they're chest to chest and their faces are dangerously close.

“I’m going to my room! I’ll check your wound later!” Cole stammers.

Mark looks at him intensely, like he's been doing since the first day they met, but now the gaze makes Cole weak on the knees. Cole doesn’t know what to expect, but it still catches him off guard when Mark leans in an inch closer, settling near Cole’s neck and sniffing. It shouldn’t make Cole’s heartbeat race, but it does.

"You smell good," he says before finally letting go of the counter. Cole nods, dumbfounded, and hurries to his room.

As soon as he closes the door behind him, Cole can hear Arden laughing through his earbuds. “What? Cole! What was that?” Arden manages to ask between laughter. “What the hell? What’s the story behind the roommate? I can’t believe you didn’t tell me about him!”

“It’s nothing! There’s nothing to tell about him!”