Midlife Wolf Captured My Heart (Fated To The Wolf #7)

17. Sadie

17

Sadie

S adie had spaghetti, garlic bread, and salad ready when he arrived. “The spaghetti sauce is different than a lot of people’s spaghetti. I use Ro-Tel and jalapenos in the sauce. Not enough to make a person cry, but enough to give it a little spice.”

“I like spicy. Obviously, you’re one of my favorite people.”

She grinned and finished setting the food on the table.

“I met Billy today.”

The smile faded from her face. “Oh, no. What happened?”

Dakota told her about his encounter at Howlers’. Sadie could feel the heat flooding her face. Suddenly, she lost her appetite.

“I am so sorry.”

He reached over and patted her hand. “You have nothing to be sorry for. You haven’t done anything wrong, and you certainly can’t control other people’s actions. He embarrassed himself.”

“I guess, but I really want to go beat him up or something.”

Dakota laughed. “I think that I would love to watch that. Unfortunately, I don’t want to spend money on bail. I have other causes. I also don’t want to have to visit you in jail.”

“I’m pretty sure that no one would fault me. But that is the sucky thing about being a grown-up. You have to act like one. I can’t challenge him to meet me on the playground after school.”

“Would you have thrashed him if you were in high school and he pulled a stunt like that?”

She sighed. “No, but I would have wanted to. I would have used my rather large vocabulary to make him feel like an inchworm in front of all of our classmates.”

“Words are more powerful than violence. Lesson learned throughout history.”

“True enough.”

They ate in silence for a little bit and then Dakota put down his fork and looked at Sadie. “You know, I’ve been thinking. Maybe you should come with me on one of my trips.”

Sadie’s heart skipped a beat. “Really?”

“Why not? You might even discover that you’re a nomad at heart. There’s so much of the world out there. I’d love to show you some of it.”

For a moment, Sadie allowed herself to imagine it. It would be incredible to travel to different places in the world that she had only read about and watch Dakota work his magic with his camera. The idea was exciting, but the images faded almost as soon as they formed, replaced with the familiar comfort of Angel’s Creek.

“Going for a short while might be interesting. But my heart will always be here in Angel’s Creek. This is my home.”

She saw a flicker of disappointment cross Dakota’s face. “I understand. Angel’s Creek is special. You’re lucky to feel so connected and have those deep roots.”

He picked up his fork and started eating again. She stared at her plate, twirling the noodles around the tines. The idea of a long-distance relationship popped up in her mind again. Maybe they could make it work. He could come back when he wasn’t on one of his trips.

Is that what I really want? Would that make me happy? What was the point of being with someone if you couldn’t really be with them? There would always be a goodbye looming.

After dinner, Dakota helped her put the dishes in the dishwasher and they settled on the couch to watch a movie. After searching through the channels, they decided on a James Bond movie, Never Say Never Again.

“I loved Sean Connery. It was a sad day for the world when he died.”

Sadie nodded. “I agree. There was only one movie that he was in that I didn’t care for. And he was hot up until the day he died.”

“You just have a thing for old men.” Dakota teased.

She raised her eyebrows. “You said it. I didn’t.”

He laughed. The grin on his face was so sexy it made her heart miss a beat.

Turning toward him, Sadie put her hand on his arm. She hated to ask the question, but she hated not knowing even more. “How much longer are you going to be in Angel’s Creek?”

He hesitated for a minute and touched her face with the back of his hand. “A few weeks, maybe. Not much longer.” Dakota sounded regretful, as though he hated to leave, but the fact was that he still planned to go – sooner rather than later.

Her heart broke into a million pieces and tears burned her eyes. She hung her head.

Dakota put two fingers under her chin and raised her eyes to his. “We can end things now if you want and just cherish the memories that we have.”

Sadie knew that it was too late for that. He already owned her heart, but she couldn’t dare tell him that. “No. I want to experience all the time I can get with you, even if it’s only a few more days.”

He nodded and cupped her face with his hand. She leaned into it and closed his eyes. His lips brushed hers, awakening the smoldering embers inside of her. Sadie wrapped her arms around him. The kiss deepened. He pushed his tongue against her lips. She opened for him, loving the feeling of their mouths making love to each other.

She broke the kiss and stood. “Let’s do this on the bed. It’ll be a lot more comfortable.”

Dakota pulled off his boots and followed her. They slowly undressed each other. Sadie’s hands explored his body, touching every part of him. He hissed out a slow breath as she wrapped her hands around his hard shaft.

“My turn.”

His hands moved from her face, over her breasts, and down to her waist. He slipped a hand between her legs.

“You’re ready for me.”

“Always. All I have to do is look at you.”

He grinned wickedly. “I guess I’ll have to oblige you, then.”

Dakota picked her up and laid her gently on the bed and then straddled her. This time he completely buried himself deep inside of her with one fell swoop.

“Yes. Dakota.” She closed her eyes as the world fell away. Right now, there were only the two of them in this world, right here and now. There were no worries about tomorrow.

Their bodies moved against each other. Sadie moaned loudly as her lover pulled out and then quickly drove hard back inside of her. His need for her seemed to match her own aching desire.

Lightning flashed around her as the cool air in the room collided with the heat from their bodies. An inferno built up inside of her.

One of her hands threaded through his silky soft hair and her other hand splayed across his hard chest. She stared into his blueish-green eyes that reminded her of the ocean. The passion he felt for her glowed in his orbs and she wondered if any of that was love or if it was simply the heat of the moment. She decided that she didn’t care and focused on simply feeling.

His scent permeated every cell in her body, making her feel as though she was on a drug that heightened her senses. The touch of his skin against hers sent bolts of electricity coursing through her body. She felt like their bodies, souls, and hearts were melting together as though they were one.

It didn’t take long for them both to reach their peak. He lay next to her. Her fingers traced his chest, down to his waist, and backed up.

“Keep that up and you’ll get more than you bargain for.”

Sadie could feel him getting hard again. “Ooh, I love bargains. Two-for-one sales are my favorite.”

“Do you think you can handle it?”

“Do you?”

He rolled on his back and pulled her on top of him. Sadie impaled herself on his thick shaft, moaning. This time, they went a lot slower. Their hips moved together in perfect harmony.

Dakota’s fingertips lightly traced her sides and kneaded her back. Her nipples brushed against his chest sending waves of lightning through her.

She moved faster, lifting up until just the tip was inside of her and she moved back down, sheathing him inside of her. Sadie panted and closed her eyes, reveling in the sheer ecstasy that overwhelmed her. She started trembling and an inferno overtook her body.

“Oh, yes, my beautiful baby.” Dakota moaned and closed his eyes, throbbing inside of her.

She collapsed next to him, their arms and legs entwined. They just held each other for a while and then he said, “I guess I need to get home. It’s getting late.”

When he walked out the door ten minutes later, Sadie briefly wondered if she would ever see him again.

“Stop being an idiot. There’s no way he would leave without saying goodbye.”

Sadie sat on her bed, her thumb hovering over her phone screen. She thought about it for a minute and then unblocked Billy’s number. A message immediately popped up on her screen. Please, Sadie. We need to talk.

Taking a deep breath, Sadie sent Billy a text.

What we had was over. You only made an ass of yourself confronting Dakota. It’s time that you moved on.

She hit send, her heart pounding. The response came quickly.

I know you still love me. Dakota’s just standing in our way. Once he’s gone, we can be together again.

A surge of frustration and anger washed over her. “How in the world can he be so delusional?”

She typed her response. You aren’t paying attention. When Dakota leaves, there’s no chance for us. What we had was in the past. We’re done.

His reply came quickly. You’re making a huge mistake. That old man can’t give you what I can. You’ll see.

Shaking her head, her fingers flew over her phone. The only mistake is your inability to accept the truth. Please don’t contact me again.

Without waiting for a reply, she blocked his number again.

Still aggravated, she jumped in the shower. Her frustrations with Billy were replaced with thoughts of Dakota and how he made her feel.