Free Single Wolf Female (Midnight Liaisons) by Jessica Sims

of the room. I stared at it as I entered, painfully aware of just how small it would be with two normal-sized people in it. I turned and shut the door, trying to think. There was a chair in my room, but I was aware that Jackson hadn’t slept much last night. Putting him back in the uncomfortable chair would be unfair to him, and I needed him strong.
    But I still hesitated.
    “I can sleep in the chair,” he said, as if sensing my thoughts.
    “No,” I told him. “It’s cool. We can share the bed. We’re supposed to be mated, anyhow.”
    “You sure?” He raised an eyebrow at me.
    “Oh yeah,” I said, making sure my voice was as casual as I could make it. “No problem.”
    “All right, then.” He moved into the room and began to strip off his shirt. “You want the right side or the left side?”
    “Left.” We were so normal about all of this. Like it was nothing. I glanced over at him from under my lashes and noticed his broad bare chest. He was unbuckling his belt and sliding down his jeans, and I caught sight of a pair of checkered boxers before I turned away again.
    I needed to change, too. I could just strip down my clothing. Nudity wasn’t anything for shifters, especially werewolves, since you tore off your clothing before a change so you didn’t ruin it. I’d seen everyone in my small pack more naked than most people saw their spouses. But this was different. This was me, getting undressed to climb into bed with my mate.
    But I couldn’t leave the room to change. What if the others noticed? Plus, I needed to get used to seeing Jackson naked - the full moon was tomorrow night and that meant a pack run. If I acted all maidenly around him then, it’d make things worse. Sucking in a deep breath, I turned my back to him, pulled my shirt over my head, and began to change out of my clothing.
    I kept my eyes straight ahead, staring at the wall as I methodically undressed and changed into my sleep t-shirt. If he watched me, I didn’t notice. I concentrated on undressing and then tossing my clothes in the hamper. When I turned around, Jackson was already in bed - right side - and fluffing one of my pillows. I sucked in a deep breath, turned off the light, and climbed into bed next to him.
    My bed was small. Way freaking small. Even when I turned on my side, I could feel Jackson’s skin against mine, his arm against my arm. I turned on my side, but then it meant that my ass brushed up against his arm. Didn’t want that. Of course, if I flipped around, my breasts would be rubbing up against him and my face would be inches away from him. Didn’t want that, either. I laid on my back again, staring up at the ceiling.
    “Do you wanna talk, Alice?”
    Jackson’s voice was ultra low, so low that I could barely hear it over the distant roar of another movie downstairs, and the low hum of conversation. He was deliberately trying to keep our conversation quiet, so the others wouldn’t pick up that we were talking. I looked over at him in bed, and as I did, he turned on his side, facing me. His scent overwhelmed my nostrils.
    God, he smelled good. God, I was so nervous.
    “Talk?” I whispered. “About what?”
    “Me and you. You’re scared of me. I can smell it.”
    So humiliating. “I am not.”
    “You’re also lying in this bed, stiff as a board.”
    I said nothing.
    He rubbed his neck, then sighed. “Hell, Alice, you’re making me feel like a damn rapist.”
    That only made me go stiffer. “Sorry.”
    “Look, have I made you uncomfortable somehow? Done something to freak you out?”
    I shook my head, feeling a little guilty. “It’s not you. It’s me. Everyone’s going to be expecting, you know. You and me. And I’m…”
    “A virgin. I remember.” He sighed. “Trust me, I remember.” To my surprise, he reached out and brushed a lock of hair off my forehead. It was a possessive, yet weirdly comforting gesture. “And they’re not expecting you and me to marry. They just want pack life to get