SEAL Wolf In Too Deep(65)
No way did she want to go there.
She didn’t know what to do in response to show there were no hard feelings right now. And that she appreciated he was trying to make her feel better by turning into a wolf. But she didn’t want him to get the notion she wanted to do any mating nonsense.
So how was she supposed to react?
He moved away from her then. She was afraid she’d hurt his feelings, but then he bowed in front of her, his butt in the air, his tail wagging. She recognized it as a play bow, like the German shepherd they had raised when she was growing up did. He would do that in front of the neighbor’s husky. She thought if she could relate what her dog had done to how a wolf would react, she could figure out some of this canine psychology.
The problem still was that she didn’t know how to react. She wasn’t ready to bow down to Allan and play with him. This was just too bizarre.
Good-naturedly and with lots of patience, he waited for her to respond.
Oh, all right. What could it hurt? Well, lots, if she bit him too hard or he bit her too hard. Then again, he would know not to. She wouldn’t.
She twisted around and tackled him, growling fiercely because it just came out that way, even if she didn’t mean to growl so wildly. He rolled onto his back in a purely submissive way and opened his mouth to play bite, but he was so gentle that it taught her to be gentle. Maybe they were supposed to do this in a rougher way, but for now, it was like taking baby steps.
She realized then that she couldn’t have had a better teacher.
She was on top of him, going for his neck, mouthing him, when she couldn’t have imagined anything yuckier than grabbing a furry beast by the neck before, but it felt right. All of it. Tackling him. Biting him. All in fun. Nothing sexual about it. She didn’t think.
She noticed his tail wasn’t tucked submissively between his legs, but straight out, showing he was allowing her to be on top, to feel empowered. She moved off him, giving the play bow a try to see what he would do in reaction. He watched her, then rolled off his back and rested on his belly for a moment, his ears up, his gaze on hers. Then he jumped up and she whipped around and ran. She hadn’t meant to. She knew you never ran before a wild animal. And she knew he was so much bigger than her that he wouldn’t have any trouble catching her.
He nipped her butt and she yipped in startled surprise. He did it again, but this time she rounded on him, and they were in his bedroom, standing on their hind legs, teeth biting at each other’s mouths.
They played like that for half an hour, her tackling him, him tackling her, and then they sat panting in his living room, studying each other. He stood, then motioned to the hallway with his head.
He looked as tired as she felt after the restless night they’d had. He loped off toward his bedroom, and she followed him, only this time she nipped him in the butt. He barked at her, a happy kind of bark.
She’d like to think this was all there was to it. But she knew better. If she shifted outside his cabin, it could spell disaster.
*
Allan couldn’t think of a better way to end their play than to take a nap with each other. Thankfully, Debbie seemed to like the idea, and he was proud of her for playing so well. He thought at first she wouldn’t play with him. Or that it was too difficult to understand what he was trying to tell her while he was in his wolf coat. But she picked up really quickly on cues, so he thought this might not be so hard after all. The shifting without warning? That was another story.
They curled up together in bed, her head over his body, his head tucked close to hers. He thought they might even go for a run together tonight in the woods. But what if she turned into her human form in the frozen cold? He’d have to shift and carry her home, and they’d both be naked. If it were summer, it wouldn’t be quite such a bad an idea.
He could take her for a walk in the woods as a human and carry a backpack of winter clothes for her so that she could dress if she shifted. It wouldn’t be the best plan, but it would be nice for her to get out and smell the woods and animal scents. To get used to them as a wolf. He’d be with her so if any hunter showed up, he’d set him straight about his pet wolf. And he’d be armed.
He’d talk about it later with her to see what she’d like to do. He thought being confined to the house would drive her batty after a while. It would him.
His phone rang, but Debbie didn’t stir, and he wasn’t getting up and shifting to get it. It was probably Paul to see if he was all right. Allan didn’t want to disturb what he and Debbie had for the moment. Peace. Quiet. Naptime. Until she woke, and then who knew what would happen next.
*
“Do you think Allan’s okay?” Lori asked Paul again. She couldn’t help it. She wasn’t a worrywart, but she had been concerned when Paul said that Debbie had shifted and was growling in the background, and Allan had ended the call right away.
“I think they’re fine. Maybe they didn’t sleep well, and they’re taking a nap now. I don’t want to disturb them if he’s making any progress with Debbie. They need the alone time.”
“Like we had?”
“Well,” he said, pulling Lori into his arms so her back was against his chest and he could gently caress her swollen breasts and her swelling tummy. “Our alone time was a lot different.”
She sighed. “I thought maybe if I went over there and talked with her, she would be less growly, you know, because I’m so pregnant, and she’d behave better.”