Chapter 26
Eden
Axel wasn’t lying when he said my room would be right next to Logan’s. It is, which is awkward. Am I going to be able to hear him and Paris making t with each other?
Axel is oblivious to my inner thoughts. He is whistling some pop song as he opens the other door. “This room is going to be yours if it weren’t obvious,” he bows with a theatrical flourish. “Behold the little lady’s temporary palace. I hope you enjoy!”
I turn around and almost pass
The room is gorgeous!
The bed is nicer and much larger than the one I got to borrow at Elvira’s house. Sure, Elvira and her family aren’t rich, but the four–poster bed I’m staring at screams money. It’s covered in midnight blue bedsheets, and oh lord, there’s a window overlooking the snow–covered forest. How pretty isn’t that?
“This can’t be right,” I step inside cautiously, my eyes on the fireplace first, then on the bed. “It’s too nice.”
I hear Axel leaning against the doorframe, he sounds pleased with himself. “What? Did you think I was going to stuff you in a broom closet?”
“Kind of, yeah.”
He laughs. “Logan would skin me alive.” He clears his throat. “Bathroom’s through the white door, and the kitchen’s downstairs if you get hungry.
I run my fingers over the blue bedsheet. “This is… a lot.”
“Well–deserved, I would say. Our Little Bookworm has been through so much she deserves the best.”
Lignore the nickname and yawn. “I especially like the bed. It looks very…inviting.”
“I can imagine. You’ve had a rough night,” Axel says, shocking me by sounding soft. “Try to get some rest, okay?”
The smile I give him is weak since I still don’t trust my former bully, and yawn again. The adrenaline from the Hollow attack is beginning to fade away. “Thanks, Axel.”
“No problem, Shortstack.” He moves to leave, then pauses. “Need anything else before I go?”
“No, I’m-“A violent shiver runs through me, cutting off my words.
Axel frowns. “You’re freezing.”
“I’m fine,” I insist, even though I already plan on using every single bed sheet I can find in this room as soon as he leaves me alone. “Just need to warm -up.”
“The fire should help,” he says, but his frown deepens when another shiver wracks my body. “Or not.”
I get in bed with the clothes on, pulling the covers around me, but they feel like ice. My jaw works, and then my teeth chatter embarrassingly loud.
“S–seriously, I’m f–fine,” I stammer. “You can g–go.”
Axel stands there for a moment, looking conflicted. Then he sighs dramatically. “Move over.”
“What?”
“Just-” He makes a shooing motion with his hands. “Scoot over.“–
“Huh?” I ask, then panic when he starts, unbuttoning his shirt with an easy grin. “What are you doing?!”
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Chapter 261
“Relax,” he says, rolling his eyes as if I’m the weirdo. “I’m not going to do anything weird. You’re freezing, and I’m a walking furnace
Just because he is warm, he can’t just take off his clothes!
But he is.
Axel is stripping down to his boxers, which reveals a naked chest that’s swollen with muscle. He isn’t lean like Logan and Azriel, but absolutely freaking huge. Like a tank. He also has a happy trail that leads–
FOCUS!
I avert my eyes, my heart skipping fast. “You can’t be planning on getting in bed with me. I barely even know you!”
He chuckles. “Don’t flatter yourself, Shortstack. I would never get naked with you under the bed sheets. I’m obviously going to be in wolf form.
“Oh.” I relax slightly, then tense again. “Wait, even as a wolf, you’re huge. You’ll take up the whole bed!”
Axel grins as he steps back. “Not as big as Logan, but yeah, I’m pretty impressive. Don’t worry, I’ll keep my little Bookworm warm and cozy while nestled in my fur.”
I get no saying in the matter. Axel shifts immediately, shredding his boxers. Bones crack and realign fast, and then there’s a chocolate–brown wolf
standing where Axel was just a moment ago.
He wasn’t kidding about being huge. It becomes pretty obvious that he will take up most of the bed when he walks up to it. He huffs and climbs up on the bed. Up close, I notice there are lighter patches of brow around his muzzle and chest. His green eyes remain the same, though–bright with mischief even
in this form.
I press myself against the headboard. “Um, hi?”
Wolf–Axel flops down on his belly and crawls up to me until I’m face–to–face with his gigantic head. His tongue lols out, and then he looks meaningly at the empty spot by his belly. He wants me to use him as a big, furry heating pad.
“I’m not cuddling with you!” I growl, trying to sound like I’m not three seconds away from turning into a popsicle.
Wolf–Axel makes a huffing sound that’s clearly laughter and paws at the sheets again. His eyes hold a challenge as if saying, “You can freeze, or you can be practical.”
20
Another violent shiver races through me, and I groan in defeat. “Fine. But if you tell anyone about this, I’ll shave you in your sleep.”
Wolf–Axel’s tongue lolls out in a wolfish grin as I reluctantly scoot/down and curl against his warm side. Gosh, he really is warm and soft. Like a pillow. I lean my head against his neck fluff, but I can’t get comfortable. He is so big that I can’t keep my head there, and in the end, I just grab the bed sheet and climb up on his back.
Axel turns his head but doesn’t shake me off. He allows me to pull the bed sheet over us like a man, and then…nothing. I doze off and don’t even realize it until I feel Axel shifting to get more comfortable. His fur is so incredibly soft, and I burrow deeper, not wanting to lose this cocoon of warmth. He makes a sound that vibrates through my entire body. His wolf–self seems pleased that I’m comfortable.
“This doesn’t mean we’re friends,” I mumble sleepily into his chocolate fur.
Axel
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