Twenty-One

Stepping at the back of the shower, I tugged the curtain into place before I tossed my towel over it so I didn't flash Jesse as I stripped. 

When I slid under the water, I breathed a sigh of relief as the sweat of the last nine days began to wash away. 

I heard a noise and peeked out the curtain, expecting to see Jesse staring at the outline of me or something. 

Instead, I saw him slouched against the wall. My towel was bundled up under his head like a pillow, and wrapped around his neck like a scarf. 

A snore escaped him, and I bit back a grin before closing the curtain. I'd never been close to a guy before. I'd never seen one fall asleep, and on a toilet, no less. 

I'd had three boyfriends, but none of the relationships had ever gotten serious. I'd only ever slept with one guy Jimmy Cooper. That was a mistake, but you live and you learn. 

I took my time in the shower, but as I rinsed the shampoo from my hair, I started to get hungry. Hungry. My stomach growled loud enough to rattle the damn townhouse, and Jesse's snores cut off abruptly. 

"Tea?" His voice was groggy. It was hard to remember that even though he seemed new, he'd been following me around for more than a month. So I didn't know him, but he knew me. 

"Yeah, I'm fine," I called back. My stomach growled again, and I nearly groaned. Holy shit, was my body eating itself? I slapped conditioner on my hair and washed it out without waiting for it to work its magic, then shut off the water. 

Slipping my hand out of the shower, I reached for the towel rack. It usually had a couple of towels on it, but Jesse’s friends had been taking turns staying with us, and they didn't restock things the way I did. 

"Here." Jesse put the towel in my hand. I left my hand there, cringing. "Did one of your friends use this towel?" Jesse took it back and sniffed it. 

"Nope. All I smell is you." Phew. I accepted the towel and wrapped it around myself before drawing the curtain back. Jesse's eyes trailed down my body, and I put a hand on my hip. 

"You're not seriously going to check me out while I'm standing right here, watching." His throat bobbed. 

"Sorry. It's natural. You're gorgeous, and you're my mate. I'll try to keep it under wraps." Well, I didn't mind the compliment. Shaking my head, I strode toward the bedroom I'd claimed. Jesse followed me there, which was only slightly annoying. 

"Can you wait outside?" I asked him. "I can, but I'm not sure you'll be alive to let me in afterward, the way your stomach's growling." My lips twitched, threatening to lift upward in a grin. 

"Fine. Just close the door, and turn around." He did as instructed, and I dressed quickly before wrapping my hair in the towel. It was going to stay up like that for a bit so it didn't drip everywhere while I ate. 

"When we go down there, it would be good if you tried not to touch the other guys," Jesse said as we headed toward the stairs.

 "My wolf's kind of..." he ran his fingers lightly over his collarbone, and it took major effort for me not to stare at him in fascination as he did. I forced my attention away from his bare chest and collarbone. 

"Kind of what?" "Testy." I got the feeling that wasn't the word he'd wanted to use. "And by testy, you mean possessive?" "Yeah, but you’re not a fan of that trait." 

"No, but watering it down doesn't make me more fond of it. I get it; I saw how your wolf reacted to everything. I'll keep my hands to myself this time." He looked relieved. 

"Thanks." "Thanks for the...that." I gestured to the bathroom as we passed it. "The hugs?" 

"Yep." Wow, I was awkward. "You don't have to thank me. I like hugging you, and it calms my wolf too." Awkward. He made it more awkward. Luckily, we reached the bottom of the stairs.

 "There's our new she-wolf," Rocco grinned, holding his arms out. Jesse swore and went stiff. "Now you want to hug me?" I lifted an eyebrow. "Where was this Rocco when I wanted him?" Rocco's grin widened. 

"You never wanted me. You just like making me squirm." I laughed; it was true. Jesse swore again, and I bit my lip. Was I supposed to just... touch him? 

Wouldn't that be weird? His face was getting paler by the second, so I just went for it. I ducked under his arm, pulling it over my shoulder so our sides met, and I wrapped my arm around his waist. He instantly relaxed and regained color. 

"Thanks," he murmured. "Aw, how cute. Our first mated pair," Ford smirked our way. My wolf threatened to take over, and I staggered a bit. Shit. 

"Not mated," Jesse said quickly. "Her wolf hasn't chased me yet." That calmed her right down, for whatever reason. 

"Let's talk about something that isn't the two of them," Elliot suggested, gearing the conversation in another direction. 

"Tea, you'll be happy to know that we hacked into your email account and let your professors know that you were attacked by a dog and hospitalized. 

The Moon Ridge doctor was happy to send a note to excuse you. Your professors have been sending heaps of homework your way, but your scholarship is intact." I stood straighter. "Seriously? Thank you, guys. That means a lot."

 "It was Jesse's idea. He made Ford and Dax agree to it when they dropped him in bed before he crashed." 

Zed gestured over his shoulder, from where he was cooking steaks again. I looked at Jesse, surprised he'd thought about me when he was so out of it. 

"Thanks." He bobbed his head and led me to the table. We sat down beside each other, ready for the next inner-wolf attack. 

The guys talked and joked. They brought me and Jesse into the conversation a couple of times, but we were both a little out of it. 

My stomach growled louder than the guys talking, and everyone laughed. The steak wasn't ready yet though, so I dropped my head to the table and shut my eyes. I could go for a nap. 

But... there was so much studying to catch up on. I was going to need an entire gas station's worth of energy drinks to get caught up. Jesse got up and walked to the fridge. 

He grabbed a plate and then loaded it up with leftovers from what the other guys had been eating over the week. When he came back with it, he set it in front of me. I lifted an eyebrow at him. 

"You need to eat. You rarely even eat two meals, so I know you don't have the muscle or fat stores to power a werewolf's body. The way you're fueling yourself isn't enough anymore," he said. 

I wanted to throw the plate at him, but he was probably right. Picking up the fork, I got to work. 

I was nearly done with the plate when the other guys brought over a thick steak with mashed potatoes and veggies. I inhaled all of that one, next. Jesse brought me seconds.

 It freaked me out, but somehow I managed to eat all of that too. I was halfway through my third plate before I managed to feel even somewhat satisfied, so I finished the third. Ford whistled at me. 

"Usually Rocco pounds the most food. I'm thinking we're going to have a new champion soon." My face flushed. I didn't know why, but that was insanely embarrassing. Jesse grinned.

 "Only until she's adjusted to being one of us. Then Rocco will have his trophy back." It was the first time I remembered seeing him grinning, and he looked damn good doing it. His expression and words deflated my embarrassment. 

Then his knee bumped mine under the table, and the contact deflated it even more. I shot him a grateful look, and he winked. He winked. Somehow, I'd ended up magically paired with a winking, gorgeous nerd who lived a secret life as a werewolf. 

That hadn't been in my ten-year plan, but I wasn't quite sure complaining was the right thing to do, given that he was a hot nerd who’d just casually fixed the awkwardness in a conversation and then winked at me. 

The werewolf thing though... yeah, I still wasn't sure about that. Since Jesse and I were both awake and alive, the other guys decided they were going to head out. 

They all stayed to help clean up and then took off one by one. Elliot was the last to leave and reminded me again that I could call or stop by with any questions I had at any time. When the door closed behind him, me and Jesse were alone.