Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 33504 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 168(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 112(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33504 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 168(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 112(@300wpm)
“I will go and get changed,” Lord said.
She didn’t have a chance to ask him what he meant, as the doorbell rang again. There were more kids, and she just loved the costumes. There were a lot of spooky ones, some from movies, others just the usual monsters people dressed up as at Halloween.
The doorbell rang six more times before Lord joined her. He wore some kind of old garments that were torn at the cuffs and hems with fake blood on them. He literally looked like some ravaged old lord. He’d even put a hairpiece on.
“We’re taking this outside. If I hear that fucking doorbell ring again, I’m going to destroy it, and it took me hours to install.”
She did have every intention of taking this outside as she knew from past experiences how annoying the ringing bell could be. The only reason she hadn’t done so was that it had gotten seriously cold in the past few hours. As she stepped out, she felt the chill go right through her. The costume she wore was not exactly made with thick material, and she felt herself starting to freeze almost instantly.
Astrid was not a complainer.
Fall and winter were her favorite times of the year. She just happened to love being cold when she was snuggled under a thick sweater. There was no time to be cold, though, as the kids came.
Lord didn’t show any sign of the cold affecting him, but after an hour, and even seeing Blake and his lovely family didn’t help.
Astrid tried to hide her shaking hands, or the fact her breath kept coming out in waves of mist.
“You’re cold,” Lord said, removing his jacket and placing it over her shoulders. Some of the kids had asked what he was, and he said, “an old person,” which they all laughed at but were freaked out about.
No one knew Lord’s age, and everyone knew wolves aged slowly. He could be a couple of hundred years old. He had thick black hair with a few streaks of grey. He was grumpy a lot of the time. It wasn’t like he talked about the good old days. In fact, for the most part, he was quiet.
The kids seemed to also love the fact he kept them guessing whether his outfit was really his from a past life, or not.
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I’m hot. I don’t feel the cold.” He kept his hands on her shoulders and Astrid slid her hands inside each arm.
“Thank you.” His warmth surrounded her, along with his musky scent. She could never quite put her finger on what he smelled like. It was like the earth and home, and everything that gave her comfort. She was pretty sure there was a little pine mixed in there as well.
Lord didn’t remove his hands right away. He gripped her shoulder and she liked him holding her. Actually, she loved having his hands on her.
****
Lord had intended to steer clear of the house. The costume he wore was an old one his mother had made for him. He didn’t know why he had kept it, just that he had if there was ever a need to wear it. Even after all these years, it still fit.
He loved to see the look on the kids’ faces when he hinted at being so old. He was not an old wolf. He was forty-five years old, and to many wolves, that was young. Without a pack or a mate, he knew he was going to age a little faster. It was why he had the streaks of grey in his hair. He didn’t know how being in a pack or mated slowed down the aging process, just that it did for some packs. Lord hadn’t minded the aging.
Wolves were not infallible, although folklore pretended they were. He would live a long life, but over the last few years, that had seemed almost unbearable.
The last few months hadn’t, though.
The kids started to come fewer and fewer as it got later. Astrid still didn’t want to go in the house. He heard soft, spooky music playing, and he saw, even with his jacket, she was getting cold. He needed to find a way to warm her up, fast. He didn’t want her getting cold. He had a horrible feeling the guys would be pissed if their best cook couldn’t feed them anymore. He knew he would be.
Going to the stereo, he turned up the music, and then glanced toward her. “I don’t suppose I could have this dance?”
“I don’t know how to dance,” she said, nibbling her lip, which he found so cute.
“That’s okay, because I know how to dance for both of us. It’s all right, I don’t bite.”
Although, imagining sinking his teeth into the flesh of her ass was so damn intoxicating. He’d love to get his mouth on her body, but he didn’t say a word. Now was not the time for crazy, sexy fantasies, although that was exactly what he wanted. She was pure temptation to him.