Total pages in book: 133
Estimated words: 128380 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 642(@200wpm)___ 514(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128380 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 642(@200wpm)___ 514(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
He always felt jittery and antsy. Like he’d overloaded on caffeine and energy drinks. He sometimes woke in the night, sweating but without a fever.
Worse, the touch-hunger would randomly flare up, assailing him with relentless sensations … just as it had mere minutes ago. His skin was now hot and prickly. His head pounded and felt tight with pressure. Little itches kept racing over his flesh.
More, such raw need coursed through him that his dick was painfully hard. He knew from experience that no amount of attention from his hand would ease it. Because it was his hand, not that of another.
Being around so many unmated females didn’t help—it often caused the touch-hunger to flare up. As if his body sensed that a solution to its issue was close by; as if it was trying to drive him to reach for that solution.
Deke rubbed at his forehead. He wanted to go home. Be alone. Get away from the noise and activity. He felt so overstimulated that his nerve endings were raw and his senses felt sharper.
“We’re not doing this to be nosy,” said Luke. “We’re concerned. We want to help.”
Deke considered blowing the brothers off. Again. But it would be a fruitless endeavor—he saw that clearly.
It also seemed like a shitty thing to do when over and over they’d respected his wish to be left alone. That couldn’t have been easy for them—particularly since they were both born-alphas and, as such, authoritarianism was written into their damn DNA.
Even now, they weren’t calling rank and imperiously demanding answers. They were merely pushing for Deke to confide in them so that he wouldn’t have to deal with his issue alone. In that sense, they were only doing what he’d do if the situation were reversed. Pride looked after pride.
“Seriously, why won’t you ease the touch-hunger?” Tate pushed.
Deke reluctantly replied through gritted teeth, “Because I can’t. My cat won’t have any of it.”
Tate’s lips parted. “What?”
“He’s constantly in a fucking snit,” Deke explained. “Doesn’t want anyone near him—male or female. He’s always on edge; always either pacing up and down or stiffly crouched in a corner. Honestly, you’d think he was trapped. That’s how he acts. Like a caged wild animal.”
Luke stared at him, clearly at a loss. “What sparked this?”
Deke shrugged. “I have no idea. Seriously. It wasn’t so bad at first. He was just tetchier than usual. But it got worse as time went on, until he was wound so tight he kept starting fights with other cats for the release. Then he pulled inward, wanting nothing to do with anyone. But I didn’t think he’d still act so withdrawn when touch-hunger became a problem—I thought he’d want it to be dealt with.”
Tate edged closer, his arms slipping to his sides. “Is it because of Dayna? Does he miss her or something?”
Deke slid Gerard a quick look, ensuring he was out of hearing range, since the bartender was a close friend of Dayna’s and would report back anything he heard. “No.” Deke paused as a scuttling sensation raced up his arm. He ground his teeth against the itch. “He didn’t even fight me when I made the official decision to pull out of the vow I made to her.” A decision he hadn’t yet shared with her, but he would.
Tate’s brows flew up. “You’ve pulled out?”
Deke blinked. “You sound pleased.”
Tate’s compact shoulders lifted and fell in an easy, fluid movement. “You’re a man of your word, Deke—you don’t like to break it; I respect that. But I don’t think it’s fair that you’re expected to stick to it in this situation. I mean, she wasn’t supposed to stay away for so long. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not criticizing her for being hesitant to leave Australia—she’s taking care of her family. But she told you she’d be gone a year at most.”
Not told. Sworn. And yet, over two and a half years later, she still hadn’t returned.
Intent on finding his true mate, he’d always made a point of keeping his relationships short and shallow. But he’d unexpectedly grown close to Dayna. Maybe because they’d been friends for years prior to them sharing a bed.
When her pregnant sister unexpectedly lost her mate, Dayna had chosen to temporarily move to Australia to be at her sibling’s side. But she hadn’t wanted her and Deke to throw away what they’d been building, so she’d asked him to wait for her. He’d agreed, and they’d made a promise to only sleep with others when touch-hunger came calling.
“At this point,” Tate went on, “I’m not even sure she intends to return.”
Deke slugged back his last shot. “I believe she wants to. But I also think that she’s finding it hard to drum up the will to leave, and I get it. Evan might be her nephew, but she’s co-parented him since he was born. Really, she’s been more of a mom to him than her sister has.” He set his glass back on the bar.