Longing for Wolves (Shifter Country Wolves Book 5) by Roxie Noir Read Free Book Online

cleaning up and then going to bed,” she said, her arms still crossed in front of her.
    “Okay, but where are you going to bed?”
    Something clattered in the kitchen, and someone shouted something Calder couldn’t understand. Annika looked quickly over her shoulder, and then back at him.  
    Her lips parted slightly as she looked up at him, and then Calder couldn’t help himself.
    He bent down and pressed his mouth to hers, her lips soft and yielding under his. Warmth blossomed through him and he reached for her waist.
    Instead, her hands were on his chest, pushing him away. Calder stood up and took a step back.
    “Stop it,” Annika said.
    Calder held up both hands in an I’m innocent gesture.
    “Sorry,” he said.
    “What’s going on?” she asked, her arms crossed over her chest again.
    “I thought you wanted me to kiss you,” he said.
    “You’re wasted at a rehearsal dinner,” Annika said.
    “Open bar?” he asked.
    “Seriously,” she said.
    “You’re hot and I thought I’d try my luck before I left,” he said.  
    It was something like the truth.  
    She gave him another long look up and down.
    “Come on,” he said, letting himself smile. “You’re thinking about it.”
    Annika looked into his eyes, and drunk as he was, Calder could sense her hunger.
    Then she shook her head firmly.
    “No,” she said. “You’re a drunk mess at your sister’s rehearsal dinner, and you’re leaving again in two days.”
    “We could still have fun,” Calder said.
    “I don’t want fun ,” Annika said. “I’ve had fun . I want someone who’ll stick around for a while.”
    Calder felt like she’d slapped him. He had no response, just looked down at the counter, into his whiskey glass.
    “I know about Sam,” she said. “I’m not getting in the middle of that . You need to straighten your own life out, Calder Waltz. Then you can get drunk and try your luck with me.”
    She flipped the notebook closed, then walked to a coat rack and stuck it into a tote bag that hung there.
    “But that’s over,” he said, and shrugged, trying to make it look casual. “We broke up. That’s all.”
    “That’s why you’re getting trashed right now? That’s why you didn’t tell Greta you were coming home, you just showed up? Because you and Sam broke up and you’re emotionally healthy right now?”
    This is going so wrong , Calder thought.
    Annika stepped forward, reached her hands up, and adjusted Calder’s tie.
    “You’re a project, Calder. An attractive one, but you’re a project, and I’ve been around too many blocks to take on projects any more.”
    She stepped back and looked at his tie approvingly.
    “See you tomorrow?” she asked.
    Calder nodded, and Annika left the kitchen.
    He sagged against the counter and drained his whiskey. One of the dishwashers looked over at him, and Calder held up his empty glass in a cheers motion, then walked through the door as well.
    The private room felt hot and sticky. Calder wandered for a moment, but everyone seemed preoccupied, wrapped up in their own lives. Lives he wasn’t a part of, not anymore.
    I need fresh air , he thought, and walked for a door.
    Greta caught his arm.
    “Are you leaving?”
    He shook his head.
    “I just need some fresh air.”
    She nodded, not looking convinced.
    “Have some water when you come back,” she said, looking concerned.
    “Will do,” he said, and kissed her lightly on top of the head.
    Then he walked out.
    Page’s, the restaurant they were at, bordered on the forest. The door he’d gone through led to the parking lot, and Calder rested against the hood of a car, taking deep breaths.
    He didn’t know whether to feel buoyed or devastated by his talk with Annika. Yes, she’d turned him down, but she was obviously interested . All he had to do was... well, fix himself, apparently.
    Calder had thought he was getting there. Well, sort of. Thinking of Sam always hurt, but he’d forced himself to think of him less and less,