Chapter 36

Ava

With a grin and a wild laugh, Chris pulled the towel free from his hips.

I gasped and quickly covered my eyes, my cheeks burning. I felt my stomach twist inside of me, a thousand emotions taking over—surprise, annoyance, maybe even excitement.

But a moment later, I peeked through my fingers to see Chris grinning mischievously, his thumbs hooked into the waistband of his boxers. He wasn’t nude like I thought he would be.

“What’s the issue?” he asked.

“You pig!” I rose from where I was seated on the edge of the bed and smacked his arm, trying and failing to suppress a laughing smile. “You had me worried there for a second.”

Chris merely chuckled, that roguish look never leaving his eyes. “Is that so? Maybe next time, I’ll really give you a show. To ease your worries, of course.”

“In your dreams,” I scoffed, snatching up the clothes I had retrieved for him and tossing them at his head. He sputtered in mock outrage as the fabric smacked him in the face, but caught them anyway.

“I don’t know if I would say that,” he teased, his eyes settling unwaveringly on mine. “It has happened, you know.”

As if my blush wasn’t already bad enough, even more heat crept into my cheeks at his words. But I said nothing, merely folding my arms and brushing past him toward the bathroom to take a shower and clean the grape juice off of my own skin.

While I waited for the water to heat up, I peeked through the cracked door to see Chris getting dressed. He was pulling on Ethan’s old clothes—a plain white t-shirt and gray sweatpants that hung a little too loosely on his lean frame. I tried not to stare at the way the soft cotton clung to the hard planes of his chest and abs, and simply closed the door the rest of the way.

As the hot water ran down my back and washed off the grape juice, I couldn’t help but shut my eyes and think… about him, about everything. I hated the way that, deep down, I had felt a little excited when he had torn his towel off.

But I was glad it had ended the way it did. I couldn’t lose control around him again; he was still a child in my eyes, and besides, our tradition kept us from being together. I could never be his Luna, and I certainly wasn’t leaving my home to join him in the human world.

I just hoped that he wouldn’t leave, either.

When I finally stepped out of the steamy bathroom a few minutes later, I found Chris sitting cross-legged on my bed, flipping through a book that I kept on my bedside table. He smirked and held it up when I entered.

“I didn’t pin you for the romance novel type.”

“Something wrong with that?” I quickly snatched the book away, tossing it on the dresser.

Chris shrugged. “No,” he said, eyeing me up and down—I now wore a different pair of pajamas, this time opting for a light nightgown and robe rather than a set. It was hot tonight. Or at least, that was what I told myself; although I couldn’t entirely deny the fact that a tiny part of me had seen the lace trim on the nightgown and the silk of the robe and had been tempted to wear it around Chris.

There was a brief moment where neither of us spoke. Chris seemed to be drinking me in with his eyes, unabashedly absorbing every inch of my body. His eyes lingered on my bare legs in a way that sent goosebumps down my flesh, but he said nothing.

“I should head back soon,” he finally said, clearing his throat. “But I don’t know about you... I could use another glass of that homemade wine to wash away the taste of that swill from earlier.”

I blinked, pondering for a moment, then went against my better judgment and nodded. A little wouldn’t hurt, right?

“You know, I think you’re right. Just a glass or two though—I don’t want a repeat of this morning’s hangover.”

“Fair enough.”

We headed back down the stairs to the kitchen, Chris following close behind me. I could feel the warmth of his body at my back and fought off a shiver. Get it together, Ava, I thought to myself.

A short while later, we were settled on the sofa in the living room, two generous glasses of nice, dry wine in our hands with our half-eaten charcuterie board between. I took a sip, letting the rich, full-bodied flavor of the wine roll over my tongue before I followed it with a piece of cheese.

“Mm, much better,” I sighed contentedly, still chewing the sharp cheese. “You were right, my wine is worlds better than that bottled stuff.”

“I’ll say.” Chris took a drink as well, smacking his lips appreciatively. “You’ll have to show me more about the whole winemaking process sometime. Like, without the slipping and falling into tubs part.”

I laughed at the fresh memory, a memory which I knew I’d likely never forget. “It’s a deal. Although that was arguably the most fun part.”

We lapsed into a comfortable silence, slowly sipping our drinks. I could feel the gentle warmth beginning to spread through my limbs as the alcohol hit my bloodstream, causing my vision to ever so slightly darken and grow fuzzy around the edges in a delicious way.

Beside me, Chris seemed equally relaxed, his long legs stretched out and his arm draped along the back of the sofa behind me. I avoided looking at him at all costs, and instead opted for staring out the window at the crescent moon in the sky.

“You know…” He finally broke the silence after a little while, swirling the deep red liquid in his glass pensively. “Leonard clearly has a thing for you.”

“What?”

“You heard me.”

I rolled my eyes. “First of all,” I said, “that’s none of your business. And second, he’s just lonely and looking for a friend. It’s been a long time since his wife passed, you know.”

“Is that really all?” Chris arched an eyebrow skeptically. “Because from where I was standing, it seemed like he wanted to get a whole lot closer to you than just being friends.”

Heat flooded my cheeks, and I took a hasty sip of wine to cover my flustered reaction. “Well, even if that's true, why does it matter to you?”

“Because I want you,” Chris said so matter-of-factly, so boldly, that it made my heart freeze in my chest.

“We can’t,” I blurted out.

“Why not?” he leaned forward, and we were so close now that I could almost smell the wine and bread on his breath. “Because of some stupid, antiquated rules?”

I shot him an exasperated look. “You know it’s not that simple, Chris. If any of the Elders found out—”

“They won’t find out,” he countered smoothly. “Not unless you want them to.”

I opened my mouth to protest further, but Chris silenced me by setting his glass aside and boldly draping his arm around my shoulders. My breath caught in my throat as he leaned in close, his eyes dancing with mischief.

“In fact,” he said in a low voice, “why don’t I take you out on a date tomorrow? We can go to the human mainland, somewhere public. That way you can see how you would totally throw yourself at me if we didn’t have all these silly rules holding you back.”

I scoffed despite the flush I could feel creeping down my neck. “You’re ridiculous.”

“Am I?” His fingers traced idly along my bare arm, leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake. “Or is it just that you’re afraid I might be right? That you do want me, and you’re only fighting it because you’re too scared to challenge tradition?”

My mouth went dry as Chris’s face drew closer, close enough that I could feel the warmth of his breath mingling with mine. His scent—warm and woodsy with just a hint of musk—surrounded me and made my head swim.

“We don’t have to go to the mainland, you know,” I heard myself say, the words tumbling out in a husky murmur before I could think better of it. “There are plenty of secluded spots around here if you really want to take me on a date.”

Chris blinked in surprise, his mouth falling open ever so slightly. For a moment, I thought he might surge forward. And, damn it, I might have given in to it thanks to the alcohol and the intimate evening.

But then he pulled back, and his lips curled up into a smirk. He stood, grabbing his wine glass and finishing off the rest of his wine, then set the glass back down and nodded down at me.

“Very well. I’ll take you on a date here, somewhere secluded—somewhere where no one will know.”

“And?” I found myself asking, slowly rising to my feet.

Chris let out a soft breath and let his finger trace along my jaw. I didn’t stop him, although I knew I should.

“And… I can assure you that once you go on a date with me, you won’t be able to get enough of me.”