Transparent by Soccerluv4 (: (100 books to read in a lifetime .txt) 📖

motioning me over to the counter to checkout the antique I was going to buy.

I handed her the bird cage, watching her scan the barcode and then pull out a box from underneath to pack the item.  As she packed it carefully, I looked around aimlessly. My eyes suddenly connected with Reece, causing my body to warm with heat. The way he was studying me caused a blush to my face, and I quickly turned away, the stare too much to handle.

“$32.50,” Helen interrupted.

“Oh, uh, give me a sec,” I said quickly, reaching into my purse to pull out some cash. Giving her the money, she took it and deposited it into the cash register, and handed me the box with the bird cage in it.

“Alright dear, have a good day, and don’t worry, your secret is safe with me!” she winked. I smiled at her as we walked away and mouthed a quick thank you when Reece was turned, waving goodbye as we stepped out of the store.

“Let me just put this in the car and we’ll get going,” I said, opening the back door and placing the gift safely on the floor of the vehicle.

Locking the car, I walked back over to Reece, who was watching the middle of the square.

“Reece,” I said.

“Hmm?”

“You need to be more careful about who you tell about-” I looked left and right “-us.”

“I swear, I didn’t tell her anything. She really is that smart,” he replied, his eyes boring into mine.

“I know, but just, please, be careful?” I said softly, touching his arm. He looked down at my hand placed on his arm, almost as if it was some sort of toxic substance that could burn his arm in a second. The look on his face hurt me in ways I didn’t think were possible, but I reluctantly pulled it away, looking down at the ground.

“Uh, sorry, about that,” I murmured quickly, “We should get going. There’s a lot more to see,” I smiled at him, to which he stared at me blankly.

He finally nodded, stuffing his hands in his jacket pockets before walking beside me.

We passed by an array of shops: grocery stores, clothing stores, even the store my mom told me she bought my aunt Daniella a necklace when she first moved into my dad’s place.

The conversation wasn’t much. Just the usual chit chat as we passed different shops. I took the time to explain the importance of them, to the town and to me, and offered a bit of history behind them as well. He only nodded, throwing in a comment or two once in a while, but mostly remained silent, letting me speak. Considering I always ramble when I’m nervous, it was probably best that he didn’t say too much anyway.

My stomach grumbled suddenly as we just walked out of a bookstore, causing a slight chuckle out of Reece.

“Hungry?” He asked as we walked down the sidewalk again.

“Maybe just a little,” I murmured, blushing, before an idea struck me.

“You know what? I know just the place where we can grab a bite to eat!”

I directed us over to the best diner in town, Dave’s Diner, where all the neighborhood kids always went to eat. Back when I was in high school, my friends and I used to come here almost every day, grabbing something to eat while we did homework.

The front of the place was as homey as a diner could get, sporting clean glass windows that held yellow ruffled curtains inside, booths, and a bar where 70’s looking high chairs stood. Usually the place was occupied by the lunch rush, but since it was nearing close to 4, there were only a handful of people inside.

We walked in, embraced by the scent of warm grease and freshly brewed coffee. We found a booth and slid in on opposite sides.

“This place has the best eggs. And the coffee is delicious,” I said, smiling at him from over my menu.

“Well then I guess I’ll have to have some of both,” he chuckled, smiling back at me.

A warm feeling spread in my chest, as I stared at those beautiful brown eyes. He had a way of making me feel loved and hated at the same time. Well, I guess that was probably me, considering his tender looks made me feel like the biggest traitor alive.

I sighed, mentally shaking my head to will those thoughts away.

“Welcome to Dave’s Diner, what can I get you?” a voice rung out.

“Uh, yeah, can I have scrambled eggs and coffee? Same goes for him,” I ordered, looking down at the menu.

“Sure. Anything else?”

I looked up, finally noticing the waiter taking our orders.

“Steven?”

I saw him look at me for a second, before recognition entered his face.

“Cassie! What are you doing here!?” he exclaimed.

I got up and pulled him in for a hug.

“I’m back! NYU was great but my parents want me to continue my grad work a bit closer to home, so here I am!” I smiled at him.

Looking back over at Reece, I could see him clutching his menu intensely, his eyes shifting to a dark brown as they zeroed in on my arms around Steven.

I gulped, sitting down immediately and reaching a hand over to Reece. My touch on his hand calmed him down in seconds.

“This is my friend Reece. Reece, this is my old friend from high school, Steven. How’s your mate? Is she doing well?”

Reece’s body relaxed suddenly as he heard the question about his mate, and threw an acknowledging nod towards Steven. However, his eyes were still wary as they watched Steven with a bit more concentration than I’d have liked.

“She’s great! We’re doing well, despite me having this job back. Sort of feels like high school all over again,” he chuckled, “but it’s just temporary. I’m a lawyer now, but my firm is moving to a different location and we’ll be moving soon. Unfortunately, that means I have to make ends meet for the time being, so that’s why I’m working here.”

I nodded, looking over to Reece to see him staring at my hand on his. I’d forgotten I left it there in the midst of listening to Steven.

Withdrawing my hand as casually as possible, I turned back to Steven.

“Well that’s great! Give my best to Grace,” I replied.

“Sure, of course!” A call came from the cashier, signaling Steven to another booth of waiting customers. “I gotta go, but it was so nice seeing you! We need to catch up sometime!” he smiled at me, then Reece, before walking off to the other booth.

‘Like hell’ came a soft voice in the back of my head.

I gulped. Oh no. Looking over at Reece, I could see his hands still shaking a bit. Oh god, no.

I should’ve seen this coming. It’d been more than 24 hours since I’d met Reece, which meant the mate bond was growing faster as time went on. Our special mindlink between mates was starting to form, and the idea terrified me.

Reece was still shaking slightly, his eyes growing darker. His concentration was solely on something behind me, which I assumed was probably Steven. My eyes grew large, as I realized the situation was getting more and more dangerous by the second.

I slid out of my side of the booth and slid into his. Reece was still shaking, staring at Steven as he talked to some customers. His eyes finally noticed me sitting next to him, causing his body to relax a bit, but his eyebrows to knit together in confusion.

“Why are you sitting next to me?”

I ignored him, placing a gentle hand on his face.

“Yours, I’m yours.”

Chapter 4

 

 

You could say things got a bit awkward after I’d tried calming Reece down.

His eyes were blazed with gold, the kind that told me the lustful side of his wolf had taken over.

He grabbed my waist, pulling my body as close to him as he could, and placed his head on my neck, inhaling deeply. I placed my hands on his chest, feeling the curvature of his peck muscles and upper abs. To say my mouth was watering was an understatement.

I could feel the warmth of his caress as he rubbed his hands from my waist to my hips and around my back.

For once, I forgot any sort of compromises, any consequences that my mind was screaming at me. I just let myself sink into the warmth of my mate.

It felt amazing to be so connected to an individual like I’d never been before. The way his body fit into mine like a puzzle piece astonished me. We were literally perfect for each other.

His head tilted up out of the crook of my neck, placing a soft kiss there instead. I moaned slightly, my breathing becoming shallow.

I felt his arms tighten around me as he kissed my neck again, this time where my mark would be.

Suddenly, as if my mind knocked down the wall separating itself from my heart, I pushed at his chest, trying to get as much distance from him as I could.

He let me go, a confused expression etched on his face.

“Cass?” he breathed out, startled.

I only took his confusion as leverage and managed to slip myself out of his side of the booth and back to my own.

Looking down at the surface of the table as if it was the most interesting thing at the moment, I bit out a curt response.

“Sorry, I had to do that. You were getting really angry.”

I heard nothing for the longest time, causing my curiosity to get the better of me and peer up at him. His face was stoic, a flat expression covering the vulnerable and lustful one that had been there moments ago.

I swallowed the painful lump in my throat.

“Right. Thanks.” He bit back, looking out the window.

Our food arrived, and the rest of the time was spent eating in silence.

When it was time to pay, I pulled a twenty out of my purse, but a rough voice stopped me.

“Put it back, I got it,” was all he said.

“But –”

He gave me a flat look, tossing a twenty of his own on the table and walking out.

I quickly stuffed my cash back into my purse and ran off after him.

“Reece, stop, please!” I shouted after him. All I saw was his retreating back heading off in the opposite direction.

I ran after him, ignoring the curious stares of onlookers. When I’d finally caught up to him, I grabbed his arm, trying to stop him.

He yanked his arm so fast I stepped back a bit.

“What’s wrong with you!?” I whispered – yelled at him.

“What’s wrong with me!? What’s wrong with you!?” he bit back.

I recoiled, almost as if that comment had attacked me physically.

“Why did you have to do that Cass? I can control my anger myself! I’ve done it for the past 23 years without you! But please, for the love of god, stop acting like my mate one second and completely pushing me away the next. Pick one and stick to it!” he exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air.

He was right, I was being completely stupid. It was a natural reaction for me to calm him down at the diner. I didn’t even realize what I was doing until it was