Chapter 139: Unusual Calm
Chapter 139: Unusual Calm
Vivian’s POV"Was that enough for you?" he asked, glancing up at me mid-bite as he finished his own massive portion.
"Oh yeah. It was delicious," I said, trying my absolute best not to sound too overeager or completely dazed by the sheer amount of food I’d just inhaled.
"I meant did you notice anything? Like why I had you use your sense of smell before you ate?" he clarified smoothly, reaching out with one broad hand for his coffee mug.
My eyes instinctively drifted down to his hand, watching how his long fingers wrapped so naturally around the ceramic mug, and how he casually brought it to his lips. Since when was watching a man drink plain black coffee so absurdly seductive?
I cleared my throat hastily, feeling a sudden flush of heat creep up my neck. "Oh. Yeah. I... found a pretty effective way to distract myself from all the overwhelming sensory input."
He raised a single dark brow, a hint of curiosity in his eyes, but he didn’t press me for details.
That ass, my wolf suddenly growled in my head, totally unprompted.
I almost choked on thin air. A sputtered, embarrassing cough escaped my throat, and I tried desperately to play it off as nothing, but Zahliver’s deep amusement rolled through our mate bond like a warm, rumbling laugh inside my chest. He liked that I was checking him out. Of course he did. He knew exactly how ridiculously good he looked—and he was mine. All mine.
Once we finally finished eating, we cleaned up the kitchen together in surprisingly comfortable silence. I was caught completely off guard, however, when his relaxed expression shifted suddenly. A low, threatening growl escaped his throat as he pulled his buzzing phone out of his pocket. Something on the screen had irritated him instantly. Without saying a single word to me, he turned and started walking away toward the quieter side of the house.
"Wait," I called out, perking up on the counter. "So does this mean I can finally go out without you supervising me?"
He turned halfway around, giving me a look that was both stern and a little apologetic.
"Not even close. Just give me a minute—I need to take this call."
I nodded, even though I was practically dying inside to explore the island. Cabin fever was getting very real, very fast.
"You know," I said teasingly, hopping down from the counter and settling cross-legged on the plush living room couch, "I’ll probably still hear every single thing you say... no matter how far away you go."
His broad back tensed for just a second before he kept walking down the hallway.
Score one for the new wolf ears.
"Yes, but I doubt you’ll be able to stay focused with everything around you making noise or movement," Zahliver called out, his voice already sounding distant. "And the farther away I am, the less the static from the phone will bother your sensitive ears."
He was probably already on the complete opposite side of the house. Even when he seemed to move casually, he was fast. Freakishly fast.