CEO's Runaway Mate and Her Cubs

Chapter 379: No fear

Nate left Lara on the couch and checked twice that she was all right. Since she didn't seem panicking nor worried, he stepped back and turned to the pups.

«Now, you can,» he said.

As if released from a leash by his words, the twins crawled to Lara and hugged their mommy. They wagged their tails and sniffed her scent, pushing their heads against her hands or cuddling on her lap.

«I'm sorry, Lara,» Nate said. «I was slow.»

«You were just in time,» she pointed out while playing with the twins. «If it weren't for you, I don't know where I would be now. Thank you, Nate.»

«I am also sorry if I frightened you,» he said.

After all, she saw his wolf shape. Lara had a trauma related to wolves... It did make sense to him: she didn't know well enough about them, and she rationally tried to understand everything because of her kids. Yet, how much could a human actually accept?

A man shifting into a wolf was far from what she found acceptable. Ears and tail could be cute, but a real, big, and growling wolf was a whole nother matter. He had to make sure she wouldn't have nightmares or panic attacks, but... How?

He didn't know a thing about a woman's mind. Especially a human woman.

«You didn't, though,» Lara chuckled. «I was just a little startled, but you can't blame me for that! Also, you are... so beautiful,» she said, her voice turning into a whisper towards the end of her sentence.

She had heard that their transformation was an intimate aspect for every wolf. They wouldn't show their shape to anyone just like that if not for battling. Shifting happened only during specific events in a pack... Or during battles.

Since Nate had been forced to turn so that he could fight, she happened to see his wolf. But that had been an accident. He didn't want to show her yet, apparently.

Since the day she was told she would see him, sooner or later, she had secretly started to hope it would happen. She was curious, and she was so right about being curious.

But she had to keep her questions in check. It was a delicate moment for Nate. He had every right to decide when to let her see him and when not.

But she was dying to know whether his fur was as soft as it looked from afar. And to check his eyes: were they exactly the same? She couldn't see well from afar and in the dark, but they were blue for sure. However, what about the pupils? What about their shape?

There were so many things she wanted to know, but she wasn't sure how to ask. Nor when.

She relaxed on the couch and made her cubs settle down to sleep.

«B-beautiful?» Nate stuttered, waking up from his daze.

Had his mate just told him that his wolf was pretty? Wasn't she terrorised by it?

«Yes,» Lara confirmed.

He bit his lower lip to avoid laughing like an idiot. He first needed to confirm she really thought about what she said.

«But weren't you scared?»

«Yes, of course,» she replied. «So scared that my knees couldn't help me walk. I was terrified, and I couldn't think about anything at all. Luckily, you arrived in time.»

«Me? In time?»

What was she talking about? It almost sounded as if she wasn't scared of him but only of Polenta.

«So, you weren't scared of me?» he asked.

«No, should I be? You saved my life!»

«I don't know about that, but... So, you don't find me scary?»

«No, Nate. How could I?»

«But I have fangs and claws, and a lot of fur... Doesn't that frighten humans?»

Lara shrugged.

«I don't know... I don't find you scary because I know it's you.»

He sat on the sofa, moved Jaden from Lara's lap to his and occupied the spot the little boy was keeping. He rubbed Jaden's back when he opened his eyes, and the boy returned to sleeping soundly.

«So, it's fine if I sit here... Right?»

«Sure,» Lara said.

She stared at Nate, trying to understand what was going on with him.

«I'm not scared of you,» she said after a while. «Even if you are a feral beast and eat a lot of meat, you also are my boyfriend. It's not like I didn't know what you are, before dating. And it's okay. We have kids now, either way. Isn't it a bit too late for that kind of thought?»

«I was just making sure...»

«I'm not scared of you, Nate.»

«But then, your panic attacks... Are you sure it's not because you're actually scared of wolves?»

«Scared of wolves? I have two pups,» she pointed out. «I mean, I know you are stronger than me. I know that you can be dangerous, but it's the same for human people, isn't it?»

«Sure...» he hummed.

«I'm not particularly scared of wolves. And, for sure, not of you. On the contrary!»

«What is the cause of your attacks, then? I thought you couldn't stand the thought of kissing a beast... Or something along that line.»

«When I hug or kiss you, it's only because I feel the need to,» she said. «Because I want to! I don't do it out of fear for sure.»

«Then, why...»

«The attack comes later,» she pointed out.

After talking with Doctor Mason a couple of times, she was getting the gist of it. She was learning to analyse her own behaviour and look for motives... Or for what couldn't possibly be one.

She had no clue what was wrong yet, but she was getting closer to the right path.

«When the panic comes, we're done kissing. Most of the time, at least. It's not related to you - being a wolf. It wouldn't make sense because I knew about you even before. It's something else,» she sighed. «And I have this feeling...

It must be completely related to me. I am the cause of it. But I don't know why.»