Hunt Me! I Crave the Chase (Spooky Boys #3)

“C’mon, Doc,” I urged, tilting my head back to rest it against Mutt’s sternum for support. “I just bought us a few minutes before he freaks out again.”

Theo laughed, shaking his head at the both of us as he pulled out his first aid kit and got to work. I spaced out for most of it, my eyes drifting shut, Mutt’s heart thumping against my back, erratic and worried.

Mutt babied me.

There was no other way to describe it. It should’ve bothered me, being coddled. But it didn’t. He plied me with kisses. Kept me tucked inside his bed covered in blankets that smelled like him. He brought me food, stroked my hair, and growled at anyone that walked by the door.

My head hurt too much to really do much, so I mostly slept.

Eventually the pounding faded some, and when I woke I took the opportunity to inspect Mutt’s room. It was…weird being in here. Felt personal in a way we hadn’t gotten till that night. In a good way.

I’d been curious about Mutt, and I could admit that.

At first I’d told myself it was because he was a werewolf, and Lydia’s teaching hadn’t prepared me for that. But…that was a lie. The truth was he fascinated me. How was it possible that someone could be so full of life, so absolutely filthy, and yet…innocent too?

Mutt saw the world with rose-colored glasses on.

And I was starting to hope they were dark enough he wouldn’t see my blood stains.

“I have brought you Pop Tarts,” Mutt declared the morning after I’d spent the night in his bed. “They are like food,” he promised, like I didn’t know what a fucking Pop Tart was. “But better.”

“Thanks,” I laughed, and then regretted it, because laughing made my head hurt.

Mutt helped me sit up, and I snuggled in against him, surprised by how easy it was to lean on him. “I didn’t know you could have chocolate,” I teased, enjoying the steady rise and fall of his chest as he breathed, and the thump, thump of his heart.

“What do you mean?” Mutt asked curiously, his fingers gently carding through the hair at my nape. He plucked at the curls, and I sighed, eyes drifting shut.

Of course he didn’t get the joke.

“You know, because dogs can’t have chocolate?”

“I am not a dog,” Mutt scoffed, sounding incredibly fucking guilty. “Oh, look! There’s a…” Mutt looked around the room for a distraction. “A tree! Outside the window.”

“A tree.”

“A very good tree,” he agreed, his heart thumping erratically beneath my cheek. “So very good. The best tree.”

You’re not sneaky at all.

“Uh huh.” I agreed, cracking an eye open as I picked up my Pop Tart and nibbled on it. “And you’re not trying to distract me at all.”

“Ha-ha! No. Distract you? Never.”

“Mhm.”

I didn’t know why he was pretending but…I figured he had his reasons, and at this point…I supposed he’d earned some trust. So I let him off the hook for now and ate my Pop Tart like a good boy.

No one bothered us.

Even though I could hear Theo rustling around outside the bedroom, it was quiet in here. An oasis really. Didn’t feel real. When I was here, it was like all the shitty stuff out there didn’t matter.

Mutt’s bed was piled high with pillows and blankets. Clearly comfort was important to him. The mattress sat on the floor in the back corner of the room, facing the door and window—which suited me just fine.

I liked to be able to see all the entrances and exits at the same time.

It felt safer that way.

However, the mattress on the floor was not the weirdest part of the room. Mutt’s personality bled into everything here. Hand picked, just like a professional interior designer would do—only instead of cheesy posters, designer portraits, curtains, and decor—Mutt’s room was full of wild things.