We drove up the small road leading to the farm. It hadn't taken that long to get here, but it had been a nice trip. The countryside looked amazing in the pale autumn light, the sun struggling to cast its last rays of warmth for the year. I was quick to snap some pictures of how the sun hit the trees with my phone, thinking I'd want to paint them later.
"I think this is it," Abel said and parked, pulling on the stick of his beloved car. It always had this soothing click to it. There was just something about Abel driving, that I loved.
"Right, better like... Get out of the car then," I said and unbuckled my seatbelt.
As we were getting out of the car, Em came out onto the front porch waving. She ran down to the cobblestones on bare feet and hugged me like we had known each other for ages.
"Gael! It's so nice you could come!" She pulled back and turned towards Abel.
"I'm Abel," he said when she didn't say anything. "I'm the boyfriend."
She smiled widely and nodded. "I can tell. His smell is all over you."
"Uh." Abel glanced down at me from behind his aviators. I could see it him doing that side-glance thing. "I don't... Know..." He trailed off and shifted his weight from one foot to the other.
"His smell. Like, it's all over the town too..." She trailed off as well and glanced at me. "You don't know about that, do you..."
"Know about what?" I asked feeling utterly confused.
"Right, let's go inside, get some coffee and I'll explain."
So, we sat down by a small table in a lovely kitchen surrounded by plants after Em having invited Abel in, so he could enter. Not a single surface was without a plant, making the room look more like a jungle than a kitchen. We had mismatched cups with blacker than black coffee. Everything about this kitchen fit Em so well, and I didn't even know her that well. But it just fit.
"Right, so we as werewolves have several ways of communicating. Howling is the obvious one, but we also leave scents. Gael has left his scent all over you Abel, in what can only be described as 'lovely'. You're a friend. So, if you met other werewolves, you've got a stamp of approval by a wolf and would be left alone. Gael has also left his scent at the club, the bakery, the school and a small vintage second-hand store. It's just a heads-up that he's there and he likes those places."
"I... I didn't know I had done that?" I said with a small voice.
"No, in the beginning it happens subconsciously. But then you learn to do it consciously. Ever got the urge to touch something? Like in the bakery or touch a friend? Maybe Abel?"
"I mean, I've always got an urge to touch him, I can't even lie," I said and laughed. Abel chuckled, grabbed my hand and brought my knuckles up to his lips, placing a tiny kiss on them. "But I also can't deny I get urges to touch things. Like I just have to touch them. Is that to spread my scent?"
Mila nodded. "It is. The urge will subside after some years, and you'll know when to spread your scent and which kind of scent you wanna leave in what places and with which people. You've been largely positive, from what I've heard. Other wolves who've passed through keeps talking about the happy wolf in town. It's becoming a little nickname for you, actually. Happy Wolf."
"It's very fitting," Abel said and smiled at me, showing off a fang.
"I mean," I said but hesitated, taking a deep breath. "I am very happy. Despite the things happening in the town, I still... Yeah. I'm really happy."
"It shows in more ways than one too. So even if it was unintentional, we do like the heads-ups about the town and its people. You're telling wolves it's safe. And with a very loud voice."
"Is... That going to get more wolves to stay?" I asked with a tentative voice. But hopeful. I really hoped more would show up and actually stay.
"It might. Wolves likes to go where there are other wolves who've said it's a good place. We need more leaders like you, Gael. Most are just followers."
"Like... An alpha?" Abel said with this cheeky grin.
Em looked less than impressed, pressing her lips together into a fine line and rolled her eyes. "Uh, yeah no that's not a thing. We just have scouts who'll check out places and tell the rest if it's good. Gael's more like a scout."
"I liked leader better," I muttered more to myself than the others.
After leaving Em's I was thinking hard about the whole 'leaving a scent trail' around the town. It did expose me, but on the other hand, it only exposed me to other wolves. I wasn't sure anyone else had the sense of smell we did, nor if they'd be able to pick up what kind of emotions I was putting out into the world. I'd ask Cal if she could smell anything. Abel could smell the wolf in me, that's how he knew I was one to begin with.
He pulled me close as I was about to grab something from the fridge, placing kisses on the side of my throat.
"Happy Wolf," he murmured. "Leaving a happy scent on me, huh." He had this soft voice, and I knew what it meant when he sounded like that.
"You know it," I replied, struggling to get the words out. I always became so tongue-tied and hard of breath when he was kissing my throat. I couldn't help it. I had a feeling he knew, and he enjoyed it.
"I do love the smell of you," he whispered, hot air dancing along my skin.
His fingers slowly made their way under my shirt, making me slightly twitch. They were a little cold, and it gave me a slight fright.
Alrighty, I couldn't contain myself any longer. I turned around and he picked me up as if I didn't weigh a thing. He took me to the bedroom immediately as I kissed him, holding his face in my hands. I had to admit, I enjoyed feeling small and light in his arms. There was something so very protective about it and I felt safe.
He gently put me down on the bed and immediately pulled his shirt off. He could never get that off fast enough, it seemed. I wasn't complaining. Like at all. I loved watching him, with clothes on or off. He had this graceful way of moving, as if he were a dancer.
His eyes would get fully black, and I knew he did that on purpose now. He wanted to see all the colours. Drink it all in. Watch me.
I hoped I looked beautiful to him.
His hands went for my jeans, and I slipped my shirt off. He stopped for a moment and the black in his eyes shook, as if he was recalibrating his eyes or something. God, I loved his eyes so much.
"I've been looking forward to this," he said as he pulled my jeans off.
"Yeah?" I said with a shaky voice.
He bit down on his bottom lip with his fang, and like... He was opening his jeans at the same time, and he looked like something from a fashion spread. A really R-rated one. He did it slowly too, popped the button open and pulled the jeans apart so the zipper opened. And I was just laying there, enjoying the show to the fullest.
"Oh yeah. And you chose those skinny jeans, prancing around in them. You tease."
I couldn't hold back an unattractive snort, sounding much like a pig.
He was finally nude too and joined me on the bed, spreading my legs apart. I grabbed his face, pulling him down to me so I could kiss him. I just had to have his lips on me immediately. Especially when he got to work with those amazing fingers. I didn't even know how he got the essentials out without me noticing. I wrote it up to vampire magic or something, wasn't really thinking too much at that point. Just enjoying what he was doing and the way he was kissing me.
"I fucking love you," he groaned into my mouth and grabbed my thighs, clearly done with what we had been doing so far. I circled my legs around his waist and his hand slipped down to my ass, lifting it up as he pushed inside of me.
I really tried. I promise I did. I really tried to not sound like an absolute idiot, but I did, and Abel didn't even try to hide his laugh. I couldn't fault him for laughing. I knew I sounded ridiculous, and I felt safe enough with him to actually just... Be a little ridiculous.
Abel lifted up and got me to roll onto my side. He laid down behind me and wrapped his arm around me, pulling me close. And then he moved his hips forward and I about lost my mind. He grabbed my leg and got me to put it over his. I stretched my neck, grabbing his hair and pushed his mouth down to my skin. He didn't need more guidance from me, he knew exactly what I wanted at that time.
His teeth broke through my skin with a small piercing pinch. I knew the pain would be over in a minute and it was worth enduring it to feel the heat spread in my body. I couldn't stop moaning once it did.
The way he was moving, the way his tongue ran over the sores as he drank... It was just too much. I grabbed his hand and brought it down, wrapping his fingers around me, getting me over the finish line.
He groaned loudly, pressing me to him. I loved feelings his arms around me. It felt so good to just cuddle after. I hadn't done that very much before.
"Abel?" I said with a tired voice.
"Hmm?" He sounded like he was ready to drift right off to sleep.
"I'd... Like to learn more about vampire culture."
He snorted. "I'll teach you. But not now. Now it's cuddle time. What we'll talk about is how hot you are. And how much I like playing with your hair."
"Both very good topics."
"The absolute best."
I chuckled and snuggled even closer. It wasn't actually possible, but I could press myself to him. It felt nice.