HAZELI wake up to a coolness being pressed against my forehead. Slowly, I open my eyes and look into the dark bedroom."Ramon?" I ask, tiredly lifting my head from my pillow. I must be dreaming. He is standing on the side of my bed, leaning over me. Slowly, he carefully climbs into bed beside me and pulls me against his chest. "Go back to sleep, baby doll." He sighs out."What are you doing here?" I ask, cupping his cheeks and propping myself up on my elbows. Ramon's fingers run over my shoulder and he sighs. "I missed you." I can hear the pain in his voice, and my heart aches to fix that.I slowly bring my lips to his, and inhale deeply when I feel the sparks ignite inside of my body. I missed him. So much. Ramon's hands draw me closer as they attach to my hips. I pull myself away from him and rest my head in the crook of his neck.The ache I've felt since the moment I had left has finally dissolved. It wasn't the ache one gets when you lose something you've had. It felt like I lost

HAZELI wish Ramon would have at least pointed me in the direction of the TV room before he had left me so abruptly. A little girl runs past me in a hurry, her giggles hit my ears and I can't help but smile. She's adorable. I watch her pigtails bounce until she's out of sight and I'm alone again. "Are you lost?" A woman's voice brings me out of my little dream world. I momentarily wondered if Ramon and I happened to have kids, what would they look like? Would they look more like him or me? How many would there be?The woman before me clears her throat. Meeting her icy blue eyes, I raise my eyebrow. She stands taller than I do, but, who doesn't? Her face is littered in tiny freckles and her hair has the texture of a spiral in a shade of brown that I cannot describe. Her eyes wander over me, appearing to do exactly what I had done to her. She smells different. I can't exactly describe the smell of her, but it's intriguing me. "I-uh, well a little." I sigh defeated. She smiles at me and

RAMONMy fingers dig into the backs of Hazel's thighs. Her soft skin is set on fire, and the smell of her is absolutely intoxicating. I want her. All of her. My wolf is itching to claim her as his own, and show her exactly why she's mine. I'd like to bend her over every piece of furniture in this house, and so many other places.The strain in my pants is getting harder to ignore, and seeing her like this is making it worse. I shouldn't have waited this long. I should have claimed her the night I met her. Pressing my nose to her panties, I hear her take in a sharp breath, and it satisfies me. Hazel will never admit it, but she's afraid. I can see it in her eyes.My tongue darts out and wets my lips. Slowly, I trail my eyes up her body. I crave her. I desperately want to see her exposed and underneath me, baring herself to me. Our eyes lock, and I watch her tremble as I inch closer to where she's aching. The aroma she's putting off is enough to drive any man to his knees for her. I want

HAZELAs soon as we get back to the house, Ramon and I go our separate ways. I head straight upstairs to take a shower, while Ramon decides to serve himself something to eat. He seems to always be hungry.The shower water pours over my aching body, and I've never been more grateful for ice-cold water in my life. Goosebumps rise on my skin, and I can't exactly complain about it. Usually I take showers hotter than lava, but this time- I needed an ice cold one.It wakes me up, but I know that as soon as I crawl into bed I won't be so wide awake anymore. After this shower, a long nap is needed. I've never been so over worked in my entire life.Ramon and I ran at least ten miles. I tried my best to keep up with him, and put behind my aching limbs. However, that was too difficult, and I feel terrible that I couldn't get her wolf out. He assured me it'll take more than just a day to coax her out- but I just want her out. I'm sick of always having a babysitter, and I'm so sick of everyone bei

HAZEL"I wanted to tell you earlier," Ramon says softly, cupping my cheek in his hand. "I don't know why I didn't. I couldn't bring myself to tell you after what happened earlier, I just didn't want you to think I only said that because I got intimate with you." He sighs."I guess I was just afraid to tell you, because I haven't said I love you in such a long time-" he explains, but I cut him short. He's nervous. I may not be able to shift, or tell what he's thinking, but anyone that knows Ramon knows that he isn't the type to grow nervous over nothing. So when he does, it's as obvious as a sunflower in a patch of daisies.My heart swells with joy over his confession. I have been aching to hear him tell me this, but I didn't expect him to ever say it this soon. He hasn't had a chance to really connect with anyone for years. I know he has to be afraid of letting emotions in. He has lost everything that he loves, and I know that he's afraid of losing anything else. He has told me time a