The Wolf’s Fake Mate by Layla Silver

Chapter 8 – Hailey

I woke up after what felt like an hour to see Silas’ smiling face. He looked at me like I was something precious then leaned down to kiss me.

“Wait a second,” I said against his lips, pushing him away. He looked at me with alarm, but I kissed his chest to calm him down. “I just need to shoot Mom a message that I won’t be coming home today.”

“Ah, in the heat of the moment I forgot how much of a family person you are.” Silas smiled at me. “Go ahead.” He gestured away from the bed..

I slipped out of bed, feeling his eyes on me, watching my hips sway as I walked away to the place where my clothes lay abandoned. I took out my phone and left Mom a short message, saying that I’d crashed at a room above the restaurant after staying late yesterday. I’d done that often when I worked at the diner, so she was used to it. She wasn’t fond of extensive conversations over the phone. When I got a short “Ok” from her in return, I knew everything was fine.

I came back to Silas, feeling a bit self-conscious as he stared with open lust at my small breasts. I crawled back into bed, and the panther shifter pulled me back down to him. Before I could let myself process what was happening, our bodies were already intertwined, and he was thrusting deep inside me. We fucked until we were too tired to move. Finally, I got Silas off me, reminding him that we had to go to work in the morning. We both had the second shift—which meant coming in at 11 a.m.—so at least we could sleep in. However, that fact didn’t mean that it was reasonable to have sex until long after 4 a.m. Reluctantly, Silas agreed to my reasoning and kissed me on the temple. I was surprised that he was a cuddler, spooning me from behind, our bodies fitting perfectly against each other. I felt protected in his embrace, so at peace as I never had been before. I indulged in the fantasy that this safe bond would last between us forever as I fell asleep.

In the morning, I was the first to wake up. The clock on the nightstand showed 10 a.m., so that didn’t leave me with enough time to go home and back. I had spare clothes in Sun and Moon’s staff room; as we were always in uniform, what I wore was not a problem. I wondered for a moment if my family would be upset at me for not showing up to the breakfast we always ate together. But then I remembered that Gabriella had done the same thing frequently while dating Tobias. I hoped they wouldn’t apply different expectations to me than they had to my sister. I was always the responsible one, but I was more than entitled to a little bit of wild behavior too sometimes, wasn’t I?  However, I badly needed a shower, and my stomach rumbled from hunger.

I didn’t have any problem remembering what Silas and I had done together—the memory of our restless, passionate night was very fresh in my head. I wasn’t stupid either; I didn’t plan on denying it had ever happened or that I hadn’t wanted it. Our sexual encounter was consensual all the way, and I had to admit I loved every second of it. Silas was an excellent lover, easily the best one I’d ever had.

I turned around to face the panther shifter. He was sleeping peacefully, a content expression on his face. Silas looked so relaxed and satisfied, and I felt pride well up inside my heart at the realization that I was the one who had made him experience those emotions.

However, what we had done last night had only happened so that Silas and I would seem more intimate to my family. I had to admit, I felt some kind of bond between us now; a closeness only seen between real couples. But I wouldn’t fool myself into believing we were lovers. Silas and I were in a fake relationship, and it would be best if I didn’t forget that fact. As such, as much as I wanted to, it wasn’t my place to wake him up with a kiss or breakfast. Instead, I untangled myself gently from his limbs. Then, picking up my discarded clothing, I quietly found my way to the bathroom, which was adjacent to the bedroom.

I noted that only male cosmetics were present. The observation both calmed me—Silas probably wasn’t seeing anyone—and unsettled me—I would smell like him all day, and Francesca, as another wolf shifter, was bound to notice. So be it; it would only serve to solidify the idea in the minds of our families that Silas and I were mating.

I used the time I spent showering to build my armor back up. I made myself remember what I’d felt when my father had left my mother and how hard it had been to care for my sisters while mom worked double shifts to support us. I remembered what it was like not to have time to hang out with friends or study for school when I started working at an eatery to help mom financially. I remembered how Gabriella had cried, not wanting to take over caring for the younger sisters, and how I always cooked a large pot of dinner for the whole family at 2 a.m. every night. I didn’t want to go through that pain again; to believe in a promise of love forever, then be abandoned with children to care for. I didn’t want history to repeat itself. I wasn’t Gabriella; I didn’t want to take chances. Neither was I Laurene; I couldn’t just have a casual relationship with Silas. It was not proper, he was my boss, and I was his employee. My job at Sun and Moon was more important to me than having sex for fun.

These logical thoughts made me cool down more than the cold water I’d run the shower with. I would pretend to be lovers with Silas until Gabriella’s wedding, then I would thank him and return us to a peaceful boss/employee relationship. I would practice our intimacy if we found the need to, and I would enjoy it. But I wouldn’t hold onto the hope that we were really mating, that we would get married and have lots of kids with blue eyes and blond hair. No. I shut down my imagination.

As usual, I pictured a box in my mind. In it were all the things I didn’t want to think about. I packed up all those memories and feelings into that box and closed it tightly. Then I put it into a far corner of my mind. This method always worked for me, and this situation was no different. Feelings could be controlled. One could live without expectations. Sure, I felt hollow most of the time, and I wasn’t happy. But now that I had a fantastic job, I could at least say I was content. And that was enough—it had to be.

When I came out of the bathroom, Silas was awake, sprawled on the bed, his beautifully sculpted chest on display. I remembered how it had felt against me, hard and firm when I held him close to me as he fucked me. I blushed, embarrassed by where my mind went, and Silas smirked, his gaze showing me that he knew what I was thinking about.

“Good morning,” he said, patting the spot in front of him where I’d previously been lying. “Come here,” he added when I didn’t immediately do so.

I shook my head. “Thank you for the night,” I replied. “You were right that we needed to seem more intimate with each other. I’ll see you at work.” With that, I turned to leave.

“Wait, that’s all you have to say to me?” Silas sounded so surprised that I had to turn back to him.

“Yes, is there more to say?” I addressed him calmly. Inside my head, my box of feelings started shaking; the wants and expectations wanting to spring out of it. I held it closed firmly. Outwardly, I had my usual cold expression on—the one Laurene called my resting bitch face.

Silas huffed in response, his annoyance with me clear. He got up from the bed, and I blushed a deeper shade of red as I saw him in all his glory. He dressed in his boxers, then turned to me.

“So you’re trying to say that all the times you fucked me last night, you thought we were just pretending?” Silas asked me, sounding furious. “That’s a pile of horseshit. You can’t expect me to believe that!”

A part of me knew what he was trying to say, but I didn’t want to hear it. “It was you who called it pretending. That’s really all I want from you, Silas—a fake relationship. Nothing less, nothing more,” I heard myself say in an impassive tone. I’m really a fucking bitch, I thought to myself, as I watched the panther shifter growing more and more pissed off.

“But I—” Silas started.

Scared of what he might say next, I interrupted him. “Thank you. There will be dinner at my house on Sunday. Please come at 4 p.m.” I turned and left.

Silas didn’t follow, and I was both glad and disappointed by that fact.