Brave This Storm

“Are you sure you’re okay to babysit Donovan? I can stay here if not,” Mariana asked.

Amelia laughed, shaking her head. Her granddaughter worried too much.

“Yes! I’m fine! We’ll watch a movie, drink some hot chocolate and he’ll go to bed – there’s nothing for you to worry about,” Amelia insisted.

“Alright. If you’re sure. Call me if you need me, okay?” Mariana frowned.

“I promise. Now go and enjoy your evening with Paul. I heard he’s cooking you dinner from scratch,” Amelia grinned.

Mariana blushed slightly but nodded, heading out the door. Paul had asked her to come over for a romantic evening together for their 1 month anniversary because his mom was visiting friends outside the Reservation, and to be honest she was looking forward to it. Sure, she hated leaving her son, but Donovan was excited to spend the evening with his ‘grandma’ so she was happy about that. She only wished she knew what Paul had in store for them.

It didn’t take long for her to get to his house. “Did you walk here alone?” Paul frowned.

Mariana rolled her eyes, smiling. He was way too overprotective.

“Yes, I did. And no, no scary monsters that attacked me. I can hold my own, Paul. You know this,” Mariana chuckled.

Paul just pressed his lips together but let her in, shutting the door behind her. Mariana smiled as he immediately pulled her into his arms, and slid her own arms around his neck.

“I have the most romantic night planned for us. You’re going to love it,” Paul said warmly.

“I can’t wait,” Mariana grinned.

Paul chuckled and pressed a kiss to her lips, lingering a little before slowly pulling away. Tonight was going to be a good night alright.

*

Dinner was amazing. Dessert was amazing. The conversation was amazing. The slow dance in the living room was amazing. Paul was amazing. Mariana had been treated like a princess all night, and she loved every minute. They’d relocated to Paul's sofa, and they were watching a movie – but Mariana was distracted by Paul’s lips on her neck and his hand on her thigh. He was making her hot and bothered…and he knew it.

Paul’s teeth nipped a sensitive spot just below her ear, making Mariana moan, and making Paul smile, nipping the spot again. Mariana moaned a little louder before looking away from the movie entirely, pressing her lips firmly to Paul’s, kissing him furiously. Now it was Paul’s turn to moan, and he pushed his tongue past her lips, needing to feel her, needing to taste her. In no time at all Mariana was on her back, Paul hovering over her, their lips still attached and their hands wandering and groping. Mariana hadn’t felt so alive in so long, and she couldn’t deny so wanted more. No, she needed more. With a lot of effort, she pushed him away from her, breaking their kiss as he sat upright, a look of confusion on his face.

“Is everything okay?” Paul frowned.

“No,” Mariana replied.

“Wha…”

“I want more,” Mariana interrupted.

Paul’s eyebrows shot up. He knew exactly what she meant, but were they ready? He wanted this relationship to be special, unlike every other girl he’d been with, and they’d only been dating for 1 month – was she just speaking through hormones? He didn’t want to ruin anything. Hell, he knew he wanted her, but was this the right timing?

He got his answer when Mariana bit her bottom lip and palmed him through his jeans, making him throw his head back, a low groan tearing from his throat. This is the Mariana he hadn’t seen yet, and he fucking loved it.

“A-Are you sure?” he choked, wanting to be absolutely certain.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” Mariana replied, stopping her hand motions.

Paul swallowed heavily before getting off the sofa and holding out his hand for Mariana to take. She blushed a little but took his hand, following him out of the living room. She knew what she wanted, and she hoped she wasn’t making a mistake by trusting him like this. Her feelings were getting stronger and stronger, and she just prayed that they wouldn’t get destroyed.

Paul paused outside his door, looking down at Mariana.

“Last chance to change your mind,” he said softly.

Mariana smiled and shook her head, pressing a slow kiss to Paul's lips before slowly walking into his bedroom, swaying her hips a little more exaggerated. Paul couldn’t keep his eyes off her, a growl spilling from his lips. Mariana giggled and sat down on his bed, looking at him innocently.

“Are you coming in or what?” she asked, cocking her head to the side.

Paul shut his bedroom door behind him.

*

It was the next morning when Mariana awoke, and she immediately panicked. She hadn’t planned to stay over! She hadn’t told her Grandma at all! Quickly scrabbling for her phone she flipped it open to see a text from Amelia saying that she’d taken Donovan to pre-K and that she hoped Mariana had a good night. Mariana breathed a sigh of relief and replied, thanking her Grandma for looking after her son. Closing her phone, she placed it on Paul’s bedside table and smiled. Last night had been amazing. She’d never had intimacy like that, not even with Juan. Paul had pleasured her in ways she never had imagined, sending her to heights she’d never experienced before. It was so…perfect.

But when she rolled over to look at Paul, he wasn’t there. He wasn’t beside her. He had left her the morning after they'd first had sex.

“Oh my God,” Mariana whispered.

She felt so stupid. How could she have trusted him? She knew his reputation. She knew what he was like with women. And now she’d given him what he wanted. How could she not have realised it?

“Fuck,” she grumbled.

With a scowl and a heavy heart, Mariana pulled on her clothes and grabbed her phone, heading downstairs. If Paul was going to leave her then she was at least going to take some coffee. She walked into the kitchen, noticing it was completely untouched, and switched on his coffee maker, leaning against the counter while she waited for the liquid to brew. Running her hand through her hair, she sighed, hating the heavy feeling of disappointment, embarrassment and anger that was starting to settle in her stomach. Why did Paul leave? She should’ve known he would’ve done something like this. She couldn’t believe she trusted him.

The machine beeped, breaking her out of her thoughts. There was nothing she could do to erase last night. She could only move on. As she poured the coffee into a mug, something caught her eye from outside, in the back yard where the forest met the property. Was that a wolf?

“Holy shit,” Mariana whimpered.

It was a wolf, but not like one Mariana had ever seen on tv. This beast was huge! At least the size of a horse. It’s fur was the colour of grey ash, thick and long, it’s paws massive and it’s teeth long. Shit, she was going to die. The back door was open and it was going to come in and kill her if she didn’t shut the door and run. She tried to move, but it was like her brain had frozen her to the spot. She couldn’t take her eyes off the grey beast, almost as if she was in a trance. Why wasn’t she running away? Why wasn’t she hiding? Her heartbeat increased dramatically as the giant wolf started to shake, her head starting to spin as the beast started to morph into something else. W-What was happening? What was it doing? What was it becoming?

Then the figure rose up, bare naked, human form. Paul.

“Oh my God,” Mariana gasped. Gasped loudly.

Paul snapped his head towards his house, hearing the intake of breath. His eyes went wide when he saw Mariana, and right then he knew she had seen everything.

“Mariana,” Paul whispered.

Mariana’s world went black before she could reply.