The Wolf Can Bite You

Arabella's POV

I woke up, surprised by the warm touch on my lips. My gaze fell on Sean's face, who was slowly approaching, still with his finger lingering on the tip of my lips. Panic and fear immediately came over me as his touch seemed like it wouldn't let go, but I quickly called Sean's name before what I feared happened.

"Sean?"

Sean looked at me in surprise and hurriedly stood up. The expression on the man's face seemed to portray nothing, while I tried to hold back the fear that made my body tremble and sat up. I was reminded of the incident when I came to this house and found Sean intimately wrestling with a woman shamelessly. I didn't want that to happen to me.

"What are you doing to me?" I looked at Sean, who stood still, not looking like he would answer my question. I put my hands together, clasping them tightly, waiting for the man's answer. I hoped he would give me an honest answer that I could accept well to ease the prejudice in my head.

Sean looked unfocused when I dared to look at him, his eyes glancing at my face, then in another direction and back to my face in a few moments. He finally spoke. "I just wanted to wake you up. Why are you sleeping on the sofa? I already reserved a room for you."

I digested Sean's words before remembering that I had been lying on the couch, watching some movie marathon and had unknowingly fallen asleep. I felt scared when watching in my room because it was too quiet, and there was no one at home, but it would be different if Sean was also at home.

The thing is, right now........ "My cell phone. Where is my cell phone?"

"Cell phone?" 

I grabbed the sofa I was sleeping on and reached in between, ignoring Sean's question as I was busy searching for the whereabouts of the thing that had kept me company since earlier but couldn't find it. Sean eventually joined the search. Without thinking, he reached under the sofa and held out the cell phone I had been looking for.

"Why is your cell phone under the couch?"

I grasped the phone, scratching my head for feeling a little stupid. "I... fell asleep watching a movie."

Sean snorted a laugh, his face no longer looking stiff. "Was the movie you watched boring?" The man looked at my phone and then at my face. "What was the last movie you watched?"

I tried to remember what I watched before falling asleep, but then I realized that Sean was steering our conversation in another direction without discussing what made me wake up suddenly and feel scared instead of refreshed after falling asleep.

"That's not important right now." I looked at Sean with the sternest gaze I could muster, bringing back the topic that had been sidetracked by looking for my phone. "That one, even if you intended to wake me up, you shouldn't have touched my lips...."

It's just like that.

I swallowed the remaining sentence. Suddenly embarrassed that I had to discuss the incident that I just wanted to forget and pretend never happened. I failed when I wanted to complain to him about the initial incident when we met in this house, let alone when I was the one who was almost kissed by him. However, I'm not sure because, at that time, I still hadn't woken up from sleep. "Forget it."

"Alright."

Sean didn't discuss it further and seemed casual, but now I was even more embarrassed because I still felt that the thing that had woken me up was quite big. If Dallas had known, he would probably demand a lot of accountability from Sean, unlike me, who was too timid.

I looked around for something else that could erase my awkwardness. Without realizing it, my gaze fell on the beautifully designed box on the table. From the name on the box, I knew immediately that the cake inside was from a popular bakery. Although I had never seen it in person, I had seen the cake box several times on the homepage of a short promotional video.

I looked at Sean sitting next to me and then back at the cake box with an interested look that I couldn't hide. "Is that all you have to say to me?"

Sean looked at my face and followed my gaze, still focused on the cake box. "Oh." The man looked pleased and opened the box I'd been staring at. "I bought some cakes for you before going home."

Several appetizing-looking pieces of cake appeared before my eyes, but my gaze caught one piece that made me swallow saliva quickly. A strawberry cake, with soft cream between the chiffon cake pieces and finely chopped strawberries as the filling, and a garnish on the top. "How do you know my favorite cake?"

Sean smiled, looking at my face intently and noticing every detail until it made me blush. He finally stopped staring at me and picked up the strawberry cake I wanted. "Dallas. I'm glad you like the cake I brought." He handed me the strawberry cake, then went to get a plate and spoon. "Would you like some water or milk?"

"Milk."

I answered in passing, my attention completely taken by the strawberry cake I couldn't wait to eat. The first bite was like heaven. The cream was soft and fresh, and the strawberries weren't sour but sweet. The pieces of cake in between were just right. I was already sighing in satisfaction when I took another bite of the strawberry cake I held.

It was rare that I could enjoy cake in peace, especially since Dallas often treated me like a child who had just started walking. Fragile and unable to do anything. It was a long struggle for me to be able to eat or do my own activities because his protective instinct was always active when he was with me, and before that, he would insist on coming along every time I went anywhere by myself.

As I ate, I noticed Sean's gaze and that he was only drinking cold water. He had put the rest of the cake in the refrigerator while getting the milk for me earlier.

"You didn't eat the cake?"

He shook his head. "It's for you. I've eaten it enough times."

I put down the clean cake plate, suddenly remembering Sean's remark about how he knew my favourite cake. "Did... Dallas call you earlier?" 

"No, he called me before you started living here. Over two hours. Dallas is very chatty when it comes to your interests."

I grimaced, imagining how Dallas would be when he started talking about me. I didn't understand why Dallas maintained that attitude, even though I had entered the adult world and could explain my own needs if allowed. "What all did he talk to you about?"

"Just you and what I must do while you're here."

I could only listen to Sean's complaints for a while and apologize, but instead of looking relieved, the man fell silent while frowning at me. I couldn't guess what Sean was thinking right now except to thank him.

"Thank you for accepting me to live here and... everything you've done for me means a lot."

Sean's brow furrowed even more. Suddenly, he returned to the spot with a slice of opera cake divided in half. "Come, eat this with me."

I was confused by Sean's proposal but didn't refuse once I smelled the fragrant cake.

After eating the cake, I washed our dishes, dried my hands, and prepared for bed. I felt so full from eating one and a half slices of cake, maybe tomorrow I would exercise harder than usual as a repayment for eating too many sweets.

Sean was still waiting for me in the pantry when I got up. I looked at him in surprise. "Aren't you going to your room first? You're working tomorrow."

"Yes, but I have something to tell you." Sean straightened his body that had been leaning. "Don't fall asleep on the sofa again, okay? Otherwise, you'll be eaten by a wolf."

I was confused by Sean's warning-like words, but I finally nodded and took Sean's words for granted. If it was important, he would remind me again later.

I followed the steps of Sean, who was still accompanying me, to the second floor in front of our rooms. I noticed he hadn't gone inside when I entered the room and was about to close the door.

"Call me whenever you need. No need to ask or hesitate," Sean said after looking at me for a while.

I just nodded and slowly lay down on the bed. The ceiling of the room welcomed my gaze, accompanying me to daydream. After today, I felt more and more that Sean was extraordinary. He can be cheerful and teasing but also mysterious and sincere. I still don't know what kind of person Sean is, but I'm starting to feel comfortable with his treatment of me so far.

It didn't take long for sleepiness to strike, and I fell asleep.

At first, my dreams were pitch black, with nothing going on. This time, I only felt like I was falling asleep in someone's arms. I couldn't see his face, but his arms were wrapped warmly around me.

Maybe it's because he's not wearing a shirt, or maybe I notice his arm muscles that feel firm and smell his cologne that's not too strong. My body felt hot and excited because I could feel how close our bodies were to each other under the blanket.

Instead of feeling scared, I felt warmth from him and liked how he brought me even closer in his arms, which didn't feel suffocating. Then, a kiss brushed my forehead, and his deep voice called my name familiarly. "Bella."

I woke up to his call and sat up. Although I felt dizzy, I felt embarrassed when I remembered the kiss that whoever it was had given me. The impression was so deep that it made me smile to myself. "Did I want a boyfriend so badly that I had a dream like that?"

I paused. Suddenly, my head gave an additional picture that the figure who hugged me in my dream was Sean, with our attitudes that were closer to each other, and he only gave his attention to me alone. My face instantly turned red, and I covered it with my hands.

".... It's all because of Dallas." I must have gotten weird after Dallas told me to stay here.