{"id":383,"date":"2023-06-29T01:00:37","date_gmt":"2023-06-29T06:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/?p=383"},"modified":"2024-02-10T10:23:02","modified_gmt":"2024-02-10T16:23:02","slug":"flapjacks-and-fisticuffs-continued","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/flapjacks-and-fisticuffs-continued\/","title":{"rendered":"Flapjacks and Fisticuffs (continued)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The van door clunked<\/em> shut behind Thane as he climbed back in, sliding into the passenger seat. The others were scattered\u2014Cassie had called dibs on the bench to sleep, Jonah was curled up around a sack of jerky like a dragon guarding treasure, and Maya had her earbuds in, eyes closed but still buzzing from adrenaline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel sat behind the wheel, paws on the steering wheel, idling with a lukewarm gas station coffee in one hand. He didn\u2019t look over. Just sipped. Slowly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then:
\u201cSo. You gonna tell me when you joined the chivalry squad, or was that a one-night engagement?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane raised an eyebrow. \u201cI\u2019m sorry?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou know\u2014stepping in, saving the damsel, flexing a little fur,\u201d Gabriel said, dragging out every word like molasses. \u201cVery knightly. I\u2019m surprised you didn\u2019t toss a flannel over a puddle first.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane snorted. \u201cShe was getting grabbed, I stopped it. You want me to not<\/em> do that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel finally turned, grinning wide. Just a little too<\/em> wide. Icy blue eyes gleaming with the kind of energy that screamed dangerously under-caffeinated and looking for an excuse.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOh no, I think it was adorable,\u201d he said, leaning a little closer. \u201cMy big strong wolf, defending another guitarist like she\u2019s some sacred relic. Very noble. Very growly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane gave him a sideways look. \u201cYou jealous?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel\u2019s ears flicked, and his smirk sharpened\u2014literally. A flash of white fangs. \u201cMe? Nahhh. It\u2019s not like I wanted to handle the guy myself or anything. Or that watching you go full apex predator didn\u2019t make my tail twitch a little.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane rolled his eyes, but there was a smile tugging at the edge of his muzzle. \u201cYou done?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel leaned in close, voice low and mock-serious, warm breath just brushing Thane\u2019s ear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou\u2019re mine. Everyone knows it. Even she knows it. But next time you break out the full \u2018protective werewolf\u2019 routine, make sure it\u2019s for me, yeah?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He paused, then added with a sleepy grin and a teasing glint in his eye, \u201cOtherwise, I might just bite you \u2014 just to make sure you remember.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane didn\u2019t flinch. He just leaned back, head tilted lazily. \u201cThat a promise?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel blinked \u2014 then grinned again, this time softer. Less fang, more warmth. \u201cKeep talking like that and I\u2019m gonna leave a mark.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane reached over and stole his coffee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHEY\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI love you,\u201d Thane said, sipping it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel sighed dramatically, flipping on the headlights. \u201cYou\u2019re lucky you\u2019re mine.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the van rumbled back onto the highway, fading taillights glowing red in the misty dark, Gabriel finally relaxed into his seat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c\u2026Still should\u2019ve let me handle the guy, though.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane smirked. \u201cNext time, I\u2019ll bring popcorn.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The van door clunked shut behind Thane as he climbed back in, sliding into the passenger seat. The others were scattered\u2014Cassie had called dibs on the bench to sleep, Jonah was curled up around a sack of jerky like a dragon guarding treasure, and Maya had her earbuds in, eyes closed but still buzzing from […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-383","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tour-life"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/383","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=383"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/383\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3232,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/383\/revisions\/3232"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=383"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=383"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=383"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}