Wizard (Hounds of Hellfire MC #4)

Chapter 13

13

WIZARD

I spun around, and as soon as I spotted Thea, I opened my arms. She ran at me full speed, nearly knocking us both to the ground when her body collided with mine.

“You okay, baby?” I asked, holding her tightly against me.

“I am now,” she said softly.

When I realized she was trying not to cry, my arms tightened around her. “That was a fucked-up situation. Not gonna think less of you for crying.”

“It’s so stupid,” she grumbled, then sniffed and buried her face against my chest.

“Just makes you my damsel in distress,” I teased. “And playing the hero is good for my ego.”

Thea giggled, and I kissed the crown of her head before scooping her into my arms.

“Hey,” Ash said as he walked up beside us. “Nice move, Thea. How’d you know what Wizard was planning?”

She looked at him with a grin. “He mentioned The Spy’s Return .”

At Ash’s puzzled expression, she explained in more detail. “There’s a scene where the heroine is confronted by the villain. He gets the drop on her, and when the hero shows up, the bad guy is holding a gun to her head.

“She plays along like he’s the one saving her and drops her head back and to the side, ostensibly to look up at him. This moves the barrel so it’s pointing just beyond her and exposes the villain’s head just enough for the hero to take him out. So I relaxed and played along with Mark until Baylor had the perfect opportunity to save me.”

Ash scratched his cheek and shook his head. “You got all that from the title of a book.”

Thea twisted her neck to look up at my face. “We have our own kind of…shorthand,” she mumbled with a sly smile.

“That kinda thing happens when you’re in love,” I drawled to Ash.

Thea gasped and stiffened. Silently, I shouted at myself for being a stupid motherfucker. This was not the time or place for her to hear me tell her that I loved her for the first time.

She stared at me with a stunned expression, and her mouth opened to say something.

I shook my head, then gave her a quick, hard kiss. “Not here.”

Thea pursed her lips together before nodding.

“You got this?” I asked Ash.

He waved me off. “Yeah. We’re good.”

With a muttered, “Thanks,” I rapidly exited the building. When we were settled in the truck and on our way home, Thea cleared her throat.

“Not yet,” I told her gently, giving her thigh a pat before resting my hand there.

When we arrived at the clubhouse, I parked and got out of the vehicle. Thea obediently waited for me to jog around the hood of the truck and open her door.

“Good girl,” I praised quietly, smiling when her cheeks turned pink and she shivered.

Then I engulfed her hand in my much bigger one and led her through the front door.

“Got one stop to make, then we’ll go to our room and talk,” I promised her.

Lucky for me, Blaze was in his office when we stopped by.

“That package arrive?” I asked in lieu of a greeting.

Blaze nodded and pointed at a box sitting on the conference table.

“Appreciate it,” I muttered gratefully as I picked the package up and stuck it under my arm.

Thea looked at me expectantly, and I smiled, shaking my head. “Patience, baby.”

She huffed and glared at me as I towed her to the stairs and up to our room.

Once inside, I ushered her to the little sitting area and gently pushed her down onto the couch before sitting on the coffee table right in front of her. It was a sturdy piece of furniture, and I knew it wouldn’t break under my weight.

“That was a shit move,” I told her softly. “Saying I loved you in the middle of the chaos like that.”

Her head dropped forward, and she whispered, “It wasn’t true?”

Scowling, I cupped her chin and forced her head up. “Didn’t I promise never to lie to you?”

Thea chewed on her bottom lip, then conceded, “Yes.”

“I love the fuck outta you, woman. Just meant that the timing was bullshit.”

“Oh.” Her lips lifted at the corners of her mouth, and her green eyes brightened. “You really love me?”

“Didn’t I just say that?” I growled.

Her smile grew, and she beamed at me.

“Probably shoulda told you sooner,” I admitted. “But with all the shit happening around us, it never seemed to be the right time.”

“That makes sense,” she agreed softly.

I waited a little bit, then raised an eyebrow and gave her chin a squeeze. “Got something to say to me, baby?”

Thea’s cheeks turned pink, and she tried to duck her head but couldn’t because I was still holding her chin.

“I thought maybe…um”—her eyes darted to the box sitting beside me on the coffee table—“I guess I was hoping you, um, had more to say?”

Laughing, I leaned in and gave her a quick kiss. “Patience, baby.”

Her face screwed up in annoyance, making me chuckle again. “Tell me what I want to hear, and I’ll give you your presents.”

“Presents?” she repeated, perking right up. I’d quickly learned that even though Thea didn’t like to be snuck up on, she loved surprises. And presents.

“Tell me, baby,” I insisted, making my tone extra gritty because I knew it turned her on.

“I love you,” she said with a sweet smile and a dreamy sigh.

“Good girl.” I released her chin, but not before taking another fast kiss.

She put out her hands and made a “gimmie” motion with her fingers.

“So greedy,” I teased as I picked up the box and set it on her lap.

Thea’s legs bounced with delight as she took off the lid. She stared at the contents, then tears well up in her eyes. It would have freaked me out if she hadn’t also had a giant smile. “You want me to be your old lady?” she asked as she picked up the leather vest and admired the patch on the back.

“Fuck, yes,” I grunted. “I want everyone who looks at you to know you belong to me.”

Taking the vest from her, I stood and held it out so she could slip it on. Her fingers danced over her name, embroidered over her right breast.

“I love it,” she whispered as her watery eyes met mine. “Thank you.”

“One more thing,” I mumbled before strolling to the closet and reaching up to a shelf I knew was too high for her to access. “I want you to be mine in every way, Thea. The more ways people can see that you’re taken, the better.”

With the small velvet box clutched in my fist, I returned to sit in front of her.

“Got my vest on you, gonna put a baby in your sexy belly, and”—I opened the box to show her a sparking engagement ring—“you’re gonna have my ring on your finger.”

Thea giggled. “Is this your way of asking me to marry you, Baylor Chadwick?”

“No,” I stated emphatically. When her eyes filled with confusion, I quickly cleared up the misunderstanding. “This is me telling you, we are getting married.” I yanked her left hand forward and tenderly slid the diamond ring onto her fourth finger.

“Since you asked so nicely…” she teased.

I grabbed her hips and lifted her onto my lap, straddling me. “If you need a little convincing, I have plenty of ideas.”

“I don’t need convincing to marry you,” she breathed, a shudder wracking her body when I palmed her ass and dragged her close so our chests and groins were stuck together.

“I meant convincing you to get married as fast as possible.”

“Depends on your definition of fast,” she told me suspiciously.

Grinning, I pushed to my feet and moved toward the bed. “We can agree on that after I’ve given you several orgasms.”

Thea sighed. “Not fair. You’re cheating using your caveman tactics and giant dick to make me agree to whatever you want.”

“Would I do that?” I asked innocently, before tossing her on the bed.

“Yes,” she panted a few hours later, her lips pursed in’s sexy pout.

“I guess you’re right,” I acquiesced. “But I’m holding you to it, baby. You’ve got four weeks to plan a wedding.” Grinning, I winked at her. “Besides, we wait much longer and you might not fit in your dress.”

Thea gasped, and her hands immediately went to her stomach. “I didn’t think of that!”

She jackknifed up in bed and quickly scooted away.

“Where the fuck do you think you’re going, baby?” I growled.

“I have so much to do!” she cried as she put her feet on the floor. Before she could stand, I curled my arm and around her waist and hauled her back onto the bed, then rolled her onto her back and covered her body with mine.

“Tomorrow,” I stated before lowering my head to place a trail of kisses along her jaw.

“But—”

Four orgasms later, I’d convinced her to start planning our wedding tomorrow.