11 Ivy
Ivy
So much for thinking I was getting somewhere.
I hadn’t seen Grip since he left me yesterday morning. He hadn’t slept in the room last night, and I forced myself not to think about what that meant. I hadn’t seen Viking either.
I spent most of the time shut up in the damn room, only leaving once the walls started to close in on me.
I had never been out long before my skin began to crawl with the way everyone’s silent attention turned in my direction the moment I walked into a room.
No one trusted me. I felt it in their side glances and sneers.
Or maybe they wanted a piece of me. Who the hell knew?
As much as I hated to slink away like a scared kitten, I always made a quick retreat back to my prison.
And yes, that was very much what that room had started to feel like.
A Prospect brought me pancakes as promised by Grip yesterday morning. They were pretty basic, but good as hell. I saw the same Prospect around dinner time, and all he brought me was a sad excuse for a sandwich. I hadn’t seen him today, and I was starting to get hungry.
Part of my act was to seem like I wasn’t sure of anything going on around me.
Which maybe wasn’t far from the truth because it wasn’t like I knew these men.
Sure, I’d heard some of their names in conversations over the years, but that didn’t really mean I knew the first thing about them.
I just assumed they were all alike for the most part.
Mean. Ruthless. Uncaring. And downright fucking evil.
Sure, there was the rare exception, but even then… well, these men weren’t to be messed with.
To say I was scared would have been spot on.
Scared this wouldn’t turn out the way I hoped it would.
Scared they would eat me alive. Scared they wouldn’t help me even if I could somehow get close enough to one of them.
Worried that even if they fell for me, it wouldn’t be enough to save me.
Okay, I knew that last one was too far of a reach.
I didn’t really expect one of them to get to the point they were so deep they’d put their club on the line, but a girl could dream of feeling that special every now and then.
It all hinged on an if .
And it was a big fucking if .
Look what I had to fucking work with here.
Grip was unpredictable and hard to read.
Viking, well, he was the biggest unknown in all of this.
I hadn’t expected him. I sure as hell didn’t know what to do about him.
And even if I wanted to deny it, there was something that drew me to him.
Whatever it was, I’d felt it right away.
The only reason I hadn’t chosen him was because I got the impression he didn’t want me to. I think that had been my first mistake.
There had to be a way to fix it. I just hadn’t come up with it yet.
The bedroom door opened without so much as a whisper of a warning.
I flinched with embarrassment because I’d been caught braiding my hair.
Not just braiding, I was making a whole thing with it.
In my mind, I either looked like I belonged on the set of Game of Thrones or was a great submission for a makeover show.
I wasn’t sure which way it was leaning. Hey, I hadn’t had a chance to pack much before I fled.
While I bought some clothes along the way because mine didn’t fit the persona I had in mind, the only things I grabbed from home were the essentials.
A toothbrush and toothpaste, tampons, and a hair brush with a bunch of hair elastics wrapped around the handle.
I sure as hell wasn’t going to use the toothpaste and tampons to make a mural on the wall, so this was it.
Viking opened the door only wide enough to step inside before closing it again. His eyes swept the room until they landed on me. I sent him a soft smile. It was kinda nice to know he was looking for me. Or maybe I was just being hopeful that he hadn’t forgotten I was there.
“What did you do to your hair?” he asked, brows pinched together.
Oh, boy. It must have looked bad.
I reached up and touched the braids wrapped around my head. It didn’t feel too off. I hadn’t gotten up to look in the mirror, but then again, I was only doing this to keep from losing my mind to boredom.
I shrugged, making my eyes wide as I blinked up at him. I was going for the innocent and maybe slightly dumb look. It usually caused men to drop their guard a little.
“Is it bad?” I was playing it up.
He didn’t say anything for a long moment as he stared down at me with an expression that resembled a stone. A confused or constipated stone.
“It’s different,” he finally said. “Makes you look…” His lips pressed into a thin line as he shook his head like he couldn’t think of a word to describe it.
“I can… do yours if you like.” His brows rose at my suggestion, and his eyes roamed over my hair again. “Not like this,” I rushed to say with a breathy laugh. “I can do one single French braid down the middle if you like. Or something similar.”
Picturing his hair done up in a thick Viking-style braid kinda made me a little hot and bothered. Then again, I also wanted to see what it looked like loose and hanging in his face while he cut those deadly eyes down at me.
Like, maybe, while I was on my knees for him…
No. Nope. Shame, girl.
He was part of a plan. I had no right letting myself enjoy this.
Still, there was something about Viking. It slithered under my skin and wrapped around my bones like a strong vine.
“Okay,” he drew out with hesitation, but he didn’t make a move to get closer.
“Sit,” I directed him with a finger pointing to the floor in front of the bed as I scooted to the edge and dangled my legs over.
His eyes were on the juncture between my thighs, but the look on his face wasn’t lustful. I would have given just about anything to be inside his head.
“Okay,” he said again. This time, he took wide steps to get to me. He turned, giving me his back without hesitation, before lowering down to the floor between my legs.
I carefully pulled at the strap of leather holding up his hair until it hung in silky, dark blonde strands around his head. It was soft as I ran my fingers through it. Clearly, he took good care of his hair and his beard, even if the rest of his appearance was… rough.
He let out a grunt-moan hybrid sound when I lightly ran my nails over his scalp as I finger-combed through his hair.
My lips twitched with a pleased smile. His shoulders relaxed with a deep breath when I did it again.
He exhaled, and the rest the tension seemed to ooze away as he pulled one leg into his body and rested an arm on top of his bent knee.
His guard was down.
I hadn’t expected it to be this easy. Not with him.
But now that I had an in, what the hell was I supposed to do?
Suddenly, it felt like those vines wrapped around my bones had moved up to pull tight on my throat.
Even though this was my chance, I hesitated.
No words came out as I began to work his hair into a thick French braid that ran over the top of his head.
Every time I scooped up more strands to add, I let my nails rake over the buzzed part of his head.
The way he acted made me think he was long overdue for a good head massage.
“Have you ever had someone play with your hair before?” I asked, already having a pretty good idea of the answer.
“No,” he grunted. He cleared his throat. “Don’t let a lot of people close to me. Don’t like people touching me.”
My brows went up in surprise. It must have taken a lot for him to let me do this. I smiled despite how sad and lonely it sounded for him. I couldn’t deny the way it made my chest warm because he’d let me close, he’d let me touch him.
“Do you want me to stop?” I asked.
“No.” He shifted uncomfortably. “It feels… nice.”
The door flew open right as I wrapped an elastic around the end of the braid. It almost reached his shoulder, and I thought it looked sexy on him.
Grip stepped inside and froze at the sight of us.
“The fuck is this?” Grip barked as he slammed the door shut.
Viking got to his feet so fast it was all a blur.
“I didn’t know it was fuckin’ beauty shop going on in our damn room,” Grip said, still staring at us like he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
“Does it look dumb?” Viking asked, sounding both gruff and insecure at the same time. “Should I take it out?” His hand was already moving to do so.
“No,” Grip said, voice low as he tilted his chin down and gave a second glance at my handiwork slyly from under his lashes. “Leave it. Looks good.”
Grip cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable. I had to roll my lips between my teeth to keep from laughing.
“You sure?” Viking asked, carefully running a hand over the braid.
“Yeah. It looks badass. You’re a proper Viking now,” Grip teased with an awkward smile. “Anyway, it’s time. Gotta ride.”
“Are you going somewhere?” I asked, eyes bouncing between the two of them.
“Yeah,” Grip answered. “Should be back tomorrow. Don’t leave this fuckin’ room, you got me?!”
“Yeah, okay,” I answered as I slouched on the bed, looking unhappy.
“I’ll have one of the Prospects bring you food. Do not let him in this room.” Grip stopped, his eyes wild as he ran a hand through his hair. He looked torn, but I couldn’t say why. “Fuck! Don’t let anyone in this room, period.”
“Okay,” I agreed again.
“Don’t trust the bitches around here,” he mumbled as he gave me his back. “Let’s go. Now, Vike.”
Grip stopped out of the room, once again slamming the door behind him.
Viking ducked into the bathroom, but in a blink, he was back out again.
“Like it,” he told me, ice gray eyes locked onto mine. “Thanks.”
Pride swelled in my chest as my spine lengthened.
My chest rose and fell heavily as we stayed frozen in the moment, neither of us looking away. It was me who moved first, rising to my knees as I inched my way to the edge of the bed. He was still almost a a foot taller than me, and I had to tilt my head back to hold his gaze.
“You’re welcome,” I whispered.
I took a chance, slowly moving my hand toward his face.
He was stiff, but he didn’t flinch as I cupped his cheek.
My thumb moved over his beard. It really was kinda funny how this man with his faded black tank under his cut and light denim jeans that looked like they’d been around longer than I’d been alive had a soft, groomed beard.
This close, I could even smell the oil he used on it.
I was hit with notes of sandalwood and smoke with a hint of vanilla, which mixed nicely with the leather from his cut.
This man did many things to me at once. He turned me on and made me want to take care of him at the same time. It was a strange mix of feelings.
We both jumped when a loud bang hit the door.
“Vike. Now!” Grip roared.
“Bye,” I said as I plopped my butt on the bed.
He moved so quick I couldn’t register what he was doing until his face was so close it became blurry.
The kiss was nothing more than a press of our lips together, but I couldn’t help but smile against his mouth.
When he pulled away, I blinked at him. The redness staining my cheeks was one hundred percent real.
“Bye,” he nearly growled before he turned and stomped out of the room.
“’Bout time, fucker,” Grip said before the door closed again.
I flopped onto my back, wondering what the hell would happen next.
They were supposed to fall for me. Not the other way around.
This was a mess.
My plan was unraveling, and I needed to find a way to stop it.