Chapter 17 Lines in the Sand.the Hallway
Wynn
From the doorway of the guest room, Marlow and I watch as Bane tapes a line in the hallway. Did he buy red duct tape just to be dramatic?
"So what happens if we cross this line?" Marlow pipes up next to me.
"You don't," Bane says firmly.
"Will it shock us or charm us into doing something silly?"
"No," Josh says. "But someone could spot you in the window if you go past there." A unique circular window in the hallway doesn't lend itself to curtains, so we need to steer clear, just in case.
"What if we duck?" Marlow wonders aloud. That's how we got up here. After we polished off the pizza, they brought us to the guest bedroom.
"Safer to just stay away," I interject, noting my cousin's eye twitching and his growing impatience with the questions.
We’re staying in Bane and Josh's guest bedroom. Our new sanctuary. It’s like some twisted domestic scene. Two gay werewolf dads tucking their fugitive kids into bed.
"If we need something do we ring room service?" The demon next to me asks. I elbow him and he only shoots me an innocent look.
"We aren't room service. You'd better have everything you need for the night," Bane states flatly.
"Well, I wouldn't say no to—"
"Sorry, that wasn't a question. What I meant was, you have everything you need for the night."
With that, Bane storms off. While he told me to trust my instincts with Marlow, they haven’t become instant besties.
What's he so worried about? All the things two good-looking guys who don't hate each other could get up to when confined to a bedroom and sharing one bed? Ha, why would he be worried about that? I'm not, not at all…
Marlow turns to Josh. "You're clearly the better half of this equation."
"He's just being protective," Josh says, defending his mate. "Before you leave, he's definitely going to threaten you about your intentions towards his best friend and cousin."
"Thanks for the heads up."
"I can still hear you both!" Bane yells from down the hall.
Marlow ignores the Alpha. He leans against the doorway, a playful grin stretching across his face. "You've got a real knack for making this place feel like a home, even with a territorial Alpha growling over your shoulder."
"Oh, uh, thanks!" Josh says. “I hope you’re both comfortable while you're, um, staying with us." “Staying with us” sounds so much more polite than “hiding from law enforcement."
"And you're a witch and wolf, right?” Marlow says. “Pretty impressive."
Josh brightens at the praise, his cheeks flushing. "Just, uh, just born that way."
"Seriously, you're a catch. It's a wonder you settled for—"
I’ve got a knot in my chest watching Marlow turn on the charm. Stomping footsteps indicate that I'm not the only one uncomfortable. Josh barely has enough time to get some extra towels for Marlow when Bane storms back in, his face dark like a thundercloud.
“Goodnight,” he bites out, grabbing Josh's arm and dragging him away.
As they walk away, I can still hear their conversation.
"It was innocent enough."
"Didn't feel innocent," Bane grumbles.
"You’re such a puppy," Josh teases. Ah, true love. It makes a pissed off Alpha wolf look like a puppy.
"Did you like him praising you?"
"Everyone likes a compliment."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Means I also liked it when Agnes Weaver called my latest barrier spell a major improvement over the old model. It doesn't mean I want to sleep with a 75-year-old woman, seeing as she's married and I'm taken and also gay. Just nice to be appreciated."
"Oh, I'll appreciate you, alright," Bane promises.
"That sounds vaguely threatening."
"Really? 'Cause I'm about to take you back to our room and appreciate you right now."
"Stop talking in the hallway!" I beg them.
I shake my head when Marlow raises a questioning eyebrow at me. "Don't worry about it," I say, shaking off the mental images and tuning them out. It's easy to focus on him instead. "What was that all about with Josh? You laid it on pretty thick. Do you want my cousin to kill you?"
Marlow holds up a towel in explanation, and I feel stupid for ever being jealous… not that I was jealous.
Bane sent me up to the guest room with his iPod, tablet, and snacks, along with towels and all the toiletries I'll need for a couple months.
What did he give Marlow? One tiny face towel for his whole body. Wow. Bane's good at being aggressive, but his passive aggressive skills are just as fearsome.
“Don’t worry,” Marlow says, pulling me from my thoughts. It hits me how close we’re standing in the doorway together. “You’re still my favorite wolf.”
“Uh-oh,” I narrow my eyes in mock suspicion. “Are you trying to charm me too?”
"Oh, I’m always trying to charm you, Blackwood."
"Even when you’re driving me crazy?"
"Especially when I’m driving you crazy,” he promises, sounding playful, but the look in his eyes is full of fire.
"What am I going to do with you?" I whisper, finding myself leaning in instead of pulling away.
"Guess that’s up to you."
His gaze stays locked on mine while the temptation grows between us. I know exactly what I’d love to do with him. But can I really go through with it?
~
Wynn
The door clicks shut behind us as we settle into the guest bedroom.
The room looks smaller than the bedroom at the cabin though the simple furnishings are clean and modern.
I hover uncertainly by the doorway, trying to gather my courage or talk myself out of the ideas in my head. I haven’t quite decided.
Marlow wastes no time making himself at home, bounding over to the bed and throwing himself onto it with the glee of an overgrown child. He folds his arms behind his head and sinks into the pillows, raising his eyebrows when he sees me stuck in place.
“Why are you acting so nervous, Blackwood? Sharing a bed is nothing new for us.”
He’s right. This doesn’t have to be any different. Except Iggy chose to crash in the living room tonight. Pretty sure he needs a break from us. And the room is soundproof, fortunately—otherwise I’d hear Bane 'appreciating' Josh right now.
"I’m thinking of doing something we haven’t done before," I admit.
Marlow’s eyes light up. "You’ve got my attention."
Yeah. Still haven’t quite figured out whether that’s a good or bad thing.
Marlow extends a hand. “Care to join me?”
“That’s a bad idea, isn’t it?” I say, but I step closer anyway.
“Well, I’m involved, so probably. I like bad ideas.”
“Marlow.”
He lets his hand drop to the bedspread, watching me uncertainly. “What do you want me to say, Wynn?”
“Tell me the truth.”
“The truth? I’d like you to join me on this bed, preferably by getting in my lap.” He sits up with a sigh. “But that might not be the smartest decision.”
“No kidding.”
Marlow swings his legs off the side of the mattress and faces me. “It’s better to keep your distance. If we get caught before I can prove my innocence, I’m telling the authorities I forced you into helping me and that's all there is to it.”
A nice gesture, but completely ridiculous. "You were trapped and I'm a werewolf."
“I escaped one cell already, so I freed myself from another and then took you as a hostage or something. I don't know the details yet, but I'll come up with a good story. And as long as you stick to that story, the law won’t come after you.”
Has he thought about this before? Seems like it. I’ve been protecting him and helping him survive while on the run. He’s figured out how to protect me when all this is over.
It could work. But taking him to my cousin’s place to hide out undercuts the hostage claim. Sleeping together will ruin it too.
He’s giving me an out. Do I want one?
“And if I don’t keep my distance?” I ask.
“Hell if I know. Whatever’s going on with us…
it’s new for me.” He hesitates. “Nobody had much use for me back in the underworld.
I learned you can't count on anyone else. I had to use my own wits, tricks, and charm to survive. Then I found my powers and talked my way into a one-way trip here. Everything changed. I depended on my supernatural abilities entirely too much.” His mouth twists and he huffs out a bitter laugh.
“Now that I'm on the run, I wonder how I could ever have forgotten what the underworld taught me.”
“That you’re better off alone?” I offer quietly.
He nods. “That the only people I can truly rely on are Iggy and myself.”
“Oh.”
When I feel a stab of hurt at the words, I curse myself for expecting anything different.
"That's what I've been telling myself," he continues. "I believed it until I met you."
It's a real struggle not to melt at those words, especially when his gaze burns right through me.
“I don’t know who you are to me, Wynn, but you’re not just anyone. Considering everything you risked for me, I understand if that’s not a good enough answer for you.”
It's plenty good enough. For once we're on the same page. No matter how hard I try, I can't slot Marlow neatly into a space where he belongs. He just feels like someone important.
So, I take a leap of faith and do exactly what I want. I climb into his lap and kiss him with everything I have.