Chapter 12 Frankie #2
What the fuck did he mean about mates? I thought that was nothing but a bad trope in romance novels.
I need more information, but there’s no way I’m turning around to ask Lirael.
Judging from his reaction just now, he’d try to do more than just grope me.
I’d rather not have to deal with answering Vincent’s questions about why I’m down a man.
I’m out of the office building and getting into my car before I realize it, so caught up in everything that just happened in that two-minute time frame.
It’s ludicrous to think that fate has already selected someone for me. There has to be another explanation.
Despite knowing Lirael for years, I don’t know exactly what he is. He keeps that information close to his chest. Nor do I know what sort of creature is that susceptible to pheromones from another species.
The only thing I do know is that I cannot have a mate. That’s not in my cards. My life is too fucked up to drag someone into, even if that someone has a small inkling of what I do. Lirael is wrong; that has to be it.
With a grimace, I head toward Terry’s. If anyone can distract me from fate it will be one of Terry’s workers. It only takes me twenty minutes before I’m pulling into a parking space across the street from the condo.
I just need to get Seth out of my system. This is nothing but some random obsession and I just need to fuck a couple of Terry’s finest courtesans to get me over it.
With my mind made up, I get out of my vehicle and approach the building. The door opens before I can knock, and a gorgeous blonde smiles up at me, long fake lashes making her blue eyes pop.
“Hi, handsome,” she purrs, reaching out to run her manicured fingers down my chest. “Are you looking for some company?”
I take her hand and lift it to my lips, giving her fingers a chaste kiss. “Perhaps. Is Terry or Camilla available?”
She licks her plump lips, her gaze traveling down my body before she steps back. “Yeah, Camilla is available. Terry is on the phone right now, but I’ll let them know.”
Turning, she sashays away, leading me toward the opulent front parlor.
Dark mahogany furniture in earth tones is artfully placed throughout the space, giving ample seating areas.
A few of Terry’s employees are already in the room, draped languidly across the furniture in clothes that enhance their bodies rather than cover them.
“Mr. Romano!” I turn at Camilla’s husky voice, a smile already on my lips as she glides toward me in a full gown of rose silk and pink gossamer that gives glimpses of her curvy figure.
The entire ensemble is an authentic Victorian design that was worn by a madam of a well-known house of ill repute, or so Camilla claims.
She barely reaches my shoulder, even in her black heels, so I bend down to allow her to kiss the air by each of my cheeks. Her long red hair is in an intricate updo, brushing delicately against my face as she greets me.
“It’s so good to see you again, Mr. Romano. It’s been far too long.” She leans back, giving me an appreciative once-over with her astute blue eyes.
“It has, but I’m here now.” I smile down at her.
When I first started coming here, Camilla tried every trick in the book to get me into her bed.
While she is extremely attractive in a classical sense, I just wasn’t interested in her.
She has since cut her losses and pampers me in other ways when I’m inclined to visit the establishment.
“What can I interest you in today?” she purrs, gesturing for me to follow her.
“I’m honestly not quite sure. Perhaps a variety?
” I murmur as I follow her up the steps.
The opulence from the front parlor continues upstairs.
Low lighting from antique wall fixtures casts shadows in the corners and on the ceiling, imbuing the hallway with an ambiance that brings out the warm, honey tones of the walls.
We come to a stop before an open room, and her eyes take on a distant look as she ponders, a red painted nail tapping away at her bottom lip as she runs through a mental list of potential employees that would work.
I glance inside the room, taking in the dark greens and browns of the color scheme, but my stomach is a bundle of nerves.
“You go on in and make yourself comfortable, and I’ll be right back.” She flashes me another smile before turning on a heel and heading toward a small telephone set up indiscreetly in one corner.
I head into the room, unbuttoning the top few buttons of my shirt. I’m here for a reason. I’m here to fuck whoever Camilla brings into the room, to get Seth out of my system, and prove Lirael wrong. Mates aren’t a thing. They can’t be a thing.
I’m staring blankly at the bed when a soft knock has me turning toward the open door.
Camilla steps inside, followed by two others.
The woman is dainty, with large amber eyes and ringlets of blonde hair cascading over her shoulders.
Her breasts are just big enough for me to easily cup in my hands, and her dusky pink nipples are almost delicate.
The lacy underwear stretched across her ample hips is just a strip of cloth that barely covers her mound.
The man next to her is almost my height, but not nearly as muscled.
Rich, dark eyes boldly glide over my body.
Tight curls grace his head and he has some of the plumpest lips I’ve ever seen.
His dark brown skin is smooth, and there’s just the slightest of shimmers across his body to let me know that he’s used one of the glitter lotions that Camilla is so fond of.
The scent of arousal from the both of them hits me like a punch to the face, and the tiny purple shorts the man is wearing are being stretched to breaking point by his lengthening arousal.
But me? My dick hasn’t even twitched at the sight of them. Their obvious attraction to me has that bundle of nerves in my stomach twisting into a ball of nausea.
This is wrong. Even my wolf knows it’s a bad idea as it huffs and shakes its head.
Bile pushes its way up my throat at just how uncomfortable this all feels. I shouldn’t be here, and I shouldn’t be entertaining thoughts of fucking someone else.
“Please, forgive me, Camilla, but I think this was a mistake.” I swallow the taste of bile, forcing it back down my throat as I push my way past them and out into the hall.
Camilla says something to the other two, but I can’t make it out.
I can barely hear anything over the sound of my pounding heart.
In a daze, I find myself in the tiny bar at the back of the building. I’m sure it was a decent-sized kitchen at one point, but that was back before our organization bought the place. Now, it’s a sleek, black bar with a mirrored backsplash and half a dozen bar stools done in deep red upholstery.
The man behind the counter gives me a bored expression as I order a whiskey, not even blinking as I slam it back and ask for another one.
The whiskey burns as it slides down my throat, and I enjoy the feeling of warmth it brings.
The only downside is that I would have to drink nearly all the alcohol in here before I could get drunk, as Terry only supplies the traditional human liquor.
Unfortunately for me, that means I’m going to have to deal with my current situation with a clear head.
Which is both ideal and a horrible, horrible realization.
Not only did I feel like I was going to vomit, but I’m thinking my dick pulled itself inside of my body from the mere suggestion of fucking someone else.
I reach down and subtly check myself. It’s difficult through my jeans, not to mention I’m completely soft, but I don’t think I’m any smaller. I shake my head at my ridiculousness. I’m a wolf, our dicks can’t physically disappear into our bodies like some creatures I know of.
It’s rather shocking to realize some aquatic shifters have retractable dicks even in human form. Or, like in the case of gator shifters, constant erections.
The scent of roses reaches me moments before someone sits on the stool next to me.
“Camilla said I’d find you here.” Terry’s soft voice has me turning to them with a frown.
They are dressed conservatively, with a hunter green tube top and a pair of faded jeans that are so tight they look painted on.
Their locks surround their face in an amber halo as they look at me affectionately.
I know Camilla won’t say anything, but I don’t know the other two who were with her. Terry’s workers tend to be a chatty bunch when they don’t have clients. Who knows how many people now know I literally ran away in a panic from two beautiful individuals?
How do I even broach the subject of what happened? It’s humiliating.
“It happens,”Terry says with a shrug. “No reason to let it get to your head.” Terry lifts a finger, and the bartender slides over a tall glass of something neon blue and sweet-smelling.
“It’s never happened to me,” I growl out, knocking back another shot of whiskey. I suck in a sudden breath. That’s not altogether true, though. It happened in the elevator with Lirael.
“You realized something.” Terry turns on the stool to face me, obsidian eyes narrowing as they look me over. They lean closer to me, dainty nose flaring as they breathe in my scent. “Oh my. Well, if I ever did see a man who found his mate.”
I grimace at them. “What the fuck you talking about, Terry?”
Terry hums, sipping on their drink as they give me an assessing look. “Take it from someone who deals in sex. Why do you think you see regulars simply vanish one day? Mate. That’s why.”
I stare down at my shot glass silently, trying to convince myself the confused screaming is coming from the amber liquid in the glass and not my brain.
“How else would you know?” My voice seems distant, like it’s someone else saying the words, and they just happen to be coming from my mouth.
Terry’s silence is maddening, but I can’t bring myself to look at them. I don’t know if it’s the shame of being unable to get it up or the denial that the reason behind my sudden erectile dysfunction is that I supposedly have a mate.
What the hell am I supposed to do with a mate?
“Well, I’ve never experienced it, but from what I understand, there is an all-encompassing urge to constantly be with them,” they say thoughtfully. “The need to protect them and breed the hell out of them. Oh, and having zero interest in anyone else.”
They end that sentence with a pointed look in my direction. I ignore the look, staring down at my whiskey as if it can tell me what I’m supposed to do.
“How long?”
“Long enough,” I reply, swirling the liquor in the cup before bringing it to my lips. I hesitate, the glass resting against my bottom lip as another thought circles my brain. “What if I don’t complete the mating?”
I don’t even know if that’s possible, but I also can’t believe that fate will force the mating if I don’t actually want it. Maybe the bond will fade if I stop giving into my obsessive need to see Seth. I just don’t know enough about the whole “mate” thing to make heads or tails of any of this.
Terry purses their lips. “Honestly, I can’t answer that. I’ve only seen a few that have refused the mate bond, and they all reacted differently.”
I knock back the drink, grimacing at the burn. Do I want a mate? A legit, settling-down and-have-a-happy-ever-after sort of situation? Would Seth even be interested in something like that? With me?
“Does your mate know what you do for a living?”
I give Terry a questioning look. Sometimes, I really wonder if mind-reading isn’t an ability they possess. “He has a vague idea.”
Terry’s eyebrows fly up toward their hairline, and I roll my eyes at their reaction. “And how did he react?”
“I’ll get back to you on that.” I finish off my drink, throwing a fifty on the counter as I slide off the stool.
“Let me know how it goes,” Terry calls after me as I head back toward the front door. If I didn’t know better, I swear they almost sounded wistful.
I brush all the encounters of the day aside and take a deep breath as I make my way back to the car. Right now, I need to make the final preparations for the delivery later today.