Chapter 10
With the taste of his mate still in Keith’s mouth, the sound of his moans ringing in Keith’s ears, and the image of him groping himself flooding his mind, he could either take himself in hand and fantasize about the man downstairs or he could drag himself out of the bath and experience him in person.
He’d have to wait until they were alone to be with him in the way he wanted, but even watching and listening to Brian work would give him more joy than anything he could do without him, so he climbed out, dried off, and got dressed.
As he made his way downstairs, Keith could hear Brian talking out front.
He hadn’t yet met all the Purple Sky pack members, so he wasn’t surprised that he didn’t recognize one person’s scent.
Steve, the other person outside, he had met in Green Field.
Well, that was assuming he could describe being in the presence of someone while barely conscious a meeting.
Not wanting to distract his mate, he walked into the dining room and stood by the window where he’d be able to hear and see him without disturbing him.
Excited to watch Brian in his element, Keith’s eyes immediately went to him.
He exuded strength and comfort when dealing with his pack.
He looked them in the face and focused on whatever they were saying.
And he did that while being absolutely stunning.
His body was firm and strong, his eyes warm and kind, his face sculpted and sexy.
“I’ve been truly blessed,” Keith whispered to himself as he raked his gaze over his mate, taking in every inch.
He had been so focused on Brian’s appearance and movements that he hadn’t been paying attention to the conversation outside. That changed when the woman on the porch stepped into Brian’s personal space.
“Alpha, I’m so thirsty and tired,” she said, her tone coy.
She ran her palm down her neck and across her clavicle and squeezed the sides of her arms against her breasts, highlighting her cleavage.
“Can we please go inside?” She tipped toward Brian and then draped herself against him, tangled her fingers in his hair, and pulled it.
If her behavior wasn’t so over the top and if he wasn’t so confident about his mate’s feelings, Keith may have gotten jealous. As it was, he chuckled in amusement at her antics.
“Fine.” Brian wrapped his hands around the woman’s upper arms and gently pushed her away as he stepped back. “But only for a few minutes.” He turned his attention to Steve. “Will you please figure out who Claire can stay with for the night? We can talk about longer term plans tomorrow.”
“Can’t I stay with you, Alpha?” She looked up at Brian and honest to goodness batted her eyelashes at him. “Your house is sooo big.” She lowered her voice. “I like them big, Alpha.”
“Girl, come on,” Keith said to himself, laughing. “Dial it down a few new notches if you want to stick the landing.” Not that she’d be landing anywhere near his mate regardless of how hard she tried, but this amateur effort was giving him second-hand embarrassment.
“Ehm,” Brian cleared his throat and took another step away from the woman—Claire. “No, you can’t stay with me.” He flicked his gaze to Steve. “Make it fast.”
“Yes, Alpha.” Steve flipped around and rushed away.
“Come on,” Brian said and then turned his back to Claire, rolled his eyes, and shook his head as he walked to the front door. “I’ll get you that drink and you can sit and rest until Steve gets you situated.”
“Why can’t I stay with you, Alpha?” She hustled to catch up with Brian and trailed her hand up his nape. “I’ll feel so safe if you’re there to protect me.”
She had just reached his hairline when he flipped around, grasped her wrist, and growled, “Don’t.”
“Oh.” Her eyes widened in fright. It was the first genuine expression Keith had seen on her face.
Brian stomped into the house. “Living room’s to your left. Sit down and wait for me.” He quickly made his way to the kitchen, either too distracted or moving too quickly to notice Keith in the dining room to his right.
Claire remained on the porch, her chest heaving, her lips parted, and her face flushed.
If they hadn’t been separated by the windows and walls, Keith was certain he’d be able to hear her heart thundering.
Being reprimanded by an Alpha wasn’t pleasant, but Brian had merely said a single word, and any shifter should know better than to touch an Alpha without permission; putting her hand on his neck was completely inappropriate yet all he did was remove it. Her petrified reaction was suspicious.
“Why did he get mad?” she said to herself, her voice so quiet Keith had to strain to hear her. “They said it’d be easy to seduce him. Guess I’ll need to give him that encouragement after all.”
Well, that was interesting. He changed his position, situating himself in a spot where he’d be able to see into the living room while remaining mostly concealed himself.
Claire walked inside and peered in the direction Brian had gone before hustling into the living room and opening her purse.
“At least I got some of his hair.” She let out a deep breath and then fiddled with something inside her bag.
“Where is it?” she mumbled. She jerked her gaze toward the room’s entryway and then quickly upended the contents of her purse onto the sofa.
She scooped up a wallet, phone, lipstick, and plastic bag and shoved them back into the purse, leaving only a small vial on the cushion, which she snatched and tucked into her shirt.
Then she sat and arranged herself in a position that couldn’t have been comfortable—chest tilted too high up, shoulders pulled too far back, and torso so elongated her muscles had to be protesting.
Cringing at the absurd posture, Keith shook his head. He’d put a stop to this soon, but he needed to wait a little longer to uncover what Claire had planned.
“Here you go,” Brian said as he strode over from the kitchen and turned into the living room. He set a glass on the coffee table in front of Cringey Claire. “Drink your tea and rest here until Steve returns. I need to—”
“Do you have anything other than tea?” Cringey gazed up at Brian, opening her eyes dramatically and doing something with her lips that was between a purse and a pucker.
Was that supposed to be appealing? Keith titled his head to the side and considered Cringey Claire’s expression.
No. He shook his head. Nobody could find whatever this was attractive, mated or not.
Brian’s back was to him so he couldn’t see his face, but he noticed his muscles tightening and his neck stiffening.
“I’ll get you water.”
“Do you have something stronger? Vodka maybe? Wouldn’t it be fun to have a drink together?”
“You said you’re thirsty.” He flipped around and marched away. “Alcohol is dehydrating.”
As soon as he left the room, her posture crumpled to something resembling normal. She plucked the vial from her shirt, poured its contents into the iced tea, and swiveled it around. Then she put the empty container back into her purse, zipped it, and resumed her absurd position.
“Water.” Brian stomped back into the living room, hand outstretched. “I’ll be back in a few—”
“Oh, Alpha, won’t you stay with me?” She took the glass from his hand.
“I’ve been so scared, and now that I’m with you, I finally feel safe.
You’re so big and strong.” She inclined her head toward the iced tea.
“We can have a drink together.” She patted the empty spot on the couch next to her. “There’s plenty of space here.”
Brian looked up and turned his head in the direction of his bedroom, which Keith assumed meant he was thinking of him. His mate was so sweet.
“Fine,” Brian said. He picked up the tea and walked toward the armchair perpendicular to the couch and closest to the entryway.
“Aren’t you going to sit next to me?” Cringey Claire simpered at him and bent forward, bringing even more attention to her chest.
Alright, as fun as this trainwreck was to watch, Keith couldn’t let his mate drink whatever it was she had put into that glass so he hustled over. “Hi!”
“Hey.” Brian immediately turned in his direction.
“Introduce me to our very friendly guest.” He snagged the glass from Brian’s hand and then plopped down on the couch right next to Claire. “I’m Keith.” He grinned at her and leaned into her personal space.
“Oh!” Purse clutched tightly, she scurried off the couch and over to Brian. “Who is he?” She wedged her breasts against Brian’s arm, placed her cheek on his shoulder, and blinked up at him, eyelashes batting like hummingbird wings. “I’m scared, Alpha. Stop him.”
Keith scoffed. “Girl, there’s humiliating and then there’s whatever this is. Please, do yourself a favor and stop. You’re embarrassing yourself with this Annie Wilkes impression.”
“Who’s Annie Wilkes?” Brian asked as he tried to extricate himself from Cringey’s grasp.
“You know, Annie Wilkes, from the book Misery? That superfan who’s totally obsessed with the main character so she kidnaps him, and at first, she comes across as sweet but eventually she brings out the axe and…” Keith snapped his arm in a whacking motion. “Bye-bye foot.”
Brian frowned.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Keith asked. “I didn’t write it. Blame Stephen King.”
“Uh,” Brian said.
“Alpha, help me.” Claire flung herself against Brian’s chest.
Keith looked to the side, held up two fingers, and said, “We’ll be back in two and two folks. We’re talking with Cringey Claire who is trying to flirt for what’s seemingly the first time in her life.”
“Who are you talking to?” Brian asked.
“The audience at home.”
“Keith? We are at home and there is no audience.”
“We’re at home but I was doing the Chuck Woolery thing from Love Connection.” He raised two fingers and rotated them. “Two and two. Get it?”
“Who is Chuck Woolery?”
“He was the host of Love Connection. That game show.”
Brian stared at him blankly.