Chapter 35
Forrest
Delmar starts to follow Clark and Blair out of the kitchen, but then he stops and turns back to me. He stands at the door while I’m putting things away. “What are you doing? Come on.”
“Right . . .”
He motions me forward. “Let’s go.”
But my feet don’t move.
“Are you coming?”
“I will. Go ahead.” I’m not sure why I can’t leave the mess here. It’s not like Rodgers and the staff haven’t come back to a cluttered kitchen before.
Delmar cocks his head at me. There are plenty of pods that want Blair; she said as much herself the other day.
We know she went out with the Driftwood pod.
Shopping for furniture. Which scared the carp out of me until Alexei explained that it was just something humans do.
They go shopping when they have no intention of buying things.
They just walk around and don’t buy anything.
But I’m not going to pretend I understand mermaids, let alone a human female.
He exhales loudly. “Okay.” And he vanishes down the corridor.
I put the canisters away. My eyes flick to the door. I’m acting like a scared podlet. Like I’ve never had sex before. I’m the one who wanted this. Pushed for it to begin with.
When the Centauri pulled in with Annabelle, I knew it could be our chance to have a mate.
When I saw Annabelle, I also knew she wasn’t for us.
I still considered the possibility, even knowing it wouldn’t happen.
But Blair? Blair, she’s a different story.
The moment she came off the sub . . . my heart stopped.
“Get it together, Forrest.” I slam the cabinet door and wipe down the counter. Two Mason males with her is enough. She’s human. I don’t want to push her, make her uncomfortable. Fuck, I want her to choose us. I want her to pick us. And I don’t want to be the one who messes things up.
My hand’s on the light switch when Blair steps back into the room.
“Is everything okay?” Her head tilts. “We lost you.” One of her braids is down. Her loose hair cascades over her shoulder.
Clark glares at me over the top of Blair’s head. He nods to the hallway, down to the bedroom.
“Sorry, habit—I like to clean up after myself. I’m coming now.” I wipe my hands on a tea towel and hang it up.
“Forrest? It’s okay if you don’t . . . I’d like you to, but you don’t have to.” Her blue eyes glow from the low light of the doorway.
“Oh fluke, no. I want to . . .” I really want to.
Blair turns to Clark and places her hand on his chest. “Go. I’ll be right back. Second door on the right?”
“Yes,” Clark grumbles. “Don’t be too long.” He spins her and kisses her. My cock jumps. It’s been . . . Clark throws daggers at me with his eyes and steps out of the kitchen entryway. I can only imagine the shit I’m going to get later.
“Is something wrong? Do you want me to go?”
“No. It’s just been a long time since I’ve—”
“Say no more. It was for me too. And I’m still not sure if I’m doing it right.”
“You are.” I smile. I’ve never seen Clark so focused on something besides work. So she’s definitely doing something right.
“Oh.” There’s a lovely red blush up the side of her neck. “Do you talk? Of course you talk. You’re a pod.”
I laugh. “No, we don’t talk. Or rather, we haven’t. We should, though. It would make things better for you. And for all of us as an all-around pod.” The whirlpool of my thoughts starts to churn again.
“Forrest.” She slides up to me. “You know, you remind me of me.”
“Really?” My eyebrows shoot up. “And this is a good thing?”
“Yes, and no. I’m a thinker. I can see you are too.”
“I am.” Beyond a thinker.
“And somewhere, someone told you you had to be perfect to be worthwhile.”
“No . . . I . . . yes.”
Blair leans against the counter. “I thought so. It’s the same with me. My parents did the best they could, you know. My dad was a lot. Intense, focused, just like his mom. He expected perfection. And then you know about my ex.”
“I do,” I growl. I’ve heard Nico mention more than once that he’d like to find a hagissa to bring her ex back to life just so he could kill him more slowly.
I’ve never had a vengeful side, but I’m with Nico.
I’d like to do the same if I could. And honestly, I hope I never meet her brother.
How could he not know what was going on?
“Well, I’ve spent a long time thinking about other people. Marlee, Annabelle, even my brother. What would he do if he had to work on the farm by himself? How would he manage? How can I keep the girls safe? I forgot about myself. It’s why all of this is so hard for me—”
“You’re doing beautifully. Living in the Veiled City, learning about the Dorian, our ways? Our ways are tough. We might look like humans most of the time, but we’re different.”
She blows out a breath. “That’s so true.” Her hand lands on my chest. I focus on it, and my heart slams against my ribs as if trying to rip through the bone cage. Like it wants to touch her back. I lay my hands on top of hers, pushing her hand flush.
“We’re more alike than you think.” Her eyes flick to mine. “Especially you and me.”
“Right now, you’re the brave one.” I bring her hand to my lips and kiss it.
“I’m happy to be brave for you. And later, you can be brave for me.” Her other hand loops around the back of my neck. Our lips are inches apart.
“I promise you,” I say.
Her breath hitches. “I like you, Forrest. I like that you’re able to be yourself with me and not pretend.”
“Every time we meet, I’m impressed by you, Blair.”
She laughs, and the blush deepens on her cheeks.
“You’re not used to compliments,” I growl.
“That’s putting it mildly.”
“Well, you are unlike any female I’ve ever met.”
“Well, that’s me. Unique.” She laughs, rising onto her tiptoes as her lips brush against mine.
And it’s all it takes. I’m on fire. My body takes over, pushing any self-doubt I have away with the tide.
I’m controlling the kiss, licking at the seam of her lips to let me in, and when she does, I want to explode.
Tasting her, sweet as honey. Our tongues collide until I’ve kissed all the breath out of her.
“Whoa.” Her eyes glisten. “Are you . . .”
“I’m good.” Holding her reminds me I’m not a shy podlet. I’m the governor of Stele. One of the most powerful males in all of Doria. One of the reasons why the Braesen governor’s plot to take over this city didn’t work. I’m fearless. So why does one little human scare the seaweed out of me?
Her hand trails down the side of my face, down my neck and arm, and she interlocks her fingers with mine. “Okay. Do you want to come back with me?”
“Very much so.” I swallow and follow her down the hall, our fingers still interlocked. My cock’s hard, and my stomach flips. I take her other hand before we’ve reached the guest room and push her against the wall. I part her legs with my knee. It’s rough. Too rough, perhaps. Her eyes flash at me.
I unlock our fingers and trail my hand up to her crimson red neck. I like that it’s so easy to see that she’s aroused. I pin her neck with the v of my hand to the wall. And damn, I’m worked up. Her scent has me tied to her, our bodies pressed together.
I’m about to kiss down the side of her neck when she freezes. I know her past. Or at least some of it. I’ve made inferences about the rest. Her bottom-dweller of an ex sold her and his daughter for profit. What else must he have done?
“Little Minnow?”
“Governor,” she whispers. And I like it. I like it a lot.
A shiver runs down my spine. She’s too fragile still. I can’t do this. I’ll scare her off. Delmar’s gentle—Clark too. But I hold her flush against the wall. I’m in control, the monster rising out of me. A sensation I thought had died long ago and floated away to the Chasm.
I’m back on her in a flash. Our lips crash together. We’re molded together, her legs closing over my knee. She grinds on my leg in time with our kiss. Fingers dig into my back, running down the muscles along my spine. I want her to dig in and mark me.
The need to touch her everywhere sings through my body.
I want to rock against her soft skin, have her body crash against mine.
Her light purple sweater is long gone, but there’s still far too much clothing covering her.
I trail a hand down to the ties on her billowing golden trousers.
I lift the soft purple tunic out of the way and skim my fingers over her exposed skin.
Goosebumps follow my fingertips. I tug down on the silken fabric and slide her trousers halfway down her hips.
Her breath hitches, and I let go of her neck.
Darker red marks mar her flushed skin. I trail my fingers over the mark.
My eyes jump to hers. My heart speeds. I’m a danger to her.
My hand lands on her chest. “My Minnow. I’m not .
. . This isn’t . . . I’ve hurt you. I never intended to hurt you.
” I drop my knee and step away from her. I can’t do this.
She’s too good.
Too pure.
I’ll crush her.
Ruin her.
So I push away, a tsunami of doubt washing over me.
“Forrest . . .” She reaches for me, snagging my hand and bringing it to her lips.
Pressing her delicate skin to my rough hand.
My cock twitches. The pull to her is overwhelming.
I want to do things to her . . . draw out little noises in the night from her lips that no one has ever heard.
“I’m fine. You haven’t hurt me. Like I said in the kitchen, we’re an awful lot alike.
I won’t hold it against you if you can’t stay. If you don’t want to.”
“No. I very much want to stay.”
She kisses the back of my hand. “You do what you need to do.” She releases my hand, lifts onto her tiptoes, and kisses my cheek.
With her hand on the door handle, she holds my gaze, and it’s up to me. Do I stay away, or do I go in with her?