Chapter 17 Ginger
Ginger
“GINGER…”
Ihad never heard my name uttered so sinfully.
His gold eyes raked over my skin, slowly, carefully. He didn’t miss a single detail.
I had never felt so exposed. So wholly and completely naked.
His touch brought a gasp to my lips. I had expected his hands to be cold and unyielding, but they were impossibly hot. He trailed gentle fingers over the side of my neck, my shoulder, down the length of my arm. I trembled where I stood.
He threaded his fingers through mine and tugged, pulling me closer to him.
I took a step forward.
A mere breath separated our bodies.
I had to crane my neck back to meet his simmering gaze.
His face was hard to see in the darkness, all harsh lines and shadows, except for the shocking glimmer in his eyes.
Those damned eyes.
Everything else faded into the background, except for the snare of his gaze and the grip he had on my fingers, tethering me to him.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, the words a quiet rasp.
He didn’t answer.
His free hand lifted to ghost over the side of my face. The touch was feather light, almost reverent. My eyes fell shut. I leaned in, pressing my cheek into his palm. His skin was so warm, so smooth.
The faint scent of oak and jasmine filled my nose.
I sighed, content. I ached to rub my face into his hand, to soak up as much contact as possible.
I was greedy. I needed more.
I pulled my fingers free from his grasp and he froze. I swore he was even holding his breath.
A smile tugged at my mouth.
I grabbed both of his wrists, circling them gently with my fingers. They were surprisingly sturdy, his forearms corded with subtle muscle.
I tugged his hands up, burying them in my hair.
A sharp exhale of breath ghosted over my face. His fingers flexed and curled, weaving into the strands. He tugged lightly. My scalp buzzed, pleasure rolling down my spine and settling low in my belly.
More.
I let my hands drift up to his chest, settling on top of his shoulders in the junction where shoulder met neck.
I stepped forward.
My body arched, my back bending reflexively.
I was met with delicious, unyielding flesh. From my hips to my breasts, I was pressed against him. My nipples tightened and peaked.
My breath sped, my heart hammering in my chest.
His hands left my hair to travel down my back. Fingers inched slowly, painfully slowly, igniting flames in my flesh as they caressed.
When his hands met the small of my back, they stopped their descent, instead spanning my waist and gripping firmly.
I nearly groaned aloud.
I wanted those hands to travel further…
I tugged on his neck, lifting myself as much as possible in hopes to shift his grip to my ass and bring his mouth closer to mine.
A wistful sigh escaped my mouth. He bent, his face dropping to mine.
“That’s it, my mate,” he murmured.
My eyes shot open.
Slowly, my mind adjusted to reality.
A dream. It was just a dream.
Something akin to disappointment twisted my belly.
The dream fell away in bits and pieces. Gods, of course it hadn’t been real. That would be crazy. Absolute insanity, to let the stranger touch me like that.
…Right?
I didn’t even know his name, for fate’s sake. But annoyingly, my body didn’t seem to care.
Arousal boiled in my veins, setting my nerves aflame.
I couldn’t remember the last time I had been so gut-wrenchingly, toe-curlingly wound up. Never, probably.
Not like this.
I groaned, rolling over to shove my face into the pillow and muffle my private shame.
Sleep would never take me in this state.
I was uncomfortably warm, blood rushing through my veins and pooling low in my belly, every nerve in my body ridiculously alert. The brush of the sheets against my skin was enough to make me shiver.
I slipped a hand between my thighs to find myself embarrassingly soaked and slippery.
“Oh, gods,” I moaned, unable to help myself.
His eyes flashed through my mind again. That face, so sure, so cocky. So gorgeous.
The way that scar tugged at his brow and brought even more attention to the annoying beauty of his face.
And those hands… I imagined what he could do with him. The way he could run them over my body, as he did in my dream.
It was only a harmless fantasy…It didn’t mean anything…
I let my eyes fall shut again.
My fingers dipped into my folds. An involuntary sigh left my mouth, and I clamped my lower lip between my teeth. My hips jerked when my fingers circled my clit.
I imagined that the fingers belonged to a gorgeous, infuriating, stubborn stranger… With endless gold eyes, and a stare that could nearly burn the clothes right off my body…
I was already so close to unraveling; it took mere swipes of my fingers.
I cried out as I came, garbled sounds that forced their way out of my throat against my wishes. I smashed my face into the pillow to muffle the sound.
Long seconds passed as I waited for the breath to return to my lungs, for the blood to cease rushing in my ears.
For the crushing arousal to lessen.
It did, but only just.
I sighed in frustration. “I’m losing it,” I mumbled to myself. “Absolutely losing my mind.”
A sound caught my attention.
A creak, barely audible. Perhaps a rustle. Perhaps the cottage simply settling in the wind.
I jerked myself upright.
My eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, and I swore I caught a glimpse of something breaking through the blackness in the corner…
Something… gold.
Two gold spots.
My heart nearly stopped.
My hand shot to my bedside table, fumbling for the lantern. I lit it hastily. “Come on, come on,” I hissed, begging the flame to grow faster.
My eyes darted around the room.
Dread weighed on my chest as I prepared for what I might see—a figure in the corner with glowing gold eyes.
But there was nothing there.
Nothing at all.
Only the darkness of night, cut into strange shapes by the gleam of the lantern.
I inhaled deeply, sucking air to the base of my lungs.
Darkness, and the faint scent of oak and jasmine.
I fell back onto the bed, so careless that my antlers knocked against the headboard.
I was definitely losing it.