Twenty-One
Lysander
He’d been more than happy to stop at a garden centre. A very sweet woman had helped him pick out some new roses, along with a few other things for Avalon to try. With the car fully packed with greens and tools, he returned home.
He was glad to see that she was no longer frozen in the garden. He was heading for his room to shower and change when he found her. The second their eyes locked, Avalon froze like a deer in headlights. Her hair was a mess, the sweater she was wearing barely covered her ass, leaving those long legs in full view. By the looks of it and the faint blood smears on her legs, Marcus and Varos had found a way to lure her from the garden back into the house.
Though he was upset that he’d missed it, he wasn’t… jealous . He was just happy to see her satisfied, even though she was embarrassed to be caught. He smirked, leisurely closing the distance between them.
“I heard you wanted to try some gardening.” Once within arm’s reach, he reached out to tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “I stopped at the garden centre on the way home. Thought we could spend the evening out in the sun.”
His heart raced, his lungs seemingly forgetting how to function. Avalon tilted her chin up so she could look at him, her body so still that not even her eyes blinked. He brushed his thumb across her cheekbone, allowing himself just a moment to rake his eyes over her body. She looked breathtaking .
“Is that something you would like to do tonight?”
Avalon opened her mouth, but didn’t speak. He couldn’t help but drag his thumb over that pouty bottom lip. They were still damp. Had they kissed her? Or were these dick-swollen lips? Maybe she’d even fed.
“I do think we should change first,” he suggested.
“I, um…” she stammered. “I was about to shower.”
“Mind if I join?”
“In the shower?”
How was she so sexy yet so damn adorable? “Only if you allow, of course.”
“I…”
“There’s no wrong answer, Ava. We can always meet outside after if you don’t feel up to the company.”
“I want the company,” Avalon rushed.
“You do seem like you had your fair share today, I don’t want to overwhelm you.”
Avalon’s fangs pushed past her lower lip and if she’d still been human, she probably would have blushed. Unable to resist, he pricked his thumb. That was all it took for her lips to seal around his thumb, sucking it into her mouth.
“But rest assured I made sure to eat and hydrate well. So if you ever get tired of bagged blood, I’ll be waiting.”
He removed his thumb with a pop, and moved to walk around her when she grabbed his hand. “Don’t go.”
The simple touch made his heart skip. He leaned down, pressing a kiss to her hair. “I’ll grab some clothes and meet you in your bathroom.”
A brief moment of hesitation, then Avalon nodded and released his hand .
He grabbed what he needed from his own room, then found Avalon in hers. She was bent over, pulling towels out for the two of them. That hoodie left nothing to the imagination, riding over her perky ass and giving him a full view. He looked away, suddenly ashamed that he’d made their whole relationship nothing more than feeding and sex.
Once the water ran hot, Avalon turned to him with a hesitant smile. Lysander took charge and swept her into his arms. Unlike wrapping her legs around him like he’d wanted, Avalon went stiff in his arms as he carried her to the vanity.
“I don’t want to get your suit dirty.”
Ah, yes—he’d forgotten about the blood. “It can be replaced.”
“It looks expensive.”
“Money is no object.”
“Doesn’t mean we have to throw it around like we’re in a strip club,” she countered. She reached for the buttons on his shirt, pausing to search for his approval. “Is this okay?”
“Of course.” He rubbed over the smooth skin of her thighs. “Why don’t you tell me what you’ve been up to today?”
“Nothing.” She clenched her jaw. “Absolutely nothing.”
“And that bothers you.”
Avalon gave him a curt nod, not taking her attention off his shirt. Her fingers left a cool trail over his chest and stomach as the fabric fell away from his skin.
“Give yourself time.”
“I keep hearing that.”
“When was the last time you took more than a weekend off work?”
“Maybe five years ago.”
“With him?” What was his name again? Troy?
Another nod, and she pulled his shirt free of his trousers. Then she slid her hands beneath the cotton, sliding it off his shoulders.
“I’m sure that wasn’t entirely for you. You’ve been focused on surviving. You’re not used to taking time for yourself.”
Avalon sighed. “It scares me to be alone right now.” Her fingers danced over his biceps, eyes taking in every inch of his body. “I don’t want to think.”
“If you enjoy gardening, maybe that could take your mind off things.”
“I’m sorry.”
“What on earth for?”
“Being so… ungrateful? Bad company?”
“You’re not ungrateful and you’re not bad company either.”
“I am moody though.”
“So, what does that make me?”
“Dark and broody? Every girl’s dream in a romance novel?”
He chuckled and kissed her forehead. “Well, then that would make you gorgeous.” That made her smile. “Now how about you check on the water?”
Avalon moved to slide off the counter, then paused. “When I was still…” She paused visibly struggling to say human. “Varos and Marcus always felt cold. Not icy but their skin was cooler. Does that bother you?”
“No, I actually welcome it. Lycans aren’t just hot heads—they run warm just like vampires run cold. When I was trying to control him, I sought out the cold because he couldn’t stand it. The dungeons where we held prisoners were ice cold.”
“But doesn’t Eastern Europe have cold winters?”
“Yes, which is why there was always a fireplace in every room—even rarely used ones.”
“I don’t want you to be uncomfortable with me.”
“I’m not.”
Avalon hopped down, stripping off the hoodie and stepping into the shower. Lysander paused long enough to admire her every curve, the swells of her hips and the fullness of her stomach. He took a breath to bring himself back down to earth, then dropped his pants. Sex was supposed to be the last thing on his mind. He wanted this to be more intimate for her. Though he’d expected hot water, he hissed and jumped out of the spray—it was boiling .
Avalon immediately went for the tap. “I’m so sorry.” She brushed her cool palm over the burn to soothe it. “Did it burn you? I didn’t realise it was so hot.”
“I’m fine.”
Though Avalon needed to determine that for herself, carefully inspecting his arm. “I didn’t know I was so insensitive to heat.”
He kissed her head, guiding her beneath the much cooler spray. “Baby steps.” Avalon relaxed into the water while he lathered his fingers and worked shampoo into her hair. “Now tell me, have reading and painting always been hobbies of yours?”
“I always had my nose in a book as a kid, but not as much when I was with Troy. He didn’t approve of them.”
“Was it the same with painting?”
“After mom died, someone recommended that I paint to help me cope. That’s when it started.”
“But that too ended when you were with Troy?”
“He tolerated it. I guess it was the lesser of two evils.”
“A well-read woman is a dangerous one.”
“I’m not sure that’s true with the books I read,” she laughed and turned her back to him again.
“Romance, no matter how fictional it might be, could’ve shown you what he was doing to you. Maybe even given you ideas on how to escape.”
“That should’ve been my first red flag, huh?” He opened his mouth to dispel that thought, but she continued. “I did see them, you know? Some of them. But I think I just wanted… someone . I thought no one was perfect. Every partner has something they don’t like about the other, so I looked past them. When things were good, they were really good. He held the doors open for me, never made me reach for my wallet. I always got good morning messages and he even surprised me at work. I had blinders on. The control happened slower. The first time he hit me, he was drunk. I wanted to believe he hadn’t meant it.”
“He didn’t want you to see.” He tipped Avalon’s head back to rinse her hair, then lathered his hands up with body wash.
“Varos and Marcus said the same.”
“What are our things? The things you dislike?”
Avalon turned to look at him over her shoulder, the question seeming to have caught her off guard. “What?”
“You said you believed that every couple has something one overlooks about the other, that not everyone is a perfect match.”
Her nose wrinkled as she mulled over his words. “I haven’t thought about that.”
“We don’t do anything that annoys you?”
“I’m far too annoyed with myself to worry about anyone else,” she laughed.
Lysander worked over her back, fingers kneading the knots in her muscles. “Give us time, I’m sure we have plenty to give.”
Avalon giggled. “I’ve noticed.”
“I didn’t mean it that way,” he frowned, cheeks heating. “It’s not all about sex.”
“No, you all have redeeming qualities.” Avalon shook, trying to contain her laughter. “I mean you all taste very good.”
“Thank you.”
“Can I massage you too?”
“Of course.” He pressed a kiss to each shoulder, then knelt in front of her.
“Thank you. You are quite tall.” Her hands felt good. Though they were small, she had the strength to give him the right amount of pressure. “The other night, when you passed out, I had to dress you and got a bit rough. I didn’t mean to but you are so big I thought I’d struggle but I underestimated my strength. I flung you around like a doll.”
The mental image made him burst into laughter. “I would have loved to see that.”
“I was so worried I hurt you!”
“I think it is very kind of you to tell me. I wouldn’t have known otherwise.”
“Just something I wanted to get off my chest.”
“Rest assured, I was not injured. I’m only upset that I didn’t get to see it for myself.”
They rinsed off and he stood back as Avalon dried her hair and wrapped it in a second towel before getting dressed.
“If you don’t like the clothes I bought you, we can always get you others,” he offered, pulling up his own jeans.
“So, you want me to wear a thousand-dollar outfit for gardening?” she asked, crooking her eyebrow at him. “And if you say money is no object again, I will add that to the list of things that annoy me, because we are not wasting money like that.”
“Yes, ma’am.” That made her grin at him. “May I braid your hair?”
“Smooth.” Still she held out her brush and some hair ties while standing before the mirror.
He settled behind her and got to work. It had been over a hundred years since he’d braided someone’s hair, but Avalon was more than patient. Eventually, he found his rhythm, falling into a trance of twisting the strands over each other while Avalon relaxed against his chest.