Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
YORICK
I jerk awake the instant I hear Atticus on the move. I grab the doorknob but it won’t twist, so I slam my shoulder into it, and when it does nothing but hurt my shoulder, I question why the fuck these doors are so well made.
I know I can slam into it again and actually break it, but is there any sense in doing so when I can tell Atticus is already out the window?
Rushing to the window at the end of the hallway, I swiftly unlock it before pushing it up. Throwing myself through, I slam down on my feet and wildly look around, but Atticus is already gone.
“No, no, no… you fucking asshole,” I growl before I still completely, hoping that’ll guide me to his location.
Carefully, I listen to the sounds the world around me is making.
It’s only just turned dark enough for us to venture out, so the nocturnal animals are starting to stir.
I can hear an owl hooting in the distance, and beyond it, I can hear some deer scavenging through dead leaves—
The owl falls silent.
I race toward the wooded area behind Casimir’s home, knowing that if I pick the wrong path, I will never catch up to him. Hell, I might never even see Atticus again if things go poorly. All because he’s so insistent that he can do everything alone.
For a man who claims he cares about no one but himself, he sure cares about not involving us.
I dash into the trees, knowing he’s doing everything he can not to draw attention to himself.
And then a twig snaps.
I twist hard, realizing that he’s trying to draw me away from where he really is and likely plans to move back toward Casimir’s house in an attempt to get away from us. He’s probably going to hop into his car and fuck off, leaving me with little idea of his destination.
Moving quickly, I rush forward and slam right into Atticus. He trips, staggering back as he tries to catch himself, but my momentum is such that he ends up slamming down onto his ass while I crash down with him.
“What are you doing?” he asks like I’m the issue here.
“What are you doing!” I bark back.
“Trying to go for a walk around the property while I think up a plan.”
My eyes narrow at the obvious lie. Does he really think I will believe any part of that nonsense? “You were trying to flee!”
“I was not. Now get off me so I can get up.”
I scowl at him, realizing that I can’t actually tell whether he was trying to flee or not. “Then why didn’t you leave through your door like a normal person?”
“Because you were dead asleep while leaning against it! I was trying to be nice for once in my life, and that has left me in the fucking mud,” he growls.
“Oh well, your precious butler will dab you clean. Or I can watch you shower again if you’d prefer?”
“You have been a menace since the day I met you,” he states as he grabs me by the shoulder and tries to haul me off him while pulling himself away from me. I wrap my arms around his torso, not planning on going anywhere until I can guarantee that he’s not fleeing.
“Get. Off. Me.”
“You’re just going to run off to fight this Wick guy without me, and then it’ll be another hundred years before you see me again… if you live through it.”
“What are you rambling about? You know where I live.”
“Yeah? Well, I’ve thought that before and then I returned to an empty house without even a fucking note saying where you went,” I complain before smashing my face against his chest now that I have him locked down.
Atticus sighs before grabbing a handful of my hair and peeling my head off of him. “You ransacked my place, stealing my most valuable jewels. What part of that should have made me even remotely believe you were going to come back?”
“I brought some back.”
“You brought one jewel back. How many did you steal?”
“I dunno. Don’t ask me such difficult questions!”
“You know.”
I try to pull my head away from his grasp, and when I do, he finally lets go of my hair, accidentally pulling my hair tie out in the process. I slam my head back down on his chest where I feel like it should reside for now. “I just wanted your attention.”
“You got it, alright,” he says as he shoots my hair tie at me. It hits me in the head, but I don’t care. I just want to keep holding him.
“Please don’t leave without me. I’ll go with you.”
“You’re like a ball and chain; you only inconvenience me.”
“Think of how sneaky I am, though. I’ve stolen so much of your shit over the years. Like money, jewels, vases, there was that little cat statue that was really cute—”
The look on his face tells me that maybe I should have just been quiet. “You… you were the one who stole that? Do you know how much that fucking cat cost me? That was supposed to go to a client.”
“Shhhh,” I say as I try to put a finger over his lips to shush him. It doesn’t work and ends up with my entire hand clamped over his mouth. Oddly, with the way I’m pinning him down with my body and silencing him, I kind of feel like I’m trying my hand at being a kidnapper now.
Ah well.
“There. Don’t you feel so much better now?” I ask, but his eyes tell me that his rage is building. I really wish he wasn’t such a fussy man.
He’s sitting up now with me pressed against him, so when I go to set my hand down to steady myself, my fingers brush against his dick.
“Whoopsies.”
“You have the whole fucking forest and that’s where your hand has to go?” he asks.
“I said ‘whoops.’ It was just a gentle brush… unless you’d like it to be more,” I murmur as I lean into him.
His eyes are focused on mine while I move in until I’m so close that my nose nearly touches his cheek as my lips find their way to his ear.
“You know I would face the world with you. So if you ever try to leave me, I will make it so you can’t escape,” I threaten.
His hand grips my chin, pulling my head away from his ear so his eyes can pin me down. “You are the very last person I’m afraid of. Casimir’s ridiculous-looking dog is scarier than you.”
I gasp. “I am plenty terrifying!”
“The only thing that should be terrified of you is my bank account.”
“Don’t talk money to me, it turns me on,” I say as I lean in, hoping he’ll meet me in the middle.
“You think this stunt is all it takes to win me over?” he asks while his hand sinks into my hair and tips my head to the side, exposing my neck.
“If so, you really need to work on your seduction. It’s no wonder you’ve been alone for hundreds of years.
” Atticus leans in and nips my neck, fangs just barely piercing the skin before his tongue runs over the drop of blood.
It’s as though I’m immediately turned to putty in his hands as I sink into his touch, ready to hand over anything he wants from me. My cock is hardening, and I can feel it pressed against his thigh while I halfway straddle him. His lips move up to my ear.
“You have a long way to go before you will be good enough to seduce me,” he whispers before letting me go.
I grumble, displeased that he was merely playing with me.
I want him to devour me, and instead, he leaves me aching for more.
I lean into him, hoping to continue this nonsense, but Atticus’s phone beeps and his attention immediately switches from me to it.
In irritation, I reach for it, planning to chuck it into the next county if I have to.
“Don’t tell me you’re already cheating on me?” I question.
He rolls me off him and grabs the phone before I can. His expression darkens significantly, making me certain that Morpheus is the culprit who sent that text.
“What is it?” I ask as I weasel my way back into his arms so I can read the message. He puts me in a choke hold, but hey, it’s just a hug with extra steps.
Morpheus: Wick has cordially invited me to attend his yearly get-together. What good timing we have. Go in my place. Enjoy yourself, Atticus. It’s a black-tie event. Yorick will look dashing in a bow tie.
“I will, won’t I?” I muse. “I’m not sure I actually have clothes like that, but maybe I can borrow some.”
“You’re not going,” Atticus says as he drops me and stands up.