Chapter Fourteen
Kinley released a breath when the shower came on, at a loss as to what had happened to change the mood so drastically. One minute she’d been basking in the best sexual experience of her life, the next...
“If only I’d kept my mouth shut.” Put the blame on post-orgasm muddle mind. The only ones she’d had before were the ones she’d given herself. They were nothing compared to the explosive one Eli had given her.
Closing her eyes, she rested her head against her bent knees.
The air was thick with the scent of her arousal.
She couldn’t believe what he’d done. What hot-blooded male pleasured a woman and then walked away?
Elijah Sin, that’s who. It wasn’t because he hadn’t wanted her.
The erection prominently outlined in his jeans had made that abundantly clear.
If that wasn’t indication enough, the heat burning in his eyes and the hunger in his kiss sealed the deal.
Her gaze drifted to the closed bathroom door.
Even now, he was standing in the shower, naked and wet, soap slipping down his muscular torso.
Was he stroking himself? Her core clenched and began to throb.
What would happen if she was brazen enough to walk over there, open the door, and invite herself in?
“Stop it.” She bolted off the bed, shocked at how easily she was becoming turned on.
You’d think it had been months since her last orgasm rather than minutes.
She tugged on the front of the shirt, stirring the air to help cool her off.
Big mistake. The slight breeze wafting over her sensitive skin was reminiscent of his callused fingertips grazing over her, as if he was mapping every inch as he licked and stroked his way down her torso and between her legs.
Don’t think about it.
To help get her mind off of Eli and sex, she turned her attention to the room.
She’d slept here last night but hadn’t paid a lot of attention to her surroundings.
The bed was king size. It needed to be. Even then, it seemed cozy and intimate with Eli beside her.
It had a plain wood headboard, the mattress covered in basic white sheets and a simple navy-blue comforter.
Matching blue drapes hung at the single window but stood wide open, highlighting the view of the mountain beyond.
There was no carpet on the wood floor, no extra pillows on the bed.
A chair sat in the corner, but even that was utilitarian rather than inviting.
It was the sort of place you tossed a pair of jeans or a shirt, maybe sit down long enough to lace a pair of boots, not one where you curled up with a book or a laptop and relaxed.
The nightstand held a solid brass lamp. A heavy wooden dresser sat against one wall, the top bare.
If there were personal items, they were tucked away.
It could have been a hotel room, an upscale one, but it lacked the warmth of a personal space.
The starkness of it made her heart ache.
Her bedroom back in Alabama had been filled with memories—a picture of her parents, pillows, a quilt she’d made, and tiny treasures she’d discovered in thrift stores.
She hadn’t had much money to spare, but she’d made the most of what she’d had, filling her small space with vibrant color and life.
It had been the one bright spot in her otherwise bleak existence.
The shower going off yanked her from her thoughts.
She grabbed the shopping bags off the floor and dumped them on the bed.
Along with the underwear, which she retrieved from the floor and added to the pile, were two sports bras, socks, t-shirts, and leggings, including the purple ones with unicorns, which she quite liked.
There were also two pairs of inexpensive canvas sneakers, one black and one white, along with the promised brush and soap.
When the door to the bathroom opened, she automatically glanced over and almost swallowed her tongue.
Eli was securing a white towel around his waist. Damp hair tumbled wildly around his shoulders.
A bead of water slipped down the front of his torso before being absorbed by the towel.
When a second bead trickled down, her mouth went dry.
She longed to catch the droplet on her tongue and lick her way back up the broad expanse.
“You have everything you need?” He canted his head toward the mound on the bed.
“What? Oh, yes. There’s more than enough.” Get it together, Kinley. Rather than try to decide what to wear, she stuffed everything into one bag and grabbed the handle. “I won’t be long.”
“Take your time.” He pulled a pair of jeans off one of the built-in shelves in the closet. “There’s no rush.”
“I’m sure Cyrus wouldn’t agree. He’s probably frothing at the mouth.”
His back to her, Eli dropped the towel and stepped into the jeans, tugging them up over thick muscled thighs and a firm ass.
They fit him like a second skin. He hadn’t bothered with underwear.
The man went commando. Made sense if you thought you might have to shift in a hurry. It was nothing to get worked up over.
Her body didn’t agree. Her temperature had jumped several degrees.
She must have made a tiny sound because his head snapped around.
His black eyes ensnared her. Like an animal caught in a trap, she couldn’t move.
He didn’t walk toward her, he prowled, not stopping until he was so close their chests were almost touching. One deep inhalation and they would be.
She had to force herself to breathe. “Was there something you wanted?” The words came out low and husky.
“There’s plenty I want.” His deep baritone vibrated through her. His fingers grazed the side of her face. The tiny touch sent tiny shocks of pleasure shooting through her.
She was way out of her league, and they both knew it. Eli was unabashedly masculine, comfortable with his sexuality. He definitely had more experience than her. Her wolf snarled. Yeah, thinking of him with other women wasn’t a good idea.
“Your brothers are waiting.” And Duke Wright and his pack would soon be on their way here. Maybe that’s what made everything so immediate and intense. Or maybe it was all Eli.
“Outside this room I have to put all emotion aside. Do you understand?”
She took a step back, or tried to. He hooked his arm around her waist, keeping her in place. “I understand if you want to keep your distance outside the bedroom.” It hurt, but she got it. They were only temporary, didn’t have a real relationship. It would make things easier with his brothers.
“All my attention needs to be on the threat.”
God, she was being selfish and stupid. He and his brothers were protecting their home .
.. and her. “That’s as it should be.” She was proud of how practical she sounded.
It was time to get her head on straight and get with the program.
“It shouldn’t take me longer than ten or fifteen minutes to get ready.
” The day was waning. By this time tomorrow, they’d be under attack.
That’s if the text messages coming through Ridge’s phone were correct.
Contemplating a relationship of any kind with her life so screwed up simply wasn’t smart, no matter how much she was drawn to him.
She tried to move away, but Eli locked his arm in place. She raised a brow in question. “Was there something else?”
His eyes were fathoms deep and completely unreadable.
A muscle flexed in his jaw. Before she’d guessed his intention, he jerked her up onto the tips of her toes and kissed her.
She dropped the bag and wound her arms around his neck and returned the embrace.
Before she could get into it, he released her and stepped away.
Without a word, he grabbed a t-shirt from the closet and left, closing the bedroom door behind him.
Eli was the most frustrating and complicated man she’d ever met. One second he was kissing the breath out of her, the next walking away. Her lips tingled. So did a bunch of other places. Knees unsteady, she bent down and grabbed the bag and went to the bathroom.
After closing the door, she dropped the bag and stared at the mirror. Her lips were swollen, her eyes overly bright. Her hair was tousled. She looked like a woman who’d been thoroughly kissed and then some. There was no way she could go downstairs looking like this.
“Survival comes first.” It had to. She’d brought the threat to this mountain. It was up to her to protect Eli and his brothers. They’d surely laugh at the idea, but they didn’t know her as well as they thought they did. There wasn’t anything she wouldn’t do to protect the man she lov—
She broke off without finishing the thought.
It was too soon to think about such things.
They’d known each other such a short time, all of it intense in a way that heightened emotions.
There was no telling how they’d both feel when it was over.
She might be more than ready to leave. He might be happy to see the back of her.
Pain pierced her heart. She rubbed her chest and turned away from the mirror, unwilling to look herself in the eye. The length of time they’d been acquainted didn’t seem to matter. Not to her heart.
She turned the taps, letting the water get warm before stepping into the shower.
The masculine scent of his soap surrounded her.
She’d forgotten the soap Silas had bought for her.
It would only take a second to get it. Instead, she reached for the damp cake and lathered it between her hands.
The natural woodsy scent would always remind her of Eli.
It was easy to imagine it was his hands stroking her as she washed.
She closed her eyes, her breathing increased.
It would be easy to get lost in the fantasy.