Chapter 7
Annie
I look over at Thorne in disbelief.
“It’s not a castle.” He says with a sheepish smile.
“It may as well be. This place is huge. But it’s like a Hobbit home, it is beautiful.”
Thorne nods. “My brother built them. There are three up here, one for each of us. He has a knack for building and he has this thing about blending with nature and being eco-friendly and sustainable.”
“Are you close with your brothers?” I ask, curious, wanting to know everything about him.
He sets about making some hot chocolate. It is a little while before he answers.
“Our father was hard on us. We were brought up to be self-sufficient. It worked out fine for us. We all went into the army. After I’d done my time I worked as a bodyguard. I traveled the world. But at some point I wanted to come home to the mountains. Watch over my town.”
He hands me a mug of hot chocolate and I inhale the sweet scent and let the mug warm my hands.
Thorne watches me put the mug to my mouth and take a sip.
There is a hungry look in his eyes that makes me feel hot all over.
I am caught in his gaze. An electricity between us.
But he moves away to get the fire going.
“You must be glad your brothers are back in town.”
He nods.
I sit on the arm of the lounge, watching Thorne get the fire going.
He has shed his jacket and it’s easy to admire the strength in his back, shoulders, arms. The man has very nice arms. And I like how big his hands are.
I liked the feel of him holding my hand when he led me out of the town hall.
I like everything about him. And now, I feel privileged that he has opened up to me.
Let me inside his home. Is willing to talk about his brothers.
Looking around the space I take in all the books. There is a fishing pole and boots by the door. An armchair over by the window arranged to perfectly sit and take in the view. And a large wooden desk in the corner.
“What do you do up here, all by yourself?” I ask.
“There are always things to be done. Wood to be chopped, I have a few chickens and I have two donkeys for company. There is a cat somewhere too.”
“And over there?” I point to the desk, the papers and a computer.
He stands up, shrugs and looks down at his feet.
“Sometimes I write. I had this idea for a book based on a bodyguard.” He shrugs again.
It is odd to see such a big, strong man, one so sure of himself, a guy who can probably and has probably stormed through a hail of bullets. And here he is looking embarrassed because he writes.
His father certainly did some damage. I know the type.
Especially up here in the mountains. Men are to be strong.
Fearless. Have no emotions. It’s really not fair on these poor boys, taught to hide who they are, their passions, their feelings.
My heart aches a little for this big beast of a man.
So misunderstood his whole life. It makes me want to reach out and hug him.
Reach out and comfort him. Reach out and … .touch him. Be touched by him.
I look out the window, trying to cool my thoughts which have become quite lustful.
“Oh, it’s snowing.” I love the snow.
Thorne runs a frustrated hand through his hair. “It was crazy to bring you all the way up here. If we don’t leave now we could get snowed in.”
I look straight at him. “I want to stay.”
The words come out without thought, but it is true. There is nowhere I would rather be. Nobody I would rather be with. It’s been such a short time knowing him but I feel like we are connected. I do know him. And when he looks at me, I feel like he knows me too. The real me.
He looks at me for a moment. Weighing up his options.
“I can make us some food.”
I nod. But it’s not food I’m hungry for. I am nervous. It’s all well and good to decide I am going to be a new person, someone who says what she wants. But the doing is a different thing.
I go to stand next to him in the kitchen. Close enough to smell his scent. Soap. Deodorant. Wood fire and trees. My heart is racing. I feel hot all over. Filled with wanting something that I have only read about in books.
I reach for a plate. Our hands touch. We jump apart. His body held stiff. He looks at me and I can read the need in his eyes.
“Annie.” His voice is just a husky whisper.
“I know.”. Holding eye contact. I know what he is going to say. That we shouldn’t. We hardly know each other. He might say he is too old for me. All the reasons under the sky, but I don’t care. I want this. I want him. I feel it. I’ve felt it since the first moment we met.
His large hands on my hips. He pulls me close.
Lifting me up till I’m sitting on the kitchen benchtop.
One hand in my hair, his lips to mine. It’s a hungry kiss.
But it is what I want. Both of us cling to each other.
Pulling at each other’s clothes. His tongue strokes mine. I feel like I am floating.
He pulls away with a groan. His face shows his pain. “We shouldn’t do this.”
Braver than I have ever been. Filled with need and desire, I put my hands on his cheeks and force him to look at me. “I want this Thorne. Even if it is just one night. I want you kissing me. I want…everything.”
A heartbeat of silence. Another groan. And then he is kissing me again. A hot, hungry kiss that makes me want to cry out with need. The need to be closer to him. To be naked with him. To be held by him.