Chapter 14 #2
“Want to talk about it?” He moves his king into what looks like a vulnerable position. It’s just sitting there, exposed.
Bait. Definitely bait.
“Not particularly,” I hear myself say.
“Fair enough.” He doesn’t look offended. “But if you change your mind, I’m happy to listen.”
I study the board, trying to find the trap. There’s always a trap with Garrett. Nothing is ever as simple as it appears.
Then I see it. The king wasn’t vulnerable at all. It was perfectly protected by pieces I didn’t notice. My own king is now in checkmate.
“I won,” he says, but he’s not looking at the board. He’s looking at me. “And you let me.”
“I wasn’t letting you. You just outplayed me,” I insist.
“Mmm.” He doesn’t sound convinced and starts resetting the pieces. “You were thinking about your friends or whatever happened tonight.”
Garrett’s right, but I’m not going to admit it. He finishes setting up my side of the board, then starts on his own.
“Another game?” he asks.
“It’s almost dawn.”
“So?”
“Don’t you have Valorian business to attend to?” I remind him.
“Not until noon.” He finishes the arrangement then looks up at me. “Stay. Play with me.”
My time with him is nearly ending. Only three more days. Less than seventy-two hours until this contract expires and I return to being just another Grimsbane taking orders from the guild.
“One more game,” I concede.
“Good.” He makes his opening move then looks at me, his expression serious. “I want to ask you something and I need you to be honest with me.”
I’m always honest with him. As honest as I can be without revealing things that aren’t mine to share.
I nod.
He watches my face closely. “What will you do when the contract ends?”
The question presses down on me. I move a piece, buying time to think.
“I don’t know,” I say finally. “Take another assignment, probably.”
The guild will have work for me. They always do.
He tilts his head, studying me. His voice is patient but firm. “What if you had a different option?”
“Like what?” I raise an eyebrow.
“Staying.” He moves his prophet forward, the piece sliding across the board with a soft scrape. “Permanently. As my official guard.”
My heart leaps at the offer.
Yes, yes, stay. The answer screams in my head. I strangle it before it reaches my mouth. This hope is too dangerous to entertain.
“It’s not possible.”
“Why not?”
“Garrett.” I look at him directly. “That would cost a fortune. The guild doesn’t just let Grimsbanes walk away.”
“I know what it would cost.” He leans forward slightly, his eyes intense. “That isn’t the question. I’m asking if you’d want to stay and make this permanent. I know I want to.”
My heart is pounding.
“Why?” The question barely makes it past my throat.”Why would you want that?”
“Because I want you.”
The words are simple. Devastating.
“Garrett, I’m not—”
He pushes back from the table so fast the pieces nearly fall over.
In the next moment he is beside me, sitting on the edge of the table, invading my space.
His presence cuts off every thought I was trying to hold onto.
“You’ve seen what I am and you didn’t run.
You didn’t try to fix me or make me into something I’m not. ”
His hand comes up, fingers brushing my jaw.
“Do you know how rare that is?” he continues quietly. “Someone who sees all of you and stays anyway?”
I can’t breathe or think. His touch is burning through every defense I’ve carefully constructed.
“You don’t have to answer now,” he says. “We still have three more days. But think about it. Please.”
“The guild might not allow it. Buying out a Grimsbane contract isn’t simple. They could refuse, or demand prices even you can’t afford, or—”
“If I want to keep you, I will.” There’s absolute certainty in his voice. “My father is in the Aldarelf council. My family has resources and connections. If the guild wants to negotiate, we’ll negotiate. If they want a war over you, they’ll get one.”
The possessiveness should bother me. It should feel like another cage, another form of ownership. Instead, something fierce answers back in my own chest.
“Your move,” he says softly, still so close I can feel his breath.
I move a piece without looking at the board. I can’t look away from his face and the intensity in his eyes.
“What do you want, Wolf?”
You.
The answer screams in my head, but I can’t say it out loud.
I look at him properly. Light plays through his loose hair and turns it molten. His eyes are darker than usual, burning with intensity that makes my blood run hot. The curve of his mouth promises trouble.
Kitty was right about my type.
His thumb brushes across my cheekbone, testing boundaries, seeing what I’ll allow.
I should remind him that this ends badly no matter what we do. But I don’t pull away.
“Would you let me—” He stops and swallows hard. His hand moves to my wolf mask. The upper half that covers my eyes.
“May I?”
I tense immediately. The mask is protection and the last barrier between who I am and who he wants me to be.
I reach up and release the mechanism myself. Garrett lifts the mask away with careful fingers and sets it aside on the table next to the chess pieces.
The air feels cold against my exposed skin, making me feel vulnerable. His eyes trace my features like he’s memorizing them.
“Beautiful,” he murmurs. His mouth hovers dangerously close to mine.
I shake my head and push at his chest, trying to create distance. Getting involved like this will only make it hurt worse when it ends.
I need to go back to my room and remember that this is temporary. I’ll leave in three days and he’ll move on with his life and this will all be a memory. But when I try to stand, Garrett catches my hand.
“Don’t leave me,” he says quietly. His fingers wrap around my wrist tight enough to hurt.
I turn back to face him, and the look in his eyes makes my breath catch. The raw desire is written so clearly I can’t pretend not to see it.
Then he kisses me. His mouth crashes against mine, one hand cupping my jaw while the other slides to the back of my neck.
I don’t pull away.
Instead, I kiss him back with everything I have. My hands fist in his shirt, dragging him closer until there’s no space left between us. The kiss deepens, becoming something desperate and hungry like we’ve both been starving for this.
When his tongue traces my lower lip, I open for him.
The sound he makes goes straight to my balls. He pushes me backward until my shoulders hit the wall. The impact jolts through me but his mouth follows, swallowing whatever sound I might have made.
He presses against me, all heat and muscle and want. His thigh slots between mine and I feel every hard line of him. He braces his hand against the wall beside my head. The other tangles in my hair, gripping tight.
His mouth moves from my lips to my jaw, then down my throat. Teeth scrape over the column of my neck and I arch into the sensation.
“Tell me you don’t want this,” he says against my skin, voice rough and wrecked. “Tell me to stop.”
He pulls back just enough to look at me. His pupils are blown wide, swallowing the green.
Something fierce and triumphant flashes in his eyes when he sees whatever expression is on my face.
Then he’s kissing me again, harder this time.
I give as good as I get, hands sliding under his shirt to map the planes of his body.
His breath catches when my fingers skim over the dip of his hip just above his waist.
We break apart only to catch our breaths. His hand still buried in my hair, mine still under his shirt.
“Stay,” he breathes. “Don’t go back to your room. Stay with me tonight.”
His hands move to my leather suit before I can respond, fingers finding the laces. My heart hammers against my ribs. This is moving fast. I know where this is going and part of me wants it desperately. But I’ve never done this with anyone I actually care about.
Garrett pauses and stares at me. I freeze, not understanding what stopped him.
His expression darkens. “What happened to your throat?”
The bruises from Shade’s grip. Fuck. I forgot about them.
“Training accident.” I keep my voice flat.
“Bullshit.” His fingers ghost over the marks gently, tracing the shape of a hand. “Someone grabbed you.”
“It doesn’t matter.” I try to sound dismissive.
“It matters to me.” His eyes flash with something dangerous and cold. It reminds me of the version of him in the dungeon. “Someone hurt you. Who?”
“Garrett—”
“Wolf.” His voice drops. “Who did this to you?”
Someone who reminded me to watch my words.
Well, lesson learned. But I’m not going to tell Garrett that. Like hell I’m going to watch Garrett add Shade to his list of people who need to suffer.
“It was an accident,” I say firmly. “Drop it.”
His thumb traces one of the bruises, and I can see him losing it.
“I can’t.” His eyes meet mine, and they’re burning with fury. “Someone put their hands on you. Someone hurt what’s mine.”
Since when did I become his?
“I’m going to bed.” I push away from the wall, putting distance between us. “Forget about this. It’s handled.”
I turn toward the connecting door to my room. This conversation is over.
But I only make it three steps before he’s there. Moving faster than I expected. His hand catches my wrist and spins me back around.
The shift is instant and terrifying. This is the Garrett from the dungeon. The one who tortures information from prisoners. The one with dark, dangerous eyes that see violence as a solution.
“You’re not leaving until you tell me who touched you.” His voice is cold, controlled rage.
I try to pull free. “Let go.”
His grip tightens. “You think I’m just going to let you walk away without knowing who did this?”
“It’s none of your business—”
“The fuck it isn’t.” He crowds into my space, backing me toward the door.
“You need to calm down,” I snap, but he’s already pushing me through the door into my room.