Chapter 30
One hour later, Blade met Scotty at the back door, his stomach in knots, his palms sweating.
He couldn’t remember being this nervous in his entire life.
To be fair, though, the sexual suppressant left him strung out and shaky, which made his anxiety worse.
He was at the very limits of the suppressant’s effectiveness, and if not for Scotty, he’d be forced to summon Masumi in the next couple of hours.
With any luck, after tonight, he’d never have to hunt for sex partners or summon Masumi again. He’d be bonded with Scotty and wouldn’t so much as think about another female for the rest of his life.
Scotty stepped inside, looking incredible in a black miniskirt, a green-and-black-striped tank top, and high-heeled boots that made her muscular calves into art.
She usually wore her fiery mane in a ponytail, but now, her shiny waves flowed down around her shoulders as if begging for him to take them in his fist.
He’d dressed up too, just a little. Instead of tactical pants, jeans, or leather pants, he’d put on black slacks, the ones he’d worn to his mother’s birthday party a few months ago.
He’d been able to remove the bloodstains from his beatdown with Stryke, at least. Not so with the shirt he’d worn.
So, tonight, he’d thrown on a new one he’d purchased…
burgundy, Scotty’s favorite color, but one she swore she couldn’t wear because her coloring was wrong.
Whatever that meant. She looked good in any color. And in nothing at all.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey.” She fidgeted as he closed the door, messing with her fingernails and playing with her hair. She was about as anxious as he’d ever seen her. Join the club. “Where’s Mace?”
“Come on.” Blade took her hand, giving it a comforting squeeze as he led her to the staircase. “Mace will join us in a few minutes.”
His heart pounded as they climbed the stairs, but at the mezzanine at the top, instead of taking a left toward his and Mace’s rooms, he took a right. Scotty gave him a confused glance, but it wasn’t until he opened the door to one of the spare suites that she finally asked a question.
“What’s going on?” She stepped inside the room, lit by candles for a soft glow. Soothing music played in the background, and on the table, a bottle of champagne chilled in a bucket of ice. Three glasses sat nearby.
Blade ignored her question as he popped the champagne cork and poured two glasses.
“Blade?” She narrowed her eyes at him. “You didn’t murder Mace or chain him up or anything, right?”
Laughing, he handed her a glass. “He’s in his room, and no, he isn’t duct-taped to a chair. We agreed to do this in a neutral place, and he wanted us to have some time alone.”
“Really? Why?”
Blade had asked Mace the same thing when he’d brought it up. Mace’s answer had only reinforced Blade’s love and respect for the guy. Truly, if fate chose Mace, Blade wouldn’t question it. He’d be wrecked, for sure. But he would also know that Scotty was with a male she deserved.
“Because we didn’t get that in Alaska,” Blade replied. “I didn’t get the chance to date and seduce you the way you deserved.” He clinked his glass against hers. “So, this is me seducing you.”
Flares of pink spread across her cheeks, and her lashes fluttered, making soft shadows play under her eyes as she glanced, almost shyly, down at her glass. “You don’t have to do that, you know.”
Gods, he wanted to wrap her in his arms and protect her from everything. She might be brash, hardcore, and as tough as a lava beast’s scales in a fight, but she was utterly defenseless in matters of relationships.
“Yeah, I do.” There was a humiliating hitch in his voice, but he had more important things to worry about. “I might not ever be able to do it again.”
The reminder of how much was riding on this night threatened to bring him to his knees, but he put his meltdown on hold because nothing was going to ruin this. Nothing.
Her hand shook as she took a delicate sip of her bubbly, leaving a single drop on her bottom lip.
Slowly, because she looked like she was ready to bolt, he reached out and caught the sparkly drop with his thumb.
Her lids flicked up in surprise as he took her glass, set it and his down, and swept her into his arms. Her soft, feminine gasp hit him in the heart as he pulled her to the center of the room, which he and Mace had turned into a dance floor.
“What are we doing?” Scotty looked up at him with big, beautiful eyes that he could peer into for the rest of his life.
He moved against her, easing her into a slow sway to the rhythm of the music. “Did you know I like dancing?”
Those gorgeous eyes flared. “I know everything about you, and somehow, I didn’t know that.”
Her lips, still damp from the champagne, drew his gaze. He was parched, his body wrung out from days of injections, and he was tired of behaving. Of being a gentleman. But at the same time, Scotty was mortal now, and no matter how desperate he was to have her, he needed to stay in control.
It wouldn’t be easy. Something inside him wanted to fight for what it wanted. It recognized his mate, and it wanted her with a savage ferocity that borderline frightened him. Having grown up in the human realm, he’d muffled his baser self and rarely felt like the demon he was.
Now, the demon wanted out, and it wanted him to claim her. Quickly, before Mace got in the way.
He growled softly, a warning to himself. Keep that demon restrained.
Then, slowly, so slowly, he lowered his head and kissed her, a light, controlled brush of the lips, but it ramped up his libido faster than if she’d been naked.
“It’s my little secret.” So secret, in fact, that he only practiced with Masumi.
“I love that about you,” she whispered against his lips. “Show me more.”
He’d show her anything she asked for. He’d crack his chest open and show her his heart if that’s what she wanted.
He twirled her around the room, their feet moving in sync as he held her close, his eyes locked on hers. She caught on quickly, and by the third song, they danced as if they’d been doing it forever.
They swung past the table, and without breaking stride, he swept up their glasses.
“To the future,” he murmured, tapping his glass against hers.
Take her. Bond with her now!
The primal need to make her his nearly made him stumble. He’d been hard from the moment she walked through the door, but now, his cock ached where it was pinned between their bodies but still not close enough to her.
As much as he didn’t want his private time with Scotty to end, if Mace didn’t get here soon—
There was a light tap at the door, and Blade was torn between being relieved and disappointed.
“Come in,” she called out, and Blade reluctantly pulled away from her.
As she greeted Mace, Blade poured another glass of champagne.
“Thanks, man.” Mace took the flute, looking uncomfortable as hell in gray slacks and an untucked, black button-down. Blade had always liked dressing up, but Mace was a jeans-and-T-shirt guy to the bone.
The music became unnaturally loud as they stood there, all kinds of awkwardness winging between them. Scotty fidgeted with her glass, Mace drained his, and Blade just concentrated on the growing need throbbing in his groin.
“Is this weird?” Mace asked. “Because it feels weird.”
Scotty laughed, though not a nervous laugh. It was genuine delight, and whatever anxiety Blade had felt for the last hour melted away.
“If it didn’t feel weird,” she said, “that would be weird.” Boldly, she set down her glass and swung around to them. “Do you guys remember what Dad taught us about handling an awkward situation?”
“Either extract yourself from it…” Blade began.
“…or confront it and take control before it gets out of control,” Mace finished. “Also, bringing up your murder-machine of a father at this exact moment is not the sexy flex you might have been going for.”
She laughed again, and Blade revised his earlier thought about her being defenseless when it came to relationships. She’d just grabbed the reins of this one, and Blade would let her lead him anywhere.
“So, let’s confront this,” she said. “Battle plan. First, I take off Blade’s clothes. Then I take off Mace’s.” Crossing her arms over her chest, she looked at them in turn, practically daring them to argue. No, ma’am, that wasn’t going to happen. “Then you both strip me.”
Blade’s mouth went so dry he splashed more champagne into his glass and chugged it. “Then what?” he croaked.
“I’m guessing we’ll have figured it out by then.” Scotty came to him, her hips swinging, her hard nipples pressing against her top, and Blade was practically panting by the time she stopped in front of him and started on his shirt buttons.
He kicked off his shoes as she slid his shirt off his shoulders, her soft hands leaving tingles wherever they brushed his hypersensitive skin.
When she got to his pants, a tremor of anticipation went through him, and he hissed when her knuckles brushed his shaft as she shoved the slacks and his boxers down his hips.
Slowly, she went down to her knees in front of him, and he was pretty sure the brush of her cheek against his cock on her way down was intentional.
Clenching his fists at his sides, he waited for her to finish with his pants and socks.
As she returned to her feet, her cheek caressed him again, and he had to bite back a groan of pure, hot lust.
Then, with a flirty grin, she repeated the ritual with Mace.
Amazingly, Blade didn’t feel even a shred of jealousy, not even when his inner demon demanded that he flip up her skirt and take her when she knelt to remove Mace’s pants.
Patience. It’ll be worth waiting for.
But his patience had a limit, and he reached it the moment she was back on her feet.