Chapter 8
Chapter
Eight
Carina mumbled her protest as Marcus moved. “Don’t leave now.”
Her pillow chuckled, fueling instant indignation that he was laughing at her. When he kissed her and whispered, “Sleep, Little one. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Good,” she told him and squirmed to resettle. Squeezing her eyes shut, she drifted back to sleep.
The insistent morning light through her blinds woke Carina later. She threw an arm over her eyes. As her hand thumped something, she heard a masculine “Ow.”
Images of Marcus blossomed in her brain. How had she forgotten he was in her bed? Memories of his lovemaking flooded her mind. She wiggled closer to him, feeling happy and so satisfied. Could she wake up in his arms every morning?
When a random thought popped into her brain, Carina opened her eyes and turned slightly to look at the handsome man wrapped around her. “Sorry. Wait. Aren’t you supposed to combust in the sunlight?”
“A myth created by mortals to lessen human’s natural fear. Before you ask, vampires don’t sparkle either when it’s light outside.”
“Really? How does anyone know that you’re a vampire?” Carina asked.
“They don’t.”
“Have I met other vampires?”
“Probably.”
“Like everyone who works at Nightfall?” Carina probed.
“That’s their story to tell, Little girl. Not mine. Do you always wake up so curious?” he asked, arching an eyebrow with humor.
“If I say yes, does that mean you won’t be here tomorrow?” She tried to appear nonchalant while inside she had every finger and toe crossed.
“I plan to wrap myself around you every night. Tonight, I hoped you might like to see my house.”
“Really? You want me to spend the night at your place?” That was a big step commitment-wise.
“I plan for you to move in with me,” Marcus told her with no hesitation.
A thrill kindled inside her at his decisiveness. She didn’t doubt his intentions one iota. Marcus wasn’t playing around. He wanted her with him.
“You’re my Little girl. You need to play and be taken care of in your nursery.”
“I have a nursery?” Her brain cranked into overdrive as she replayed all those sweet and steamy scenes she’d read in age play books. The specialized room for adult Littles existed?
“The beginning of a nursery exists in my home. We need to make it yours,” Marcus said, studying her face.
“Oh, I probably look awful.” Carina pulled the covers up to hide partially behind them.
He tugged the comforter off and leaned forward to kiss her hard.
When he lifted his lips from hers, Carina took a shaky breath.
His every caress was magical. An image of the flash of his long white teeth in the early hours of the night rebounded in her mind.
Carina sneaked a hand up to explore the spot where he’d bitten her.
Her finger traced the small depressions in her skin, and she shivered as the memory bounced back into her mind.
“Does it hurt, Little one?” he asked, instantly concerned. He pulled her hand away to check.
“No, it’s so sensitive. If I touch it, I remember….”
“Ah,” he said as if he understood. “Pleasure floods your senses?”
“Is that normal?”
“Between mates, yes,” Marcus told her.
“Have you had many mates?”
“No, Little one. Only one mate exists for me. I have searched for many years to find you.”
“But you’ve been alive for—forever!” she finished.
“A long time. Yes, Carina. You were worth the wait.”
Delighted by that statement but sorry he’d been alone for so long, Carina stroked a hand over his cheek. “I’m glad you found me. What if I hadn’t come to Nightfall?”
“Who knows what fate would have had in store for us. Maybe a chance meeting at the gas station. Perhaps we would have missed each other at every turn. Let’s not dwell on that. A celebration is in order.”
“I’m off on the weekends. Maybe we could spend the day together?”
“I would like that. Do you wish to come to Nightfall tonight?” Marcus asked.
Remembering the long line and how early she’d gotten there, Carina wrinkled her nose. “I don’t want to waste the whole day with you. I got to Nightfall about three yesterday. Karla and I made a party out of it. Oh, Karla! I didn’t check that she got into her apartment safely.”
Carina launched herself toward the side of the bed and jerked to a stop when Marcus looped a restraining arm around her waist.
“Oof! I need to message her,” Carina protested, trying to peel his arm off and making absolutely no progress in freeing herself.
“She is fine. I made sure of that last night.”
“Wait. What?”
“Saya and another Nightfall security member shadowed each of you home. Karla arrived home safely.”
“You had me followed?”
“Yes. When the most precious person you’ve ever met walks into your life, you take care of her.”
“And her friends?”
“In this case, yes.”
She stared at him for a minute, digesting that information. Carina didn’t like the thought of being followed, but his concern was incredibly romantic in a stalkerish way. “You’re not going to keep track of me all the time, are you?”
Marcus shook his head.
“Oh, okay. Only at night when there might be trouble in the darkness?”
“Close to that, yes.”
She tilted her head to glance up at him. Reading Marcus’s face was impossible. He would be the best poker player.
“You will never need to stand in line again, Carina. You have an automatic invitation to enter at any time.”
“Really? Because I’m dating a super-hot security guy? I don’t want you to get in trouble with your boss.”
“Leave him to me, Little girl. And we’re not dating.”
Wait. He didn’t want to be her boyfriend? Had she totally misread Marcus? She tested the waters by suggesting, “I’m seeing a super-hot security guy?”
“You belong to me, Carina. You are my mate. That’s way past dating,” he said in a tone that brooked no argument.
Carina’s shoulders relaxed down into place. She hadn’t misunderstood his intentions. “Belong is kind of strong, isn’t it?” While she was reassured, that word bothered her.
“No.”
His blunt answer made her smile. Carina’s heart skipped a beat. No one had ever claimed her. She could handle that it was a bit cavemannish. He was really old.
“Not that ancient, Little girl.”
Oops. Carina’s stomach growled noisily, saving her. “How about if I make some breakfast? Every week either Saturday or Sunday is my pancake day.”
“Pancakes? I would love to create a breakfast treat for you, Carina.”
“Oh, you don’t have to prepare them,” she assured him quickly.
“Daddy will always cook, Carina. If Saturday or Sunday is pancake day, do the other days have themes?”
She gave up on the fixing debate to focus on his question.
Carina would wrestle with him over that when they got into the kitchen.
“Only my weekends off have themes. Every other day, I settle for grabbing something quick for meals. Sunday is for omelets if I had pancakes on Saturday. I swap between the two on the weekend days.”
“Delicious concoctions to look forward to. I’m good at whipping eggs and naughty Little girl’s bottoms.” He stroked his hand down to pat her buttocks gently. “Perhaps a demonstration is in order if you argue with me making pancakes.”
“You don’t compromise, do you?”
“No, remember I waited eons to find you, mate.”
“Oh, yeah.” Carina was quiet for a moment before she asked, “You didn’t have sex for all that time?”
“I will not lie to you, Carina. I had lovers over the years. Nothing serious. No one long term.”
“I’m glad. Being alone for years would be awful. Now, however, I don’t share,” she said firmly, studying him sternly.
“Nor do I, Little girl.”
One look at his face convinced her that messing around on Marcus would not be wise. Not that she could imagine that. Marcus felt like part of her already. How could anyone be sexier or more attractive than he was? Marcus was the total package.
She squeezed her legs together as that word package took on a secondary meaning in a flashback to his hefty proportions. Carina winced slightly as her actions triggered soreness from their lovemaking.
“Bath time for you, Little girl. Then pancakes.”
He had everything lined out for her. Carina hated making decisions. Having Marcus seize control was amazing. “And afterward.…”
“That’s a surprise.” Marcus rolled out of bed and scooped her up in his arms. In the bathroom, he lowered her feet to the ground. “Go potty.”
Carina scurried to the enclosed toilet area, completely embarrassed by his proximity during the intimate act. Thank goodness she could close the door. When she sat down, her bladder wouldn’t cooperate until water cascaded from the faucet into the tub, providing noise to hide her peeing.
Carina covered her face with her hands, laughing at herself. Marcus’s face had rubbed over her pussy last night, and she couldn’t let him hear her? How seriously screwed up was that?
As if he understood her inner struggle, a vision popped into her mind from Marcus. As if she were watching a movie, Carina saw him lift her hips onto the padded tabletop she laid on. He placed a thick, white item underneath her before lowering her bottom to thread the other half between her legs.
A diaper? He wanted to put her in a diaper? Heat flashed through her as she fantasized about him caring for her so intimately. Of course, the Littles in the books she’d found sometimes were put in diapers, but fiction and reality seemed far away. Did he really want her to wear one?
I want everything for you.
It’s not nice to read my mind. She finished and rose to open the door. Carina glared at him. “Stop it.”
“You’re screaming thoughts at me, Carina. I cannot help but hear them. When your emotions are high, anger, fear, arousal, excitement, you broadcast those feelings. That is not a bad thing. How easily you mentally project your emotions to me proves how deep our connection is.”
“But you know everything. That’s embarrassing.”
“Not to me. I’m enjoying it,” Marcus said, moving closer to wrap his arms around her. After hugging her tightly, he guided her to the tub and helped Carina step in.