Chapter 4
four
ELI
I paced the hallway, hands clenched into fists as I fought the urge to knock again.
Or break the damn door down.
Every instinct I possessed told me I needed her in my arms.
But she was pissed with me, and for a good reason.
I was kind of pissed at me too.
I’d known the woman was mine since the first moment I saw her. Something about her had felt familiar. Comfortable, too. I loved her fire, and the way she loved arguing with me.
But a mate bond hadn’t ignited.
I kept waiting for it to happen every time we ran into each other. Every brush of the hand, every time I teased her, every time she argued with me. I’d started trying to goad her by talking to other women, and that shit hadn’t even worked.
It had been two years of waiting.
Wanting.
Needing.
And my inability to let her go home with another guy was what had finally set off the bond.
I’d assumed she would change her mind about having sex when we got to her place.
I’d figured she hated me too much.
But she hadn’t.
And I wasn’t going to turn down the woman I’d been obsessed with for so damn long. Even if I couldn’t have her as my mate, I still wanted her.
If I’d known it was finally going to set off the bond, I would’ve done things differently.
Much differently.
Or… maybe I wouldn’t have.
I didn’t have a damn clue.
All I knew was that Vi was my mate, for better or worse.
And I was obviously aiming for better .
Her thoughts crossed through my mind every minute or so, which gave me enough control of myself to stay firmly on my side of the bathroom door.
“There’s no way out.”
“He’ll probably want to live with me.”
“I’ll convince him. I will.”
“Maybe I can bribe him with cupcakes.”
My position only got more dire the longer I let her simmer, but breaking the door down would be a violation of her privacy. And considering what had happened earlier, giving her space seemed important.
So, I’d stay away as long as I could manage.
“I’ll just figure it out tomorrow,” she finally thought.
The shower turned off, and my relief was thick.
I leaned up against the wall across from the door, trying to hide how mentally fucked I was from her absence.
Vi stepped out a moment later, her body wrapped in a gray towel. The damp strands of her long, blonde hair clung to her shoulders, drawing my eyes to her breasts.
Then again, they would’ve gone there anyway.
Her tits were perfect.
“I’m going to bed,” she said, stepping past me sideways so her body didn’t brush against mine. “We can talk in the morning. Go home, or sleep on the couch.”
I wouldn’t fit on her couch, but I wasn’t going to bring that up.
She’d offered to let me stay, in a roundabout way, and I was going to take full advantage of that.
Vi shut her bedroom door behind her, and my shoulders immediately tightened.
That was way too much space between us for my comfort.
I’d be fine, though.
I grabbed a pillow off the couch, tossed it to the floor in front of her door, and plopped down with it.
I wouldn’t be getting any sleep while we were apart, but I’d survive the wait if it made things just a little easier for Vi.
And in the morning, we’d figure our shit out.