Chapter 46
Chapter Forty-Six
ANDROS
Ijerk the knot in my tie higher and curse the fact that I’m still hard as a rock. Even after taking care of myself in the shower this morning, again. Looking in the mirror, I snarl when I see the crumpled mess around my neck and strip off the tie, throwing it on the bed with the other two.
“Fuck it,” I mutter. Grabbing my laptop bag, I storm out of my bedroom and down the hall to the kitchen, where I find the two of them kissing. “Are you ready?”
She pulls her lips from Macklin’s and grabs her things. “Let’s go.”
Dressed in a pink shirt dress that swirls around her long legs, she brushes past me, and I close my eyes as her scent fills my senses.
A mixture of Macklin and her, the sweet notes of her vanilla body lotion, and the tangy richness of her blood has my incisors lengthening.
I turn my face away, trying to escape it.
Normally, a walk to work would clear my head, but with all the snow on the ground, I’ve been driving, not wanting her to get cold.
I help her slip on her coat in the elevator, and when we get out, I open the passenger door.
Her coat falls open, and her skirt rides up as she gets in, giving me a glimpse of her inner thighs.
Immediately, my mind pictures them wrapped around Macklin’s head as her body moves against his tongue. I slam the door shut.
At work, I leave her at the elevator and hide in my office for the first couple of hours. My phone chimes, reminding me of my upcoming meeting, and I mentally go over my notes as I stride out, but I’m not twenty feet down the hall when I hear her.
“I’m sorry, Aaron, but I’m not coming to happy hour tonight. I’d rather wait for Teague so he can go with me,” Charli says, and I grit my teeth.
Aaron scoffs. “Teague’s not going to care. We have an open policy when it comes to socializing.”
“It has nothing to do with the policy. He’s my mate. I want him there,” Charli tells Aaron.
He laughs. “Like the whole town doesn’t know he’s your mate after he and Macklin put those heads on a pole. But I’m sure he’d be fine with you coming to happy hour. Everyone’s excited about getting to know you.”
Rounding the corner, I see him holding her elbow, his head bent close to hers, and I see red. Literally. Snarling, I stare at the little shit. “Release my mate.”
Charli raises a delicate brow and rolls her eyes. “Now you want to declare it? Don’t bother.” She jerks her elbow from Aaron. “Don’t touch me. I said no, and I meant it.” She stalks off, muttering under her breath about stupid men.
Aaron turns, and I grab him by the collar and jerk him toward me. “If you ever touch her again, it will be the last thing you do.” I release him, and he scurries away.
When I get to her and Teague’s office, I shut the door and lock it.
“Not this again,” she snaps, her green eyes flashing with ire. “You don’t have to worry. I’m not going to happy hour.”
I stalk toward her, and she backs up into the desk. “You have thirty seconds to take off your panties, or I’m ripping them off.”
Her jaw drops. “Excuse me?”
“Twenty seconds.” I unbuckle my belt and unzip my pants. “I can’t get the image of you from last night out of my mind. Your beautiful face flushed with pleasure. The freedom you felt to explore something new.” I lean in close. “I need you.”
Pupils blown, she raises her dress and hooks her fingers in the waistband of her panties, then strips them off and tosses them on her desk.
“Turn around and place your hands on the desk,” I order, slipping my cock free.
She turns and thrusts her hips out, and I exhale, pull my glove off, and shove it in my pocket. Then I glide my hand over the curve of her taut ass and between her legs.
“So fucking wet. You liked me watching you with Macklin last night, didn’t you?”
She presses into my hand, soaking it in seconds. “Yes.”
Replacing my hand with my cock, I slide it across her slit from top to bottom, and her breathing picks up. “Tell me what you want. I want to hear the words spill from your sweet, innocent lips.”
“You. I want you,” she gasps, but I’m not willing to let her off the hook so easily.
“Hmm, I’m going to need you to be a little more explicit,” I demand, slipping the tip in, then pulling out.
“I…I want you to…fuck me. Hard. Fast.” Hesitating for a second, she finally spits them all out.
“And is that all you want?” I bend over and whisper in her ear, pushing in about an inch. She squirms beneath me, and I lightly spank her.
She gasps and pushes back, but I grip her hips, holding her in place.
“No,” she moans.
I slide in another inch. “What else do you want?”
“I want you to take my blood,” she whispers.
I smile and slam into her. This is going to be quick for both of us.
Closing my eyes at the feel of her surrounding me, I pump in and out, hard and fast like she wants, until I feel the little tremors start.
Then I pull her body up and sink my teeth into her neck, groaning as she clenches my cock over and over.
I slow but continue to slide in and out, spilling my own release in her sweet, trembling body a few minutes later.
I lick her neck, closing the punctures, and hold her in my arms. “I hated seeing his hands on you. Don’t let him touch you again. Or anyone, for that matter, except Macklin or Teague.”
“I don’t know. Might be worth it,” she teases, leaning back in my arms.
The urge to ask her to stay with me instead of Macklin is on the tip of my tongue, but I don’t know if her sleeping with me, holding me, will trigger the past.
“What is it?” she asks, placing her hand on mine.
I freeze. Her hand is covering my bare hand.
In broad daylight. My scars shining silver across the puckered skin.
I tense, slip my hand from hers, and pull out of her body.
Putting my back to her, I yank on my glove and tuck my cock into my pants.
I swivel back around a minute later and stare at her flushed face.
She swipes her panties off the desk. “You’re giving me whiplash with the hot and cold. I’m going to clean up.”
I catch her wrist and pull her back into my arms. “I’m sorry. I realized my glove was off, and I reacted without thinking.” The words are out before I have a chance to think about them, but I can’t keep hiding from her.
She lifts her face to mine. “Thank you for telling me.”
“Bonded or not, you’re mine.”
Capturing her lips, I kiss her like I’ve wanted to every night since she gave me her blood. Not with lust or need, but with a glimmer of hope for a future I don’t dare believe in. Releasing her, I stride out the door, my hunger sated but my thoughts in turmoil.
At the end of the day, I’m staring at the selection in front of me, trying to picture each one on her delectable body.
Satin. Lace. Cotton. Her underwear is mostly serviceable cotton, but I want her to have options that make her feel incredible.
I click on several sets of cheeky hipsters, bikinis, and thongs, all with matching bras.
Then I toss in a couple pairs of pajamas and a variety of sexy nightgowns, teddies, and two-piece sets.
Wanting to pick them up tonight, I put a rush on them.
Macklin’s text says dinner will be ready in an hour. I let him know I have to run an errand and will drop her off in ten. Then I gather my things and walk down the hall to her office, where she’s bent over her computer.
“Macklin’s fixing dinner. I’m going to drop you off and run an errand,” I tell her.
She blushes when her gaze finds mine. Something I find utterly delightful.
She shuts down her computer and grabs her things. When she gets to me, she slides her hand into my gloved one, and I look down in surprise.
Macklin’s standing outside waiting for her when I pull up.
As soon as she’s safely in the building, I head to the store to pick up her gifts.
The retail clerk’s eyes widen when she sees it’s me, and I know speculation is going to be rampant tomorrow.
Between Aaron and this clerk, the whole town will know I’m falling for her before noon, I’m sure.
I almost choke when I step into our place and see Macklin walking around without a shirt. Something he hasn’t done in a few hundred years. He hates anyone seeing his scars.
Charli’s on the couch, staring at him with lust in her eyes. As if she doesn’t see them. I stare at her expression, and I suddenly know what I need to do.
“Here,” I tell her, handing over the bags and boxes tied with pink satin.
She shakes her head. “I have plenty of clothes.”
“They’re not clothes,” I retort. Not technically.
She stares at me for a long minute, then reluctantly reaches for them. When she peels back the tissue paper and sees the delicate items, she runs a finger along the silk and lace. “They’re gorgeous.”
Macklin walks over and peeks into the bag. “Hmm, I approve, but if you want to keep wearing my shirts or nothing at all, that’s okay too.”
She opens the next box with the pajamas, and her smile widens. “I’ve been wanting some new ones.” She pales when she pulls out a silk camisole with matching shorts. “I don’t like to bare my shoulders. Can you return these?”
Macklin folds his arms across his chest. “Keep them. You never know when you might change your mind. Look at me. Walking around half naked, cooking you dinner. Scars out. Guns out.”
Charli snorts and shakes her head, but I can see her considering it. “Thank you, Andros. Everything is beautiful.” She reaches for me, and I automatically evade her touch. “Does it bother you when I touch you?”
“It bothers me when anyone touches me,” I calmly state, though I’m nervous as hell. “Mostly on my upper body.” Where that bastard liked to mark me the most. “I can hold you in my arms, but having yours around me and not reacting means I’m probably dying.”
“Okay, but I’m going to need a little more info,” she says, and I stiffen, waiting for her to ask what happened. “Holding your hand. Yes or no.”
I blink and think about it. “Yes, with the glove. Okay, in the dark without the glove.”
Her light green eyes twinkle. “Upper half of your body is off limits. But I can kiss you, so…what about sitting on your face? Yes or no?”
“I’ll stick to watching. I love tasting you, but I prefer more control of the situation.”
She purses her lips. “What about the lower half of your body? Holding your cock seems to be fine. Is that in the light or dark?”
My voice is husky when I answer. “Anywhere. Everywhere.”
“Legs? Butt? All the rest?”
I chuckle. “Fine.”
She leans in and whispers, “Okay, but here’s the most important question. Can I run my fingers through your hair?”
The memory of lying on the hard pavement, staring up into her worried green eyes as my body started to fail and feeling her slim fingers stroking my hair was one of the most soothing things I’ve ever felt. And I realize she’s done it several times since, and it never triggered me.
“Definitely.”
She takes a deep breath. “I don’t like my bare shoulders or back touched. Through clothing is fine, though. So I can live with your rules if you can live with mine.”
I expel a relieved breath and nod, but I can’t help but yearn for more. A night in my bed. Her arms wrapped around me as I sink into her.