Spurn (22 page)

“I’m more than back, Red.” His words came out of the darkness
from the rear of my room. “I’m waiting patiently to kiss my beautiful mate.”

Jumping out of bed, I tripped over before throwing myself into his arms.

“Where the hell have you been?” I demanded, my fear and anger clipping the words short.

“I missed you too
,” he said, sounding happier than usual, “and thank you for wearing such outstanding attire.”

I blushed,
wishing Walkers didn’t have such good night vision. I was in a little singlet and matching shortie shorts. No bra, of course, just the inbuilt one already in the top. Pulling back, I crossed my arms over my chest.

“What happened with your father?” I asked.

“I don’t want to talk about that.” He took a step closer, devouring me with his eyes.

I shivered.

He smiled in a slow curve. I suddenly noticed where we were standing and a thought burst free.

“You remember that day you ran into me
, when I’d just ... uh, gotten out of the shower?”

A low rumble emanated
from his chest. “It’s indelibly imprinted on my mind.”

I snorted. “Indelibly imprinted
... seriously?”

He usually had a handle on sounding young
, but occasionally his age shone through. He ignored my mocking and raised his eyebrow.

“What were you doing
in my room?” I blurted out.

He didn
’t answer immediately. I could almost feel him weighing and judging what to say. Finally he met my gaze.

“I don’t know how to
answer; I’m not actually sure what happened. I was heading in the opposite direction, to grab some plans from Josian’s study, when I found my legs moving.” He shook his head. “Before I knew it, I was standing in your room.”

I blushed and
chuckled. “I’ll bet you didn’t expect that exact situation.”

He refrained from laughing,
although his eyes sparkled. “Oh, it far outweighed any expectations I could ever have had.” He leaned in very close to me; I could feel the hairs on my entire body prickle as bumps crossed my skin. “Next time I get you naked, though, I won’t leave ... You have no idea how hard it was the first time.”

“
Uh, you had me naked in the bath just the other day.”

He shook his head. “That doesn’t count, sweetheart. You needed care and love. As your mate
, I will always be what you need.”

“Sometimes it sucks
, you know,” I blurted again.

He stilled, w
aiting for my next unfiltered gem of wisdom.

“You want me because of some pre-destined mating bond. It wouldn’t matter what I looked like or if I was s
hallow and mean. You would still want me.”

His expression alternated between frustration and resignation
.

“Red, I know you don’t see yourself clear
ly, and that’s okay. I see more than you could imagine.” His eyes captured me. “We would always have had this attraction and bond. It’s the way mating works; you wouldn’t be my other half unless we had the foundation of a perfection bond.” His eyes darkened. “But let’s get something straight. I would want you no matter what. You are powerful and smart, and unusual enough that you would have always caught my attention. You intrigue me, entice me and, damn it, Abigail – you are hot. I mean so hot that any man would be insane not to want you.”

H
is eyes trailed over me, slowly. My knees buckled slightly. But I caught myself.

I managed to take a shuddering breath, and then decided what the hell
; you only live once. With a running jump I again threw myself at Brace, wrapping my legs around him. Lucky he was a big man. He caught me no problem and without pause we were kissing. Long, dragging, soul-burning kisses. If his expression earlier had been devouring, he now kissed me as if he needed to consume every part of my soul. With a gasp of breath I pulled back from his mouth. I closed my eyes as he started to press gentle little butterfly kisses all over my face. I could feel his adoration in every touch, every light caress.

T
hrough our bond he glowed, our golden auras flickering brightly. Opening my eyes, I reached down to press the clasp on my necklace, needing to see his marks, needing them joined to mine. He pulled back at that point, halting my hand.

“Not here,
sweetheart. We don’t know what will happen, and your father will be in your room killing me quicker than you know.”

As I dropped my hand h
is lips found mine again. I opened my mouth, taking his tongue boldly, drinking in everything that was Brace. I threaded my fingers through the silky strands of hair at the back of his head. Never lifting his face from mine he directed us toward my bed. As my legs dropped down, the back of my knees hit the edge. He lowered me, pausing to stare as I lay disheveled on my covers.

There
was this endless depth of emotion in his eyes. I wanted desperately to seek his thoughts, but I refrained. Instead, I scooted along the cool surface until my back hit the headboard, my eyes staying locked on his face. I would never have enough of his soul-stealing beauty; he was pure perfection.

I almost lost my breath as he pulled his shirt over his head
, leaving just his black pants on. I was sensually assaulted by expanses of tanned skin stretched tightly over muscles. He crawled onto the end of the bed like a stalking panther, moving on all fours until he reached me. I shuddered in some air. Just watching him approach was enough to have ripples spreading through my body.

Lift
ing one hand, he cupped my face. I lay back and he followed over the top of me. But instead of it making me feel claustrophobic, crowded by his huge body, I felt small and feminine. I reached up to wrap my hands around his muscled arms, pulling him down so I could cushion his weight. I loved the feel of his body pressed against my own, but for some reason I couldn’t keep still. My lower body continued to shift and move over the bed. There were just too many sensations.

“You are going to kill me
,” he said, pulling back slightly.

Our heavy breathing intermingled.

“You seem awfully confident in my self-control. Don’t test me too much; we’re still under your father’s roof.”

“What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him
,” I said, running my hands along his strong back. I needed him closer.

“Red
,” he held himself up so he could stare into my face, “no matter what happens over the next few months, finding you has been the best part of my very long life.”

His melted chocolate
eyes were serious. He’d stopped kissing me; he wanted me to focus. I attempted to pry more information from his mind, but he had the bond shut down.

“You aren’t going anywhere
,” I finally said – the only scenario I would allow to cross my mind. “I’ve made the decision to keep you. So you’re just going to have to stick around.”

“You
’ve decided to keep me.” He grinned. “I like that.”

He pressed his
lips to mine again, our kisses more intense than before. I groaned as unfelt sensations shot through me. Why had I wasted so much time not kissing him? I continued to run my hands over his soft skin. I couldn’t stop myself from touching him; it was addictive. I paused briefly as I noticed some slight puckering ridges along his chest; I’d never seen any scars.

He distracted me by shifting his hand to rest on my stomach.
My muscles jumped under the sensation, the rough texture creating the most exquisite feeling. He moved slowly, so slow it was surely registered as a form of torture, running his hand up my back until he gripped the nape of my neck. He then shifted his other hand over my stomach, moving upwards until he rested at the underside of my inbuilt bra. His fingers skimmed along the edges.

Someone needed to open a window. It was getting hot in here.
Brace’s hand froze at the sound of a loud knock. Who the hell was knocking on my door in the middle of the night?

“Are you going to answer that, Red?” Brace’s voice was strained.

I shifted
against him. His legs were plastered to mine, and I was having trouble concentrating.

“Um
... if ... I ig ...” I lost concentration for a minute. His hand was doing delicious things under my shirt. “If I ignore it, will they go away?” I ended breathlessly.

“No, Aribella, you and Brace need to get downstairs now
.” Josian’s voice was clear through my door.

“Nothing wrong with his hearing
,” I muttered.

In that moment I was too hot and bothered to even feel embarrassed at being busted
.

Neither of us moved
. Even if I’d wanted to move, my muscles wouldn’t respond.

“How dangerous is he
; you know, if we ignore that request and stay here?” I would have no problem taking on my father to stay in Brace’s arms, close enough to see every facet of brown in his eyes.

He
gave a short laugh. “We need to get downstairs.”

I sighed as we untangled ourselves.
I had a sneaking suspicion that this interrupting was going to be a common occurrence.

Brace
rolled over before groaning.

“What?” I said
, facing him.

“You really need to discuss
our situation with your laluna. I’m starting to feel like the third wheel.” He reached behind his head to pull free my blue stone.

It was quite humorous how many times the laluna appeared in my room
, on my pillows generally, no matter where I took it for safe-keeping. Josian seemed to think we were cosmically connected, and that it would always come for me.

“Leave it alone. It’s my little friend
, and I’ve grown fond of its blue beauty.”

Brace
stood, smiling down at me.

“I can’t blame the laluna ... you are quite lovable, Abigail.”

Tears flicked at my eyes as his words hit my heart
, close to that small place inside that always felt alone and abandoned. I changed the subject before I said something stupid and sentimental.

“
You should go down now. I’ll throw on some appropriate clothes.” I cleared my throat as I attempted to straighten myself.

He picked up his shirt from the floor
, and shrugged it over his head. It was definitely a shame to cover all that. Then with one last look that was hot enough to melt bones, he left the room.

I stepped into my bathroom to splash some water on my
overheated face. Staring into the mirror, I could see I looked a little off. My emerald eyes were wide and shiny, cheeks flushed, red curls tousled around in a wild manner. My full red lips looked even more swollen. Everyone was going to know immediately; I looked like someone who’d just had some good loving.

I changed into
jeans and a plain black shirt.

“Abigail Swish.” I spun around at Lucy
’s incredulous tone.

She was standing next to my bed, staring down at the sheets.

“What have you been up to?” Her tone brimmed with unshed laughter.

She was dressed in jeans as well, except she
wore a low-cut red cotton shirt, which definitely made the most of her awesome boobs.

“Do you have a sex radar or something
?” I said, staring around the room.

There wasn’t anything that should have
tipped her off.

Her blue eyes widened. “Like a sex-dar.” She laughed. “
So, are you saying that you and Brace sexed it all up?”

“You look a little worried – think I beat you to the final gate?” I
teased.

She raised her brows, high enough to almost hit her blond hairline.

“Don’t leave me hanging; if I have to torture you for the information, I will.” She wasn’t kidding.

Rolling my eyes
, I gestured for her to move through the door first.

“Nope, Brace and I were interrupted before anything crazy could happen.”
My disappointment was apparent in my voice.

“How far would you have gone?”
She sounded genuinely curious as we hurried downstairs.

I knew Josian wouldn’t
wait long. Something serious was up if he had summoned everyone in the middle of the night.

“I don’t know
. I’d like to think I’d wait until we’d spent more time with each other. But our chemistry just knocks all rational thought from my mind.” My cheeks flushed again just thinking about it. “He kisses like he’s trying to consume me, Luce,” I said quietly, and she sighed, a small reflective smile crossing her lips.

“Do
n’t you want to be married first?” Her words took me a little by surprise.

I shook my head. “Nah, you know I don’t believe a piece of paper
is a commitment. And what Brace and I have, being melded mates, well, I can’t think of a more definitive promise.”