Page 54 of Fire of the Fox

In his bedroom.

Looking back at Bassel, I found myself nodding despite my sudden nerves. I spun on my heel and approached Rune’s room. The door was cracked, so when I reached it, I slowly pushed it open. “Rune? Bassel told me to come get you.”

My eyes went wide when I stepped into the room. I froze as every inch of my skin flooded with warmth. Rune stood in the middle of his room, dripping wet. He was completely naked, and he stood there, drying his hair with a towel. I couldn’t help but notice his sculpted stomach, firm chest, and toned arms. His golden body was mouth-watering, and when my eyes traveled down of their own accord, I felt my knees grow weak. I could definitely see why girls loved to sleep with him.

He looked over at me as he continued to dry his hair, not even fazed by the fact that he was naked in front of me. “Okay. I’ll be ready in a sec. You can come in if you want.”

I finally shook myself from my wide-eyed, frozen state. Quickly covering my eyes with my hands, I shouted, “Why the hell would you leave your door open and unlocked if you were in here naked?”

I started to back out of the room, but he suddenly gripped the front hem of my jeans. My protest stuck in my throat as he pulled me into the room. The click of the door shutting sounded behind me. My heart hammered in my chest, and the idea that he was about to try something flashed through my mind. Maybe he was feeling pent up, and he was about to offer a more physical deal, something I wasn’t sure I’d pass up if given the chance.

Instead, he groaned and said, “Don’t leave the door wide open. I had it shut for a reason. I don’t know why you’re hiding your eyes, either. You just got an eyeful anyway.”

His soft hands grabbed my wrists. He pulled my hands away from my eyes, but I squeezed them shut. What was he doing? My heart raced so fast and loud, there was no way he couldn’t hear it. He let go of one of my wrists before placing his fingers under my chin, tilting my face up to look at him. Despite this, I left my eyes closed. I couldn’t look at him like this. I knew my eyes would betray me, just as my legs were beginning to.

He stepped closer to me, his wet, naked body pressing against me. My nerves skyrocketed, and my knees wobbled. You’d think a girl would argue against him at this point, but I wasn’t. I knew why, but it was hard to admit, even to myself, that I didn’t want him to stop. I wanted to kiss him. I wanted to see what it felt like to have him hold me and touch me. Those thoughts sent another wave of excited nerves through me, causing my knees to finally give out.

Before I could crumble, Rune grabbed underneath my butt to pick me up. He wrapped my legs around his waist, and I clutched onto his broad shoulders, not wanting to fall. A dizzying buzz filled my head from how hard my heart was beating. It only intensified when he headed in the direction of his bed.

Was he actually about to do this? Was I? Part of me wanted him so much that I was willing to explore things with him, but the other half of me knew that if I gave that to him, his rejection would only hurt even more.

Because let’s face it. My crush was one sided and stupid. His blunt and clear warning that he only hooked up should have been enough to keep me from getting too close or comfortable with him, but I was. I’d come to lean on Rune, trust in him, and even call him a friend.

We collapsed onto the bed, and my eyes shot open. Our gazes locked, and he grinned down at me. I swallowed hard and tried to fight off my blush. There was a look in his eyes, a glimmer of something tender and almost like longing. That, paired with the subtle curve of his lips, made me want him all the more.

The orange flame I’d come to associate with his Fae transformation trailed up and around him. I watched with pure fascination as the flame moved higher and higher until it disappeared above his head. He now had his fox ears and fangs. I looked over his shoulder, seeing his fluffy, black tail swishing back and forth, at which I nearly laughed.

Was he wagging his tail?

Not even a second after I met his eyes again, he leaned down, placing tantalizing kisses along my neck.

I shut my eyes, and my stomach flipped as he kissed all along my throat.

His canines scraped against my skin, and his hands moved from where they had been on either side of my head to trail up and under my shirt.

I took in a sharp breath as his hand traced a warm path from the bottom of my stomach to the base of my bra. My toes curled when his teeth nipped at the skin on my neck, and at the same moment, his fingers slipped beneath my bra to coast over the sensitive tips of my breasts. A jolt of want instantly rippled down my spine, and I had to bite back a gasp as he sucked and teased at my throat. Liquid fire slicked down my middle while his wicked fingers taunted and circled my budded nipples.

My breathing came out in small gasps as I fought to say, “R-Rune. We— I—” I couldn’t finish my words. I didn’t even know what I was trying to say. He’d turned my mind and words into incoherent mush.

He raised up to look down at me, and he tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “What? You don’t want to do it?”

The gentle touch of his fingers brushing my hair back and grazing my ear sent shivers down my arms. Heat pooled in between my thighs at the intimate caress, fueled by the way he’d just been touching me.

Blushing, I bit my lip. “I didn’t say that. But-but we aren’t actually together, remember?”

Minutes must’ve ticked by while he stared down at me.

My heart was still beating a mile a minute, and it felt like I had just gone down a hill on a roller coaster. Him watching me with those eyes didn’t help any, either.

I waited. I waited to see what he’d say. Had he decided he wanted a physical relationship with me in addition to the business one? Had he changed his mind and wanted to give a real relationship a try, choosing to express so via physical means? My heart nearly exploded while I waited with bated breath, hoping his answer would be in line with my own swelling desire.

He cocked his head slightly to the side as one of his fox ears twitched. Leaning down close, he asked, “Then why aren’t you fighting me off?”

Not wanting to meet his eyes, I looked down. That was a mistake, though, because when I looked down, my eyes fell upon the very large, hard part of him that was not helpful for me to see. I quickly averted my gaze, looking at the pillows next to me. I could tell from his question and comment that he was onto me. He knew I was starting to feel things for him, which posed the question of whether he was doing all of this to mess with me or if he wanted me in some sort of way.

He nodded to himself and climbed off of me.

I didn’t watch him since he was still naked. My eyes remained fixated on the pillows. I listened to the sound of him opening his closet and shuffling the clothes around. That had really been a close one. I had nearly given in.

---