Page 17 of Wicked

How much has he changed since I left? Is Revolver okay?

I pull Manny into the sleek elevator. As the doors close and I press the button for level eleven, he steps closer and slowly slides his fingers along my jaw. His touch leaves a path of electricity along my skin. “May I kiss you?”

Like I’d ever deny him.

“Jesus, Manny. Of course you can.”

His jaw tightens ever so slightly at the wordJesus.

“Is the red wolf religion Christian or something?” I ask.

He nods. “But it isn’t your religion. I’m sorry. I’m still getting used to this… connection. Everything with you feels so intense.”

I understand what he means. Every touch and kiss is like an explosion. It didn’t occur to me that my words could have the same effect.

“I could… not swear?” I say uncertainly. I certainly know how to censor myself when the situation is necessary. I just never imagined it would be necessary with my mate. That’s a lot of censoring.

“Or perhaps you could just be patient with me? I happen to like Jesus very much, so hearing his name like that is never my favorite thing. But Anne swears all the time, so I’m used to it. Normally, I don’t have such a hard time schooling my emotions.”

The elevator door slides open.

Here we are, about to secure that alibi H wanted. Or more importantly, I’m about to return to the life Dorian Gray took from me. And miraculously enough, I have my fated mate by my side. He agreed to be flexible about our physical touch, despite his religious reservations, and he wasn’t judgmental about my profession. He’s making an effort.

I can try too.

“I will do my best not to say Jesus. I can’t make any promises about the words fuck or damn or shit or anything else, especially if we ever have sex. In fact, during an orgasm I make no promises at all about my language.”

I expect him to smile or laugh. Instead, his eyes burn with desire that makes me want to let the elevator close and have my way with him.

“Basically, I’m trying to warn you that I’m loud.” I ramble on because the silence is going to kill me. I pull Manny into the hall and toward Revolver’s door, but he stops me and hooks his hand around my head.

“If I ever have the privilege of giving you an orgasm, I don’t want you to hold back.”

He kisses me with a tenderness that makes my heart flip. His lips are gentle yet deliberate. I melt against them, allowing him to ease my mouth open and dive his tongue inside.

It’s the kind of kiss that drowns out the memory of anyone else. All the men who came before were just practice for Manny. He’s the one I want to kiss for the rest of my life.

He breaks away from the kiss. “Perhaps your friend could give us some privacy tonight? Does he have a guest room where we could be alone?”

Is he saying what I think he’s saying?

“Do you mean…”

He kisses me again, and this time he wraps his arms around me, and the kiss becomes feverish. I gasp for breath as Manny runs his hands along my back, devouring my mouth.

“Who is this?” a familiar voice says from across the hall.

Manny freezes and steps back, his cheeks flushed with embarrassment. Revolver is leaning against the doorframe of Lester’s apartment with a smirk on his face. I wait for the familiar pull of his sweet thrall, but it doesn’t come. I walk toward him, assuming I’m not close enough, but it still isn’t there. Did he bond to Lester? He said he would never bond to anyone.

He pulls back the neck of his black, silk robe and there it is. A bond bite.

“No way. You let Lester bond to you?”

He rolls his eyes. “Don’t act so surprised. We’ve been in love for ages.”

Yes, but love and a bond are two very different things for someone like Revolver. Getting caught up in his thrall used to be one of my favorite things. It makes me a little sad to realize I’ll never feel the pull of it again. I can’t believe he gave it up.

Lester appears next to him in a matching robe. “Is everything okay?”

---