Page 10 of Her Reclusive Beast

His eyes open, but in the glow I can see that they’re unfocused. “Jenna!” He surges up and pulls me down. I’m sprawled across his lap while his hands roam frantically over me. I can feel something hard and pulsing against my hip.

Then he stops moving completely. His hands remain clamped on me, one on my hip and the other on my upper arm, but everything about him freezes. His eyes are still blown out. Cautiously, almost like he’s afraid of breaking me, he lies down and rolls me under him. And now we’re in a repeat of last night. I wouldn’t mind if only I had some answers. I wiggle a little to adjust my spine and then thread my fingers through Max’s hair. Whatever he’s struggling with, I need to show him it doesn’t scare me. Although I’d really like some answers as to what makes him glow. I’m positive he would send me out of the house if it was dangerous, so it must be something more innocuous — just weird. He still smells like Max, which reassures me on some baser level.

Which is a tiny white lie, of course. I’m scared shitless.

I wake to the steady thump of Max’s heart against my cheek. His skin is warm beneath my palm but the just right kind of heat, not burning up like last night.

Max groans, and then his eyes pop open to study me. He frowns.

“What?” I ask sullenly.

“You shouldn’t be here.”

The statement is so prim I can’t help my grin. “You didn’t think that way last night. You need to tell me what’s going on, Max. Why are you getting these fevers every night but you’re fine in the day? Your cold seems to have disappeared on its own. This is something else. Why is holding me helping? And why don’t you want me to do that if itishelping?”

He rolls off of me and onto his back, raising one arm over his eyes. I pout at the loss of his warmth.

“I don’t know, okay? The only thing I’m sure about is that I don’t want to hurt you. The need to claim you completely and without waiting for your consent is overwhelming.”

His quiet words take a moment to sink in. I gulp. But deep down inside, I know Max would never hurt me. I can imagine him going too fast and maybe even (shiver of delight) a tiny bit rough, but not to the point of actually harming me.

“Then maybe you should stop fighting it?”

His arm lifts so he can stare at me in disbelief. I shrug. “As soon as you roll over me, you calm down. So maybe if you went a little farther while you are under control, the need at night wouldn’t be so overwhelming.”

Max appears to actually consider my suggestion. “But you still work for Rudnam. And I refuse to bethatguy.”

I roll my eyes. Seriously?

“How are you exploiting me if I’m the one asking you to have your way with me?”

“It just is. Finish the manuscript and quit, then we’ll see if your theory has any merit.”

I glower at him. At this pace, he’s going to do himself an injury. I’ll have to come up with something to change his mind.

“Well, how about if when you come to bed, I come too? That way, we can see if you can get to sleep more easily and without thrashing about.”

Max considers that, his head tilted slightly while his gaze remains on me. “I guess we can try that…”

Kiki strolls in with a relaxed curl to the end of her tail. She jumps up on the bed and proceeds to slide against Max’s bare chest. He looks bemused and I feel jealousy curling in my stomach. Over my much adored cat. “If you’re letting Kiki do that, I should get to do it too,” I mutter.

Max laughs and rolls to his feet. “How much more do you have to do on the manuscript?”

I cast my eyes down to my lap demurely. “I finished last night.”

He stops in his tracks. Everything about him seems to go still. “You’re done?”

I nod, finally raising my head to look at him. “I just need to finalize the file and pack it up for Diana. Did you want to look it over first?”

He shakes his head mutely. “No,” he states hoarsely. “But I do want to see your resignation before you send it.”

I sigh and awkwardly scooch across the mattress so I can exit the bed. “You’re firm on that, huh? Even if I’m not working with you and staying here, so there’s no way she can send me off to some other man?”

“And when she asks you to manipulate me into signing another contract?” he asks softly, making my stomach sink. Because Diana would do that.

“Okay, you’re right on that one. I just don’t like…”

“What, little Jenna?”

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