Page 29 of Cream
“A fun perk, isn’t it?”
It rattled again. Jamie wriggled, humming happily. “I’m starting to understand why you like trains so much.”
His words were slurred as if he were falling asleep, so I didn’t say anything. I combed my fingers through his hair and petted his lower back and ass cheeks. The movement of the train sent currents of pleasure through our joined bodies, and I drifted off into a shallow sleep, reality blending with a delightful dream where Jamie and I were locked together forever, making love without pause until the end of time.
It didn’t really matter what time it was—our sleep schedule was upside down anyway. But I hoped it was before midnight, simply because I wanted more hours with Jamie.
He lay against my chest, his hand stroking along my ribs. His humid breath warmed my skin. A dark landscape passed behind the window, only blurry shapes of the mountains against a starry sky. It felt like we were in the middle of nowhere, away from civilization and all the demands it imposed on us.
In the comfortable quiet, it didn’t feel strange to ask questions I might have hesitated to voice otherwise.
“Jamie?”
“Mm?”
“Why did you call off the engagement with Liam?”
He sighed and rubbed his cheek on my pec. “It was a case of a late manifesting alphahole.”
I attempted to decipher his words but failed. “You’ll have to explain to me what that means.”
“At the beginning of our relationship, he was sweet and supportive, listened to what I had to say, and complimented me incessantly. Silly me, I didn’t realize I was being lovebombed. Then he got demanding. He automatically assumed everything he did was more important than my career and interests, so when he made time for me, he expected me to be available and in the mood to please him.”
“Ah.”
Jamie placed his chin on my chest and smirked up at me, his eyes glinting in the weak nightlight. “And I already had one alpha in my life I had to take care of.”
I blinked. “Who?”
Jamie snickered. “You, of course!”
I wasn’t sure how I felt about Jamie comparing me to his ex. “Am I demanding?”
“Sometimes.” When I gaped, he kissed my chest. “But you don’t take me for granted. I broke up with Liam because of you, you know.”
Just as I managed to untangle one meaning, he said something else that threw me for a loop. Jamie would always be one step ahead of me. “But that was before…”
“Not like that. I just realized that even though I was your employee and you had every right to make demands on my time and energy, you showed me more respect than Liam ever did. One Friday, he wanted me to leave work early and accompany him to a function, and I said no. He tried to give me an ultimatum—either I’d come home and get myself ready, or he’dstart reconsidering our relationship.” Jamie changed his tone to presumably mimic this Liam person, and I winced with annoyance.
“What a jerk.”
“Yep. I found I’d rather stay after hours with you at the office than go make nice with my pompous ass of a fiancé. I broke up with him the next morning. In hindsight, I don’t think I was ever madly in love with him. Once he stopped yelling and left, I was relieved.”
Did Jamie mean he liked me even back then? Smiling with mischief, he tapped a finger on my lips.
“He was jealous of you.”
My eyebrows flew up. “Was he?”
“Uh-huh. He hated when I worked overtime. He even insinuated you and I were having an affair.”
“I’ve never…”
“I know.” Jamie traced my upper lip with his fingertips. “But he wasn’t so stupid after all, you see. I did prioritize you before him without even being aware of it. When we were swamped in the spring, you often told me to go home, remember? That you were fine finishing on your own.”
“But you stayed.”
He smiled, his expression only a little guilty. “I liked being alone with you after hours. Not because I wanted something to happen between us, not consciously. I guess I just… liked hanging out with you.”
