I need a cold shower. Or to throw myself in an icy lake. I don’t know if a cold shower would be strong enough to knock some sense into me.
“Alright, princess,” he murmurs, his voice low. “Whatever you want.”
My petrichor scent picks up the charged undertone of ozone, telegraphing my lust like a neon sign.
Why thehellis he calling me princess like that? I can handle him calling me princess if he’s using it like an insult, but likethat?
Like a whispered, reverent vow?
“Stop it,” I choke out, jerking my gaze away from him.
“Stop what?”
“Whatever you’re doing right now! Just go get the car.”
He stays still, unmoving, long enough for emotions I don’t care to unpack now to start swirling in my gut. Does he get off on making me feel all these strange things?
“You’re used to handling things alone. But now, you don’t have to. One day, we’ll earn your trust and you won’t have to keep up those walls you cling to.”
With those parting words, he starts walking towards the parking garage.
I want to scream. Or pull my hair out.
Or have him pull my hair.
Oh mygod, why isn’t there a frozen lake when I need one?
Is it because I haven’t had sex for a while?
Honestly, the sex I had while I was working my job was perfunctory. Tab A go into slot B kind of thing. It was never about my pleasure and I was never attracted to any of the men I slept with.
I’m ridiculously attracted to every single member of this pack.
At least, when they’re not pissing me off.
A few minutes later, Theo is pushing Stone out in a wheelchair. Stone’s arm is in a sling. Good idea, he seems like the kind of guy who would use it, even when he’s not supposed to.
A nurse hands Milo a stack of papers, and he sends a panicked gaze towards me.
“Don’t worry, we’ll go over these together,” I say to him. “You did mean it when you said you wanted to learn, right?”
He nods eagerly and I can’t help but smile.
“Is the nurse gone?” Stone asks, glancing over his shoulder.
“Yeah, she’s gone, why?”
“Because I want to get out of this stupid chair.”
“Dude, you were fucking tortured less than twelve hours ago,” I say, blinking at him.
Even with him sitting in the wheelchair, we’re basically eye to eye, which says something about how tall he actually is.
He just blinks back at me.
“Did you just dude me?”
I shake my head, letting out a little huff of laughter.