Page 53 of Wretched Soul
“I might have to leave you up here tomorrow morning while I go out and get supplies,” I continue. “You can pretty up the house while I’m gone.”
“Shut up.”
“Oh, you are listening,” I say in feigned surprise.
“I know you’re only trying to piss me off to get a reaction, but in case it’s escaped your notice, I’m already pissed at you, Shade.”
“Maybe you should have taken Connor up on his offer to give you a massage.”
“I don’t imagine that’s going to be easy for him to do with two broken arms and a death threat hanging over him.”
I take my eyes off the road and let my gaze travel slowly down her body. Her suit and sweater cover every inch of her body, and I know she chose the outfit to deny Connor sight of her. And all the while she was worrying about how I might react to her being away with him. That thought alone makes my cock thicken. “Fuck, Lily. You’re so beautiful when you’re angry.”
She responds by raking her slate grey eyes over me too. Her expression heats up when she notices my arousal. Her gaze snaps back to my face. “And you’re so annoying when you’re acting like a neanderthal.”
I hear the catch in her voice. “You’re not sounding annoyed right now,” I muse. “You’re closer to begging than I thought.”
Lily rolls her eyes. “Can you watch where we’re going,” she says, forcing my attention back to the road.
“I think we’re here,” I say, following a bend through the trees to a clearing. The porch lights around the lodge highlight a rustic exterior, but this is not the abandoned hut I’d led Lily to believe. There’s a two-car garage, a log store and an oil-fired generator, two bedrooms, and all the modern conveniences to make our stay warm and cozy. Tendrils of smoke billow from the chimney, rising up towards a starlit sky.
“Damn, I hope it isn’t already occupied,” I say, jumping out of the car as Lily mutters something about hating me.
I trudge through deep snow to open Lily’s door. She’s unbuckled her seatbelt, but she’s still being obstinate.
“I’m in my work clothes,” she complains. “I would have packed outdoor gear if I’d known I was being dragged into the wilderness.”
“My plans don’t involve you being dressed – at all. Or they didn’t,” I say as I grab her knees and twist her around. When I tug her out of the SUV and into my arms, she wraps hers aroundmy neck. “Am I going to have to fuck your sour mood out of you, Lily?”
“Only if you beg.”
Snow crunches underfoot as I carry her up to the porch before setting her down on the snow-free timber floor. I unlock the lodge door and swing it open so she can go inside first.
When I follow, I’m hit by a wall of heat. There’s a fire crackling in the fireplace, and from the well-stocked kitchen, there’s the smell of beef casserole bubbling away in a crock-pot.
Lily stands in the center of the open-concept living room. “We are alone, aren’t we?” she asks, her eyes darting to the closed doors that lead off to the bedrooms.
I slide her suit jacket off her shoulders. “I don’t ever plan on sharing you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
Lily turns so we’re facing. “You make my head spin, Shade.”
“I’m sorry,” I say, leaning in to kiss her nose. “If it makes you feel any better, my head’s been spinning for weeks. If I fucked up, it’s because I can’t think straight when I’m around you.”
“Ifyou fucked up?”
“OK, I fucked up. I’m sorry,” I say. “Now, can I kiss you?” When I receive only a scowl, I add. “Lily, I’m going to kiss you so if you’re going to say no, do it quickly.”
Her hands whip up and she pulls my face to hers. Our mouths crash together, and she lets out a little groan as I suck on her lower lip. As our kiss deepens, her tongue pushes into my mouth and I let her steal my breath.
My cock strains against my zipper, and my balls ache for release. I don’t know how I’m going to hold back long enough to ever stand a chance of making her beg. She has me already. My hands rest on her waist and I go to lift her sweater.
Lily knocks my hands away as she breaks the kiss. “You’re not getting me naked, Shade,” she argues. Her eyes narrow, her half-smile a warning. “Not until you are.”
OK. I like this game. “Do your worst, Slayer.”
We hold eye contact as she unbuttons my shirt, neither of us blinking until she’s sliding it over my shoulders. I keep my hands by my sides as she tugs down the sleeves. The shirt drops to the floor, and her hands explore my exposed torso while her focus remains on my face. When she smiles, I try to remain impassive, but it’s not easy when I know something she doesn’t. I point down with my eyes to my chest.
It's only a small tattoo, but Lily sees it immediately, and takes a step back for a better look. The pad of her fingertip gently traces the outline of a flower over my heart. “It’s a lily,” she says, her voice full of awe just as I’d hoped. “For me?”
