Page 17 of Catch a King (Five Kings 1)

“I love you.” She whispers and I think my whole body stiffens. She loves him, this Mason guy. Her fingers move under my tee and just feeling her touching my chest is the purest form of torture. She rubs her body against mine and softly moans. “I want you.” Her voice is soft and breathy and sends a message straight to my cock who is finding life pretty difficult right now because it is positively throbbing so hard it hurts. I should stop this, wake her up, move away, leave the room, anything but this because I feel like some kind of pervert as I allow this woman to think I’m someone else. But she feels so good, so soft, and it’s been so long since I felt a woman’s touch, I’ve almost forgotten what that feels like.

Then she stiffens, and a sob works its way from deep inside and she starts to cry again. My cock throbs, my heart is pounding, and I feel like the biggest bastard in the world as this woman sobs next to me before drifting back to sleep.

* * *

Somehow,I make it out of bed before she wakes up and I take the time to head for the shower and deal with my problem the only way I can. As the water drips against my body, I pump my shaft so hard I swear it’s bruised because I have got to get that woman out of my head. The worst thing is, she got there the minute I saw her in the yard the first night she came. I did everything in my power to forget her and told myself she wasn’t worth my time. To remain indifferent, but she has been on my mind since it knew she exists.

It was no coincidence I found her running out of the alley. I saw her head off from the window of this very room that morning and even then, I knew I couldn’t let her walk around the neighborhood unprotected with her ass cheeks on display and her ponytail swinging. I remember cursing as I gave chase and when I saw those guys follow her into the alley, a red mist took over my soul and I would have wasted them for daring to touch her. When I saw how she handled them, I knew I’d met my match. The woman for me, but hell, I didn’t want one. This is not the right time, or the right place to catch feelings, and so, despite myself, I shut those feelings away and pretended they didn’t exist.

Now those fuckers have got me into a whole lot of trouble because I couldn’t ignore her now if I tried. She’s going to be with me day and night while I work out how to do the job I came here for and keep her safe because even I know when Slade gets over his rage, it will be replaced by a thirst for revenge and Millie is the target he’s likely to focus on first.

By the time I emerge from the shower, she’s up and looking awkward as fuck as she sits on the side of the bed.

She almost can’t look at me as she studies her fingers that are doing some kind of weird dance right now on her knee.

“Morning, darlin’.”

She just nods and looks to the floor and I laugh to myself. For all her sass, one night in my bed has ripped her tongue from her head and she is feeling mighty uncomfortable and I’m the bastard loving every second of it.

Feeling the devil inside, I drop to my knees in front of her in nothing but a towel, and I love that she studies my chest and shivers a little. Tipping her face toward mine, I watch her eyes dilate and her lower lip trembles because it’s obvious I affect her just as much as she does me.

“Hungry, darlin’?”

She nods and I have a sudden urge to taste those lips again and stop for a moment while I have an inner struggle with myself. She blinks and her dark lashes sweep her cheeks as I say gently, “Shower’s through there. You may want to freshen up. Then I’ll take you to your room and you can grab some clothes.”

I release her and stand up, and god help me, her face is now level with my dick that hides behind the smallest towel.

Before it can show her how much she affects me, I turn and say gruffly, “Go on then.”

She needs no further invitation and races to the bathroom and locks the door, and I can only imagine the relief she is feeling right now with a locked door between us.

As I dry off and change, I feel more frustrated than before. What the hell was I thinking?

Chapter 14

Millie

Oh my god, that man is something else. Just seeing him walking into the room, with water dripping down his bare torso and that chest - man, that chest is something else. I’ve seen more than my fair share of impressive chests, but none like that. Pure fucking heaven and I couldn’t help drag my eyes down toward the v and wonder what perfection lies beneath that towel.

When he looks at me, I’m a hot mess. I don’t want to react to him; I don’t think I even like him, but my body has other ideas. It just can’t seem to shake him and it’s like I know what it feels like to touch him. I swear he was in my dreams last night, his scent, his hard body against mine and his fingers threading my hair and whispering sweet nothings in my ear. In my dreams, I responded to his touch and physically ached for him. It was so believeable, I can’t meet his eyes this morning. I can’t let him see how he affects me although he hasn’t even looked my way, other than I’m an irritant he needs a remedy for.

Is this Stockholm Syndrome because it can’t surely be anything else?

I can’t help myself and run my hands over my body as I soap every inch of my skin, knowing his body was the last thing on it. As I clean between my legs, I imagine this soap on his rock-hard cock and I gasp as my fingers find my clit and I rub it. I am wet inside and out as I imagine that cock sliding deep inside and driving me to pure ecstasy. His hands on my breasts, between my legs and in my hair, drive me insane and I groan as I feel the pleasure building that only his image creates.

Part of me wishes he had taken me last night. Just to feel him inside me would have been enough to make me hate him because Ineedto hate him. I need to drive out this weird obsession developing because I’m here on a mission for Christ’s sake, not to get off with an object of Millie’s mass destruction.

As the orgasm hits, I clench my lips tightly shut for fear of him hearing how turned I am and as my breathing slows and my body relaxes, I feel the fear returning. What the hell am I going to do now?

Feeling a little stupid, I return to find him fully dressed and waiting in the chair. I don’t miss the way his eyes linger on the naked parts of my body, with only a small towel to cover my shame. His eyes are as black as the night sky as they glitter with lust because I’m no fool, I know he wants to fuck me. I know when a man desires a woman, but that’s all it is to him - a fuck. It’s all it ever is because nobody wants me, Millie, the woman inside the whore. The Reapers are the best lovers a girl could ever wish for, but that’s all they are to me, lovers. Someone to keep the chill away and share a comforting moment or two. Somebody to spend a delicious moment of pleasure and then walk away. I’ve never been old lady material, although god knows I want that more than anything. To find someone who makes me complete, someone I love with every part of me and loves me just as hard. I see the others finding their love match and wish it was me. It never is.

You’re not worth it.

That little voice inside my head reminds me every day because without it, I would dare to dream differently.

“Hurry up, I’m starving and we need to work out what the fuck we’re gonna do about this.”

His words bring me back and I say quickly, “Fine, I’ll just drag on that t-shirt and you can escort me to my room. It won’t take long and just for the record, I didn’t ask to be claimed, I didn’t ask you to step forward, and I didn’t ask to be your problem. So, maybe you should just question why the fuck you got us into this situation in the first place without making me feel as if it was all my fault.”

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