I uncapped the bottle of cider and strolled through the French doors to the patio. There wasn’t much of a garden out the back, just a stretch of rough grass leading into the surrounding woodland. It was peaceful. Truly beautiful. Settling into a canvas lounger, I rolled up the legs of my jeans to catch the last of the afternoon sun on my calves and propped my feet on the patio railing.
This wasn’t the worst life in the world.
My head rolled in Gideon’s direction. “So, what do you do when you’re not slumming it in Shadow Horn?”
“Slumming it?” He chuckled, a low velvet rumble.
“I was being sarcastic.”
He exchanged the forked prongs for his glass of whiskey and rested casually against the railing, eyes dipping to me. “I guess you could say I’m in the family business.”
“That sounds either very old money fancy or godfather mafia.” I swigged on my cider, waiting for him to elaborate. He didn’t. “Definitely godfather mafia.”
“Crest Holdings covers a broad spectrum of business, all legitimate, I assure you.” He took a long sip on his drink, studying me over the rim of the glass. “I work in the private security division.”
My brows shot up. “You’re an actual bodyguard?”
Lex joined us just in time to hear my conclusion, laughing hard as he carried a salad bowl to the table. “Do you see Gideon walking a step behind anyone or standing about like a pot plant half the day?”
Couldn’t say I did.
“Crest Security provides intelligence and reconnaissance and strategic intervention,” Lex explained, coming over to sit on the end of my lounger. “Gideon is a special operations agent.”
I smiled impishly at Gideon. “So basically, you’re James Bond?”
He threw Lex a dry look. “Thanks, you’re really helping.”
Lex grinned. “My job here is done.”
We joked around until the steaks were done. The sun set while we ate around the patio table, bringing in long shadows and a dusting of stars, and that’s when it hit me. How extraordinary something that should be so ordinary felt. I was never particularly lonely, my friends were always there if I wanted to hang out. But unless I made other arrangements, I came home to an empty house. I ate my dinner in silence or with Netflix.
It had been more than a year since I’d shared home-space with anyone because that’s where they belonged and not because I’d invited them. It felt different. It felt good. Even if it was temporary.
“What about you?” Lex asked me. We’d finished eating and were relaxing at the table with our drinks. “Any big plans now that you’re done with school?”
“College,” I told him, inevitably thinking of my aborted plans for Atlanta—without the brain-scratching that usually came with those thoughts. Did that mean I’d finally accepted it? “Just the local one, though. I start at Nottingham in the fall.”
Lex smiled, his gaze warming into me, and I realized maybe I really had accepted it and that maybe he was the reason. Not that I’d build my future around a boy. I wasn’t quite that pathetic no matter how much I liked him. But having him here sure as hell made it easier to stay behind.
“Do you know what you want to study?” he said.
“I’ve pre-registered for History and English,” I answered with a laugh. “But I have no idea what I want to do with that and I reserve the right to change my mind.”
“Few people know what they want to do straight out of school.” He slid a look to Gideon as he spoke. “You have the rest of your life ahead of you to figure all that out. It’s called the gift of youth. Everyone has a right to it.”
“Except those born with a destiny for the greater good,” Gideon returned smoothly, his stare darkening on Lex. “A worthy life is oft fleeting but oh so great.”
“Don’t quote scripts at me,” Lex said quietly, his voice almost too thin to hear. “That’s a last resort for those too lazy to find a valid argument.”
“Or for those who refuse to hear,” Gideon said.
This conversation was no longer about me. I watched them stare each other down, the tension growing, until Gideon rolled his shoulders back, a slow grin chasing the tightness from his jaw.
“I have someplace I need to be,” he said, pushing to his feet.
It took a moment to register his intention. Another moment to decide I should say something. “I hope you’re not driving.”
He paused at the patio door, his head bent my way, that charcoal gaze boring into me. “I’m certainly not walking.”
“You’ve been drinking.”
“You’re worried about me?”
“I’m worried about the other driver,” I corrected him. For my own benefit, it would seem. Gideon was gone, not the least bit interested in my response.
“He’ll be okay,” Lex said abstractedly, his eyes on the empty doorway Gideon had disappeared through. “He has a high tolerance.”
“I don’t think the breathalyzer cares.”
That pulled a small chuckle from Lex, his gaze shifting to me.
“I’m serious, Lex.” I wasn’t exactly a poster child for sobriety, but I did follow a couple of slogans. Say No to Drugs. Don’t Let Friends Drink & Drive. “I’m supposed to be the reckless teenager here.”
“Don’t be fooled by what Gideon allows you to see,” he said, suddenly as serious as me. “He’s not irresponsible, not even close.”
I snorted, unconvinced. “Getting behind the wheel after…what? Three whiskeys? Seems irresponsible to me.”
Lex sighed, shoving a hand through his hair as he squared a look on me. “Gideon has a…um, rare medical condition. He gets a slight buzz when he drinks, and even that doesn’t last long. His blood treats alcohol like a foreign substance—a virus, I guess. His immune system kicks in and eliminates it.”
“A medical condition,” I said skeptically.
“If you run a test on him right now, it would come back zero,” Lex said, dead serious.
My jaw dropped. “You’re not kidding.”
@hawk
So I Googled it. There’s a medical condition known as alcohol intolerance, where some poor souls get drunk without a drop of alcohol. Of course Gideon has the opposite problem and it’s so rare, Google hasn’t heard of it. Apparently he’s one of a kind. No wonder he acts so damn superior all the time.
I’m not sure I believe it.
But why would Lex lie?
Especially about something so ridiculous.
I tucked my phone into the back pocket of my jeans and leant forward on the patio railing, gazing into the diamond studded sky while I waited for Lex. We’d cleared the table and stacked the dishwasher and now that the chores were done, my mind was running away with me again. But what the literal fuck? A guy who’s immune to alcohol? That’s like a golden ticket to everlasting smugness. Trust Gideon to be in possession of it.
I heard footfalls at my back and smiled. “You shouldn’t sneak up on a girl.”
Arms came either side of me, hands placed next to where my elbows rested, caging me. “Especially one with a green belt in Krav Maga,” Lex murmured against my cheek.
I turned myself about, my spine pressed to the railing, my smile tipped up to him. He brought a hand up to brush my cheek, a loving, tender touch, but there was still a distance in his eyes.
He’d been preoccupied since that weird undercurrent between him and Gideon at supper. I’d already decided not to ask. They’d clearly been in disagreement about something, but a breath later Lex was staunchly defending Gideon to me. Their relationship was obviously complex and I was staying out of it.
I reached up onto my toes to tease him with a light kiss. His hand curled around my neck, pulling my mouth back to his, his lips slanting over mine for a much slower taste. A wave of warmth flushed through me, leaving my lips tingling and my pulse fluttering for more.
I blew out a shallow, unsteady breath and slipped out under his arm. “Come on, let’s have some fun.”
He caug
ht my hand, spinning me back to him, his gaze drinking me in. “What did you have in mind?”
“Music.”
“Soft music, low lights?” His grin was wolfish.
“Sure, something like that,” I said, laughing as I dragged him with me off the patio into the den.
Lex locked the door behind us while I looked around for options.
The flat screen TV on the wall had a sound bar that was hooked up to a docking station. The strategically placed speakers were all wired, but I did find a small speaker not fixed to the wall with a length of wire bundled up behind it that unwound halfway down the hallway.
“What exactly are we doing?” Lex wanted to know.
“Turning the roller blade rink into a ballroom.” I was on my phone, searching online for something appropriate. Perfect. I slapped the phone into his hand. “Dock that.”
He took a look at the video stream. “I don’t know how to Tango.”
I grinned at him. “Neither do I.”
He shoved a hand through his hair, watching me, probably racking his brain for an easy way out.
I batted my lashes and he chuckled softly, “What the hell, let’s do this.”
A few minutes later, we were swooping up and down the makeshift ballroom with long, sliding steps and dramatic pauses that got me giggling and Lex rolling his eyes.
“You need a rose,” I declared.
Lex bared his teeth at me and put my hand on his waist, holding it there while he stretched my other arm out alongside his to lead a charge down the length of the room. We were galloping like uncoordinated horses, but it was so worth the laughter brimming in his eyes.
Finally, he was totally distracted from whatever had been troubling him.
The music ended and Lex went to restart the video. When he returned, the mood changed. He fit his hands on my hips and drew me in close.
“Thank you,” he said, gazing into my eyes. “I needed a laugh.”
“I’ve never met a problem that didn’t deserve at least one night off,” I said with a smile, looping my arms around his neck. After all, I was the queen of evasion according to Haley.
We swayed to our own version of the sensuous tango beat, drinking each other in. His hands caressed up and down my hips, rubbing up my t-shirt in the process, and then his fingers were sliding over my skin with a touch that slowly warmed through me until my blood felt as molten as the dark honey burning in his eyes.
The music ended and we danced on to our own rhythm. I was a swell on the surface of a sun-heated ocean, desire gently rocking in the depths of me. His gaze lowered to my mouth with lingering intent, pushing out the air between us.
My pulse fluttered as he bent his head closer and closer, and then his mouth swept over mine, again and again, dragging on my upper lip, tugging at the corners, kissing me until everything around us fell away.
There was only his leg brushing against my inner thigh, my breasts flirting with his solid chest, his hands on my skin, our breaths mingling on each intoxicating kiss.
My fingers dug into his hair as my lips parted, desperate for more. The kiss deepened, his tongue sliding in with slow, masterful strokes that set my senses aflame.
I was all hot energy, restless for more of him. My body hummed and yearned, pressing into him. I brought my arms down from around his neck and slipped my hands inside his t-shirt.
He groaned as my fingernails scraped lightly over the contours of his back, his mouth possessing mine with a new urgency. His hands roamed lower, over the curve of my bottom cheeks with a firm grip and then he was walking me backward, his kiss trailing off my lips and along my jaw.
My palms flattened over corded muscle, anchoring the full length of my body to his, sliding delicious friction as I rocked against him, inhaling his scent, absorbing his body heat.
We hit the stairway and kept going, a natural progression of where this dance was headed. Nervous butterflies stormed my stomach, but there was no doubt, no hesitation. Lex was the guy. This hot riot of want and need swirling inside me was the feeling I’d been waiting for.
He pressed me against the bannister, his hands moving up, gliding beneath my top to the small of my back.
A warm shiver caressed every inch of my skin and curled into my toes.
He looked into my eyes. “Is this okay?”
I wasn’t sure what he was really asking. It didn’t matter. There were no limits tonight. I was his to do with as he pleased.
“I’m exactly where I want to be.” I shimmied away from him, but only to grab his hand and pull him up another few steps.
He brought me in again, crushing his mouth to mine in a deep, exploring kiss that filled me with want and longing. My fingers bunched into his t-shirt, rubbing it up his torso. He pulled away, ripping it off over his head, giving me an all too brief glimpse of his sculpted six pack and some impressive ink before he was kissing me again, his hands skimming my hips, tugging me with him.
We navigated the rest of the way blindly, lips locked, hands roaming everywhere, desire rushing through my blood like a fever.
His arms wrapped me. My arms went around his neck again as he lifted me off my feet to glue us together. My heart thumped against his. My pulse was all over the place. Heat flushed my veins, my fingers spearing through his wavy locks of honey hair, his hands cupping my buttocks, grinding my crotch into his obvious arousal.
I lost my top the second we were inside his bedroom.
He didn’t click on the lights, but the curtains were drawn wide open. Moonlight and starlight spilled into the room, casting shadows and just enough light for the perfect romantic setting.
Lex kicked the door shut and boxed me in against it, one hand pressed to the door, the other around my back, loosening the clasp of my bra. His mouth was on mine, tasting, swallowing my small moans and sighs as he tugged my bra clear off my shoulders and cast it aside. Then he was dragging me deeper into the room, flipping the duvet back, covering me his body as he lowered me to his bed, his eyes sinking into me.
I wanted to feel his mouth on mine again. I wanted his tongue inside me. I wanted to look into his eyes and I wanted to feast on his lean, sculpted body. I wanted his touch. I wanted to touch. I’d never wanted, wanted, wanted so much in my life and I wanted everything at once. I could barely breathe, the air trapped in my lungs by all this want.
His hands clasped mine, stretching our arms out and over the pillow by my head as he slowly rubbed up my body, his muscles rippling against me like silken iron. My breasts pebbled into tight, highly sensitive throbs of pleasure. I caught another glimpse of the designer ink that covered part of his chest and curved over one shoulder as my back arched to press my hips up into him.
His mouth came down on a guttural groan. My eyes closed as his tongue plunged inside with long strokes, mimicking the strokes of the length of his hard cock rubbing up and down at the junction between my thighs.
I struggled to free my hands, needing to touch, but he clamped them down firmly, keeping me spread beneath him and entirely at his mercy. His kiss snagged my lips as it travelled south, down the column of my throat, his body sliding lower over me, sparking little fires that gathered into a slow burn at my core.
“Lex,” I begged, bucking against him, not even sure what I was begging for.
He moved up again, whispering kisses along my throat, along the line of my jaw. “I’m so hard for you,” he pressed to my skin, his voice raw with unleashed primal need. “I’m losing my fucking mind.”
My bones melted into the feverish mess that I’d become.
“I’m not stopping this,” I said breathlessly, my lashes fluttering open to find him looking at me, his eyes heavy lidded and stormy with the same hunger riding inside me. “I’m not stopping anything.”
“Jesus.” His jaw softened, his eyes creasing into me. “Are you sure?”
I was so sure, I wanted to scream. I tried to free my hands, wriggling beneath him. “If you release my hands,” I groaned, “I’ll show you e
xactly how sure I am.”
The magic words.
He released me and slid lower, peppering kisses down my stomach while his fingers worked the button of my jeans and the zip. Lower still, till his feet were on the floor and he was tugging my jeans off, his jaw feathering, his eyes darkening as they feasted on me—naked everywhere except for a skimpy pair of panties.
Suddenly shy, I swallowed and pulled the duvet over me. But then it was my turn to look, my gaze washing over his broad chest, the muscle that roped his stomach and the smattering of hair that tapered into the waistband of his jeans.
A grin tugged at his gorgeous mouth as he kicked off his shoes and slowly, so slowly, undid his belt and fly. My throat went dry. My limbs hollowed, as if the marrow were being sucked out.
He started to tug his jeans down his hips and my gaze shot up, my cheeks flushed.
I’d done some serious fooling around with my last boyfriend, Ben, but we’d never taken it quite this far.
Lex reached into the bedside drawer for a condom before he climbed beneath the covers to lie beside me. He cupped my jaw, his thumb stroking my cheek, distracting me from the telltale wrinkle of foil and what his other hand was doing—unwrapping and deftly fitting the condom like he’d done this a hundred times before.
He probably had.
The first inkling of doubt at my inexperience stabbed me, but then he was looking at me like I was the most precious, beautiful being in this universe and he brought his mouth to mine in an unhurried, delving kiss that chased all other thoughts away.
I rolled onto my side, turning my body into his, sliding a foot between his calves and things got heated pretty quickly from there.
Our hands went everywhere, my fingers threading his hair one moment, tracing the bulge of his biceps the next, running freely over his back, his palm cupping my breast, his thumb gently massaging my nipple until it was rock hard.
He kissed me everywhere, possessive, devouring kisses that hummed through my body and left me ragged.
His hand slid down the curve of my hip, pulling me closer, closer while he tugged at my panties with his other hand, smoothing them down my legs and away.
Torment: Dark Paranormal Romance (Eclipse Warlocks Book 1) Page 10