He stood abruptly and made his way to the bathroom. Never had he looked at a female’s nose and found it intriguing. She had to go, the cold water from the shower seemed to be knocking some sense back into him or at least allowing him to build up his walls again. She wouldn’t even tell him her name. Why would she want to stay?
He grabbed a pair of joggers and resigned himself to the fact that he would have to sleep beside her. After all, she was in his bed. With a grumble of discontent, he slid onto the bed. He closed his eyes even as he pulled her into the safety of his arms. If he couldn’t see it, it wasn’t happening.
The feel of a small hand touching his chest woke him up. He opened one eye to find a pair of violet eyes looking at him. He slammed his eye closed and tried to regain the peace of sleep.
That hand which was warm and soft but felt like it could be hard if the need arose was still caressing his chest. His heart beat was picking up. He opened both eyes and looked at her.
“Are you caressing my chest?”
“Absolutely not.” She rolled away from him or tried, but he wouldn’t let her move.
“You…you’re the one in bed with me. Pervert!” Her eyes flared catching him for a minute.
“Pervert? I’ll have you know I saved your life.”
“Why? So you could get in bed with me and feel me up when I was helpless.”
“Helpless? I don’t think you’ve ever been powerless since you’ve been able to talk.”
“Why you.” She hit him in the chest.
She balled her tiny fist up and hit him in the chest. He watched it all like it was slow motion. He had to give her credit; the punch stung. Yes, he was impressed, but he wouldn’t be letting her know.
“I guess that means you’re well.”
“I am.” She made for the side of the bed promptly falling as she tried to stand. He was following her across the bed and caught her before she hit the floor.
“Why are you always touching me?”
“Why are you always falling?”
She wouldn’t be answering that question. Death was waiting for her to make one wrong move. All she could do was live as much of life as possible while she still had a chance.
“Stop staring at my body.”
“I wasn’t staring; I was just looking.”
She raised a brow while her eyes grew large.
“Whatever,” he grunted and placed her back on the bed.
“Have you never seen a naked woman before?”
“Not one as skinny as you.”
The pain in her eyes hit him dead center in the heart, especially since he was lying. She was slender, but she was still a work of femininity with her small breasts and hips that curved just enough to catch his attention. If she was this beautiful now, he couldn’t imagine her beauty when she was healthy.
“I still don’t know your name.” His voice was gruff.
“What am I doing here?”
“Nope, no answers until I know your name.”
“I don’t know your name, either.”
Her voice was soft when she spoke drawing attention to her lips. He wanted to smile at her but settled for a stare until she relented.
“You’re no fun. My name is Tempest.”
His lips curled into a smile at the surly sound of her voice.
“Hello Tempest, my name is Lucca.”
“Lucca.” Her eyes brightened; she looked like she was tasting his name.
His cock throbbed, but he ignored it.
“I like your name. Tempest, it’s light and airy.”
“Yeah, that’s me light and airy the skinny chick.”
He flinched. “Maybe I didn’t exactly say what I meant.”
“What am I doing here, Lucca?”
“You were dying. I could either leave you on the street or bring you here and hope that my brother would come and heal you.”
“Hope?”
“I may not be making the best choices lately.”
“No one can heal me.” Her voice was soft again, but this time he was leaning in closer to hear her.
The ache in her voice touched him. Once again, he wanted to find what
ever was hurting her and kill it. Not just kill it, he wanted to drag it back and lay it at her feet as a gift. This was not The Created way at least not for several centuries.
“Who did this to you?”
“It’s a what not a who, or at least not a who as I would think of a who.”
He stared at her, and a soft laugh emerged.
“Yeah, I just confused myself too. This thing is as old as the planet maybe even older. It got a hold of me one day right after my change. All I remember was it sticking its claws into my body. When I woke up, I was different. Eventually, I realized I was dying after several centuries.”
“There has to be more to this story than that.” She closed her eyes blocking him out.
He got out the bed and stood looking at her. Why should she tell him what was happening? Yes, he was her mate but did she know that? Did she even care?
“Where are my clothes?”
He had put them in the trash after he decided not to burn them. They were more like rags. If he didn’t know better, he would say they were hundreds of years old. She opened her eyes and looked guilty for a minute before closing them again. His mate was keeping secrets but then so was he.
He got a tee from his dresser and brought it over to her.
“Your clothes were too bad to keep. I’m sorry. You can put this on until we are able to get you some clothes.”
She sat up, and he pulled his T-shirt over her head. She was drowning in it, but for some reason, she looked even more appealing to him dressed in his shirt.
“I need to leave, every minute I stay here I’m putting your life in danger.”
“Then that makes us a pair because I’m doing the same to you. What you really need is to eat and drink. It’s hard to run if your body won’t carry you.”
She wanted to argue that point, but he was right. Her feet were so bloody she probably couldn’t walk anymore. She brought a foot up to look at it.
Lucca caught her foot and began to massage it.
“The damage done to your feet was extreme. Damon, my brother, was able to fix it. He fixed it all except whatever is going on in your abdomen. You know the one thing you don’t want to talk about.”
She ignored him and concentrated on his fingers touching her foot. They were firm and slender with the ability to touch and caress her in all the right places. Why couldn’t she have met him in her past?
“Lucca…Please.” Please, what? Let her go or allow her to lay on the bed savoring the feel of his hand on her foot. What did she want?
“Tempest you can’t go without clothes, and I bet you’d like a shower and something to eat. Why don’t we revisit your leaving after that?”
“That sounds good, but I am leaving.”
“I know.” He picked her up and carried her to the bathroom.
“I don’t think I can stand.”
“Lucky for you, I have a bench in the shower as well as a deep tub.”
Don’t fall for his charm, she repeated to herself because Lucca could be dangerous to her health and her heart.
Chapter Three
She was in love… with his bathroom. Yep, she had been born before running water and all the glorious things that came with it. Although she had been asleep in that cave for more years than she wanted to think about, there was no way to keep the accomplishments of man or the Earth away from her.
She was tied to the very air and would be until the day she ceased to exist. Since that day may be coming quickly, she decided to look around the bathroom.
The tub was freestanding with jets. Lucca didn’t seem like the Jets kind of guy, but she wasn’t judging; she just wanted to try it out. There were two sinks as if he knew she was coming and prepared for her. The bathroom was done in beautiful browns reminding her of the Earth itself. There was a nice bench seat in th
e shower.
Water was cascading over her head, laughing with her friends as they swam under the waterfall. Whatever happened to them? Them, the chosen, daughters of the Earth.
“I think a bath would be better as long as you can keep from slipping beneath the water.”
Did he think she was a baby? She looked down at the shirt that hid her small breasts. Well, maybe she looked like she was ten. Her lips drew up into a frown.
“I just want to make sure you’ll be okay in here without me. I can stay if you want me to.” He gave her a suggestive look and raised a brow.
She broke out into laughter. Already he was making her life better.
“I think I’ll survive. You can take your lecherous gaze into the other room.”
He exaggerated the frown on his face that had her giggling. Already he was pulling her into his masculine trap. Truly, it was unfair. How dare he walk around without a shirt allowing her to see his thickly muscled chest and his arms that made her want to put both hands on them to see how wide they were.
The worse part, he reminded her just how feminine she was.
“Hot water or cold?”
“Hot of course.”
“Bubbles or Jets?”
“Jets.”
She looked around the bathroom until she spotted something suspicious sitting on his sink.
“What’s that?”
“Ignore that.” He flushed and went back to checking the temperature.
“Tell me what they are, or I’ll crawl over there.” Might as well be specific, she didn’t think she could walk right now.
“Bath bombs.”
She blinked and then hit the side of her head thinking she heard wrong.
“Bath bombs?”
“Yeah, a couple of my sisters use them, and they swear they love them.”
“So, you wanted to try them out?”
“No.”
She frowned at him. He was confusing at times.
“Then why are they sitting on your sink?”
“I bought them for you.”
“What?”
“I was walking down the street on the way to my restaurant when a street vendor showed them to me. She said my female would love them. I knew she was wrong I didn’t have a mate, but the longer I looked at them, the more I couldn’t resist them. So I bought them for you.”
“But you didn’t know me.”
“Doesn’t matter I bought them for you.”
She lassoed her stupid heart it was trying to jump out of her chest. I need more than bath bombs, witty conversations, and good looks to give away my heart, so stay in place.
“I want to put one in the tub.”
He brought two over to her. “The saleslady said these two should be used together. One’s fire and the other one is ice.” They were red and white, and she couldn’t wait to see what would happen when they hit the water.
He gave them to her and let her put them in the tub. Fire was so bright it looked like it would burn. Ice was so cold she almost shivered, but when the two met each other, they turned into a beautiful design that made her think about the majesty of the wind. Her breath caught in her throat as she watched them swirl together.
“It’s beautiful.”
“I agree.” When she turned to look at him, she realized he was staring at her.
She cleared her throat and hopefully her mind. “I should get into the tub.”
“I’ll help you get in.”
Was he serious? Not that it mattered, he’d already seen her naked in all her slender splendor. She would not wish she had curves anymore. Take her or leave her this was all she had to offer.
“You’re thinking too hard. I know I’m right because that’s the look I get when I over think, but it’s not as adorable on me as it is on you. Raise your arms.”
He stripped the shirt off before he lifted her and slowly lowered her into the tub. He turned the jets on and turned them down.
“I’ll be in the other room, call me if you need me.”
“I will.” She smiled at him before the door closed.
She slid deeper into the water. The warmth of the bath wouldn’t take away her death sentence, but maybe it could alleviate her fear for a little while.
*~*~*~*
“Incoming.”
He frowned until he heard the knock at the front door. Who could it be? His brothers wouldn’t knock, and no one else knew he was here.
He opened the door prepared to fight if someone was coming after Tempest. Instead, he was staring into Aran’s eyes. Niko was standing next to him.
“While the three of you are staring at each other can we come in?” Rena asked trying to push her way through.
“They can be seriously rude.” Dee shoved her way through as well.
“Where is she?”
“In the tub.”
“Thanks, oh continue staring at each other. I have to tell you Lucca, I just saw you yesterday, and your hair cut was not as kick ass as this one.” Rena headed for the stairs.
“Every time I think I understand you guys you change the rules on me. Rena’s right that hair cut is nice.” Dee laughed. “You can all growl now.
They laughed as they walked up the stairs.
Rena
knocked on the door.
“Lucca?”
“Nope, it’s two of his sisters. I’m Rena and Dee is here with me.”
“Oh, don’t come in because…”
“Really girl? You have got nothing that we haven’t seen.” They walked into the bathroom to see Tempest trying to hide under the water.
“Hi, I’m Dee. I used to do that too.”
“Do what?”
“Not eat.”
“I don’t do that. It’s a little different for me, but you look like you eat now.”
“I do, but it wasn’t easy.”
“I’m skinny.”
“Where did you hear that?”
“Lucca.”
“I bet he regrets saying that.”
“No… Maybe.”
“He does believe me. Dee and I hit the mall early today to shop for you.”
“You bought me clothes?”
“We did. You can thank Dee, she practically pulled me out of bed. You should have been there. Aran, that’s my mate was growling at Dee. Niko, that’s Dee’s mate was growling at Aran, his oldest brother for growling at Dee. Good times and Dee and I were laughing our heads off.”
“I’m Tempest; I didn’t get a chance to introduce myself.”
“Nice to meet you, Tempest.”
“You’ll fit right in.”
Dee laid a towel next to her. “We’ll be in the other room waiting for you.”
She thought Lucca was too much, but his sisters were overwhelming and sweet. It had been a long time since she had been part of anything. Living and dying in a cave could do that to you.
Wrapping the towel around herself, she walked into the bedroom to find clothes spread out over every surface.
“Here’s the problem we had,” Dee said when she walked into the room. “What kind of lingerie do you like? So, we bought a little of everything, boy shorts, thongs, granny panties. Everything you can think of is here.”
“Of course, we also got clothes.”
Tempest walked over and picked up a thong and compared it to the granny panties. Her eyes were huge, which started off another round of laughter.
“I think they’re getting along if the laughter is any indication.”
“What’s going on Lucca, you are not the you of yesterday.”
“I haven’t been making the best choices lately. I decided to come back to the past, but I never thought I would see you here. In fact, I chose to live on the ground so I wouldn’t risk running into my alternate self.”
“You won’t run into you so don’t worry. What I want to hear about is why you think you’re acting differently?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t even realize I was acting differently before Tempest fel
l on my lap.”
“That’s something we may need to keep an eye on. Let’s go make something to eat for our females.”
“Aran.”
He stopped and turned to look at Lucca.
“What did Dante have to say?”
“He’s your brother ask him yourself.”
That wasn’t happening, but he was concerned now that he realized that he was acting differently. Could this be a new attack by The Darkness? Was Tempest’s life in danger? Tempest, how could his life have rearranged itself in a day to put her in the center of all his thoughts and everything he wanted to do?
“Wait? Who’s cooking?! Neither of you knows how to burn water.” He quickened his steps to make sure he beat them into his kitchen. Nothing worse than non-chefs dirtying up his clean kitchen. They laughed and started running.
He walked in to find Aran looking into one fridge and Niko looking into the other. Of course, he had more than one fridge, he expected his brothers to show up, eventually.
“Aran, I have milk over here and bacon. Can we do anything with that?”
“I have sausage and eggs over here. Together I think we can make a meal.”
“You’re both oblivious, get out of my fridges, so I can make us a meal.
“Brother, I think he is offering to cook for us.”
“His timing is great since Rena’s still upstairs. Although I did see some steak, we can always grill.”
“How did I put up with both of you for all of those years?”
“We grow on you.”
“And in you.” Rena walked into the kitchen. “No one tells Alexei I said that, or I’ll deny it and get even.”
“Hi, doll.” Aran wrapped her in his arms and kissed her.
“You were just with her thirty minutes ago,” Niko complained before wrapping Dee in his arms and kissing her.
“There’s a little too much kissing going on in here for me.”
“I agree. I'm glad you can stand, but you’re swaying like a soft breeze will knock you over. Sit.”
Lucca (The A'rouk Brothers Book 3) Page 2