“Come on,” I say, holding out my hand.
She looks at it and then up at my face, her eyebrows doing that adorable scrunching thing. “What? Where are we going?”
“You’re coming to my room.”
The shy smile from a minute or so ago is gone, replaced with an impish smirk, and I swear to the goddess she has to stop that or I’m going to lose it. “Oh, is that so? And you think that’s going to help this situation... how?”
Is it just me, or is she a little bit bratty?
Not that I mind. It makes me happy to see her spirit returning, the light coming back to her eyes.
“Clayton isn’t going to let up on this. It wouldn’t surprise me if he ends up knocking on this door tonight to make sure it’s done. And knowing my brother, he’s considering making an attempt to convince you. He won’t want to do it, but he also has never coped well with his father’s disappointment. If I take you from the room, the problem is solved for both of you. And you’ll be safe with me. Unless you want to go through with it tonight.”
She shifts on the mattress, letting her feet dangle over the edge. “And being in your room isn’t going to cause problems?”
“Oh, no. It’s absolutely going to cause problems, but I’ll deal with it. I’ll tell Clayton I forced you to sleep in my room because I wanted to fuck up your plans to complete the bond. He’ll believe it. I could tie you to my bed to make it more believable.” I cringe as soon as the last words leave my mouth. It was meant to be a joke, but just the idea of it has my dick reacting to the possibility.
Her plump lips part and she takes the bottom one between her teeth before swallowing and getting to her feet. “Okay, let’s go.” She brushes her shoulder against mine and the mere contact sends my libido into overdrive.
“Just like that?” I ask, my voice hoarse.
“Yeah, you’re right. I can totally see Clayton doing that, and to be honest, Carrington is starting to lean toward the ‘just go on and do it’ mentality. She doesn’t understand why, if we’re mates, we aren’t champing at the bit to fuck. So spending the night with her and listening to that all night doesn’t sound fun. So yeah, thethreat of getting tied to your bed sounds like the best option,” she says, grabbing the doorknob and tilting her head toward the hallway. “Come on, before Kai gets out of the shower and we have to hash it out. I’ll send him a text to explain.”
I guide her out of Kai’s room and lead her into mine. She stands in the center of the simple space, no doubt taking in the lack of personal touches as I shut and lock the door behind us. Hopefully, Kai will be relieved to find her missing, and Clayton won’t come sniffing around to see if they completed the bond before morning. In the meantime, I just need to keep my hormones in check.
“Sorry for the meager decor,” I offer, taking off my jacket and tossing it on the chair in the corner. “Since I don’t actually live here anymore, all of my stuff is at my actual apartment over in Virginia Beach.”
She shakes her head while soaking the few belongings I have. “It’s okay. I don’t mind. I don’t have most of my stuff here either, remember?”
“True.” I gesture toward the bed. “Make yourself comfortable. I need to brush my teeth. You have everything you need?”
“Yeah, I’m good.” She looks at the mattress and then back at me. “How are we?—”
"I’ll take the floor and you can have the bed.”
She shakes her head obstinately and places her hands on her hips. “No. You’re not sleeping on the floor. That’s ludicrous. I’ll take the floor. It’s your room?—”
I actually laugh out loud. “I don’t think so, little wolf.”
Her cheeks flush, and the idea that the nickname I’ve somehow designated for her over the past couple days made the blood rush to her cheeks gives me a thrill I shouldn’t like so much.
“Why not?”
“If you think I’d let you sleep on the floor, then you haven’t been paying attention,” I say.
She drops her hands to her sides. “You’re right. But there’s no reason either of us should have to sleep on the floor. We’re adults. Why can’t we just both sleep in the bed?” She turns and gestures to the mattress. “It’s really big. I think we could both fit with no issues. Don’t you?”
I eye the large bed and weigh my options. The thought of sleeping beside her is tempting. Too tempting. “We can both fit, but I don’t know if that’s the right thing to do with your current relationship status.”
She strides to the side of the bed and grabs one of the massive pillows, placing it in the center. “Problem solved. You now have a designated place to sleep and so do I, and it is not together.”
I rub my hand along the back of my neck. “Okay, you win.” My uncertainty is evident in my tone. To mask it, I point my thumb over my shoulder and say, “I’m going to run to the bathroom.”
She pulls down the blankets on the mattress and nods.
I go into the bathroom and close the door behind me. As soon as I’m alone, I lean against the wall and close my eyes. I don’t regret bringing her to my room. It was the right thing to do, but I do question if I can handle being so close to her. Every second I’m near her, I find something new I’m attracted to.
I take a deep breath.Keep it together, Xander.Ibrush my teeth beforechanging clothes and head back down the hallway. Thankfully I don’t run into anyone on the way, and when I open the door to my room, Alexia is already settled under the covers. And she lookswaytoo good in my bed. I shake off the thought and give her a smile as I sit on my side of the mattress and slide under the covers, keeping as close to the edge as possible.