Page 24 of The Watcher's Bride

I grin at her, “Well, I have been called a domestic god before. Ready?”

She nods, as she calls for Josef and gathers him up in her arms. I notice she’s looking around nervously, especially toward the bedroom. I wonder if she’s thinking of her watcher. Whether he’s standing in the shadows. What he would think if he saw she was with me.

Once again, I’m struck by the strange situation I’ve found myself in. Maybe it would be easier if I just stepped aside and let my uncle have her. But I can’t do that. Not now that I’ve got to know her, that’s where Max and I agree. She will be mine.

Leo’s.

My apartment is orderly and masculine, a bit spartan and unlived in given the lack of homey touches. The sort of place a person like Max would live in. While I would have liked to have added a few items from my own home, I need to keep both identities separate or I risk slipping up. Already, I sometimes find that my carefully constructed façade starts to crack. I almost lost it earlier when I couldn’t keep Leo under control. I almost forgot the careful speech I use as Max, hiding all traces of my Russian accent. I can speak accentless English, years of training honed it into me, but when I let down my guard, I’m not so careful. I show Nora to my bedroom and excusing myself, I quickly go to the bathroom and slip in my brown contact lenses. Now that she’s calmed down, she might notice. When I return, she’s standing looking around at my room. At the unopenedboxes stacked neatly in the corner, the king-size bed with crisp white linen.

We stand there awkwardly for a moment, both uncertain of what to do or say. Luckily, Josef breaks the tension by hopping out of Nora’s arms and onto my bed, making himself comfortable.

“Rub it in why don’t you, Josef,” I chuckle. “I get it, you get to share a bed with the beautiful Nora, and I don’t. You win.”

Nora looks down at her feet and then meets my eyes. “I mean, this is more than big enough, and I’d feel bad kicking you out of your own bed. Why don’t we just share?”

I feel my cock twitch at that suggestion. But no matter how much I want her, when I finally have her, it will be as Leo and not Max. I joke, “I’m not sure I’d be able to lie next to you all night and keep my hands to myself or get any sleep.”

“Will you stay with me until I fall asleep?” she asks in a small voice.

I can’t resist her. “Of course.”

Nora pulls off her sweater and climbs under the covers, she’s wearing a white tank that clings to her small breasts, and I can see the shadows of her nipples through it. I lie on the bed on top of the covers, arms folded across my chest. I’m worried if I don’t, then the urge to reach out and touch her will be too great.

“Tell me something,” she says.

“What do you want to know?”

“Tell me about what you were like as a kid. You never mention your parents or family.”

“My parents died when I was young, my younger sister too,” I reply. That’s my truth not Max’s.

“I’m so sorry, Max,” she says. I can hear the sadness in her voice. .

“It was a long time ago. My uncle raised me after that.”

“What’s he like?”

I search for the words. “He’s… difficult, stubborn, a strong, powerful man, but I believe he has the family’s interests at heart, he wants me to make my family proud.”

“After what you did for me tonight, I know they’re so proud of you. Thank you, Max, for saving me tonight. You make me feel safe,” Nora says with a smile.

“You should get some rest. You’ll feel better for it,” I mutter. I’d love to talk to her all night, but it’s too dangerous. Already I’m close to the surface. It’s getting harder being Max around her. I need her so badly, I need to see her wet for me. The way she pleasured herself when my eyes were on her. I want her to call out my name when she comes.

I thought she was about to protest, to say that she wasn’t tired, but then a yawn escapes, and I turn off the light. I must have lain in the darkness for a few minutes when I hear her breathing slow down, and soon she’s asleep.

Once I’m sure she’s deeply asleep, I quietly get out of the bed. I have business to deal with. She’ll be safe here in my absence.

Chapter 15

Nora

Idon’t know if it was the shock of last night’s events, Max’s comforting presence beside me, or perhaps the awesome black-out curtains he had, but I sleep in far later than normal. If it wasn’t for Josef practically sitting on my face, balefully mewing, demanding breakfast, I might have slept even longer.

Max must be as tired as I was since he’s fast asleep on the bed beside me. Still fully dressed and wearing last night’s clothes. As my eyes adjust to the dim morning light, I linger on his handsome face. Even in sleep he seems tense and ready to snap to attention at a moment’s notice. I wonder if that’s part of his Army training or if the events of last night have taken their toll on him.

Watching him beat Mike like that has shaken me. On the one hand, I’m grateful he saved me, but it was also scary to witness him lose control like that. There’s a deep rage that Max hides behind his charming personality.

Not wanting to wake him, I slowly ease out of bed, tiptoeing for the door. I quickly feed my demanding cat. Josef doesn’t seem to be bothered by the change in scenery, especially now that he’s got food. I, on the other hand, feel decidedly uncertain.

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