Page 6 of Tracked By Hound

Chapter Three

Chelsea

For the second time in less than a day, I find myself frozen to the floor, unsure of what to do. Hound is in bed, and naked from the looks of it.

Does that mean he expects us to share the same bed? But I’ve never shared a bed with anyone before, let alone a man. Thanks to my overprotective brother, I’ve never so much as kissed a boy before, and now I’m going to skip all those steps to…sleep with a man?

Sure, the man in question is built like a god. He has arms the size of tree trunks covered in gorgeous tattoos and a face most men would kill to have, but isn’t sharing a bed with someone you just met a giant leap? All I know about him is his name, and that he…kills people.

I chew on my bottom lip as I consider that this man might expect something from me. Some kind of reward for the inconvenience of not killing my brother.

“Chelsea.”

My eyes shoot up from the naked tattooed chest to the man’s eyes. “Huh?”

“Is something the matter?” he asks, sitting up, which sends the covers slipping down his defined abs to pool at his waist. The move reveals more of the man, and I blush fiercely, trying andfailing not to stare at those sculpted abs. And then there’s that V-line that disappears into the covers.

Oh God! I hiss at my own thoughts, forcing my eyes from him. “You’re…um, sleeping here?”

Hound is quiet for a long time, so I brave a look only to find those steely gray eyes trained on me. “I should have considered that you would be uncomfortable sharing a bed with a stranger,” he says, pushing off the covers to reveal that he was, in fact, not naked under the sheets. I wince at my own disappointment at revelation. “You can sleep here, and I’ll take the couch—”

“No!” I blurt out, as surprised by my own outburst as he clearly is. Hound raises a brow as if expecting me to explain, but I have nothing. A few minutes ago, I was panicking from the thought of sharing a bed with a man for the first time in my life, and now what? I don’t want him to leave?

This man is dangerous. I saw it with my own eyes what he’s capable of, and yet, I feel the safe around him. The time he left me to go speak to his president was nerve-wrecking, and everything fell into place when he walked back in through the door a half an hour later. It didn’t make sense to me then, it doesn’t now, but all I know is that I feel safe around him.

No, I don’t want him to leave.

“Chelsea?”

“Stay,” I say, flushing at my own suggestion. Confused by it too. “It’s…um, there’s no reason for you to sleep on the couch when there’s a perfectly big enough bed here…”

“I’m fine—”

“And also, I’m not familiar with this place so I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep alone.” Not entirely true, but close enough.

Hound stares at me for a while which wrecks my nerves further, and it feels like forever before he nods. “I’ll stay,” he says, climbing back into bed. I try to keep my eyes firmly on his face but find them slipping to his abs, my pulse racing as they dip down…

Nope, not doing that!

“Okay, it’s good that you’re staying,” I blurt out before I can catch myself. I flush, mortified by my own reaction as I scramble to grab my bag. “I’ll, um…get dressed in the bathroom.”

I walk into the bathroom to get ready for bed, taking my sweet time to get dressed. There are nerves swirling wildly in the pit of my gut before I realize that stalling only adds to them. I tidy up after myself before creeping back into the bedroom, surprised by the disappointment that sets in when I find Hound already asleep. I tiptoe to the empty side of the bed and climb in, eyeing Hound for any movement, but he doesn’t stir. The sheets are cool against my skin, and I sigh at the feeling before turning to glance at the man sleeping next to me.

He sleeps on his back with an arm under his head, a position that exposes more of his muscles. The soft rhythm of his breathing fills the quiet room, and I allow myself to stare at him for a while as I wait for sleep to take over.

For a criminal, Hound sure is handsome, and I find myself wondering how I would have reacted if he’d shown up at the store and approached me. If he’d flirted with me. Would I have flirted back? I doubt I would have even know what to say given that I’ve never really tried before.

With a soft sigh, I turn away and close my eyes, willing my brain to shut down for the night, but…nothing happens. I sit upto fluff the pillow and tuck the covers around me before sliding back down and waiting for sleep to carry me away.

Any time now…

It takes me approximately ten minutes to realize there’ll be no sleep happening tonight, at least not for me. I turn to stare enviously at the dosing man next to me, wanting him to be as nervous and restless as I am, but then again, he didn’t find out that his brother stole half a million dollars from the scariest MC in the tri-state area before being used as collateral. Of course he would sleep like a baby without any worries in the world.

The devil on my shoulder suggests I kick at the covers and wake the man so we can both be miserable, but I question if I’m ready to deal with a sleep-deprived club enforcer. Probably not.

With another sigh, I shift my position, turning onto my back to stare up at the ceiling in hopes of finding the solution to my sleeplessness there. The clock on the nightstand ticks softly in the background, each second stretching into eternity. The mattress creaks slightly when I flip over to my side, hoping the change will coax sleep to my weary mind, but it only brings more frustration.

Okay, this is not working!

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