Page 75 of Atlas
I had rhythm, and dancing was easy for me, but River was taking things to a different level with the way she moved her hips and showed off her eight years of dance classes. The men in the bar had now turned around to ogle my sister openly, and that, in combination with Nathan’s moving in on Jolene, stressed me out.
When Nathan’s hand lifted to tuck a strand of Jolene’s blond hair back, and he tightened his hold around the small of her back, I almost wanted to push my brother into the wall and tell him not to touch her.
Fuck, I needed to get myself under control. There was no harm in them dancing. Nathan was a good guy. He would never hurt Jolene.
But he would hurt me.The thought came like a howl from a wounded wolf inside me. That dark creature that I avoided and suppressed, but always knew existed, was pushing at my inner walls, provoked from seeing another man’s hands touch Jolene’s skin.
It felt like the music was offbeat, and the lights had dimmed since we began dancing. Blinking my eyes, I refocused, but despite other couples cramming the dance floor, it was like they had all moved away, and a spotlight shone down on Jolene and Nathan.
Their prolonged eye contact, the close body contact between them, and the way they seemed to talk and laugh like old friends taunted the envious, primitive creature inside me. I had fought the dark part of me for years, but this time he was in a fit of rage that I hadn’t seen before. With my nostrils flaring and my skin feeling like fire ants were crawling up my back, I sensed my control slipping
Mine! Jolene is mine!
My only chance to control the situation was to leave, but before I had a chance to do that, I found myself striding over to Jolene, and pulling her along with me.
The pragmatic, sensible part of me that was usually in control stood horrified to see a different part of me behaving like a brute with the way I pulled Jolene out of the bar and into the small alley next to it.
“What’s wrong?” Jolene asked, but my inner beast wasn’t a talker. Turning around to face her, I cupped her face with a firm grip and kissed her in the most raw and domineering way possible.
Jolene’s eyes widened, but she didn’t fight me. I had fantasized about doing this, and now that I had her where I wanted her, I couldn’t stop. She gasped when I fisted a hand into her hair and forced her head back so I could suck and kiss her throat. The primal beast inside me was going for the kill and sucking hard; I marked her as mine.
She gasped when I bent down to pick her up on my hips and pushed her against the brick wall.
If this century-old alley could talk, it would, no doubt, tell stories of couples throughout the decades making out in the shadows. Our story was one of untamed hunger unleashed. There was no charm, teasing, or flirting involved. My kisses were deep, demanding, and punishing at the same time.
“Atlas… what…” Jolene was out of breath and spoke into my mouth. I silenced her by biting into her lower lip. Talking, would bring back the reasonable man in me, but my beast wasn’t done consuming her.
I tasted her neck, and the place behind her ear, and I licked across her throat before I returned to kiss her with my mouth open and my tongue entering her mouth like it belonged there.
This time she kissed me back, her fingers boring into my shoulders, her breathing as ragged as mine.
I growled low with satisfaction. I liked it raw and untamed, but I wanted Jolene to want me too.
“What the fuck are you doing?”
I turned my head to see Nathan and Maximum watching us from the end of the alley with music playing behind them. “Are you out of your mind? Put her down.” Nathan walked fast and spoke with anger in his voice.
I stepped back, letting Jolene down so her feet could touch the ground. Before Nathan could reach us, I’d pushed her behind me.
“Jo, are you okay?” His face was full of worry. “Did he hurt you?”
His question made me frown and turn to see Jolene through his eyes. Her skirt was pushed high enough that I could see her panties, and her silk shirt hung crooked and half out. But the worst part was her smeared lipstick, and the dark marks from my sucking on her neck. She looked like a battered woman, and I had done that.
I widened my eyes and started shaking. What the fuck had I done?
“I’m fine, Nathan. He didn’t hurt me.” Jolene’s words hung in the night air as I backed away, shaking my head and muttering apologies.
CHAPTER 18
Picking Up Pieces
Jolene
Long after River fell asleep, I lay awake, listening for any sounds of Atlas coming back to the house. I’d replayed the scene from earlier in my mind a thousand times, and each time, warmth spread between my legs. Never had I experienced such an all-consuming desire directed toward me. It had taken my breath away and soothed my pride for all the times that I’d felt rejected by him.
If only we hadn’t been interrupted.
I was trying to imagine what would have happened if Nathan hadn’t showed up.
