Page 25 of Breakaway
"Yes," Reese huffs a laughing sound before turning away from me.
Her hair is long and straight down her back, the strands swaying back and forth as she shakes her head. She tugs at the zipper in her top, freeing herself from the tightness before slipping it off her body. I swallow hard, enjoying watching her strip before I think better of it.
"You know, I looked up Sombrans during my break."
"Uh-huh," I respond, too distracted as she shimmies out of the skirt, leaving her standing in the middle of the room in nothing but a pair of bright pink underwear that are pinched perfectly between her ass cheeks. I shouldn't be staring. If she weren't my soulbond, I wouldn't feel any sort of attraction to her at all, and this would all be perfectly fine, perfectlynormal. Instead, my shadows are tightening around my body in anticipation as Reese bends down to step out of the skirt, and our attention is fully focused on one single part of her.
"Do you want to know what I learned?" she asks, standing back up, turning just enough that she can look at me over her shoulder.
There's a brightness in her gaze that has me hardening in an instant. She knows. This wicked woman is torturing me on purpose, and she knows she's doing it.
"Yeah, I think I'd like to know," I say.
My mouth feels dry all of a sudden as she walks toward the rack of clothing, swaying her hips the whole way. She grabs a small, silky-looking robe off a hanger and slips it over her exposed body, closing and knotting the belt before turning to face me. I let my eyes fall down her body, taking in the swell of her breasts under the robe, the way the material parts to give me a glorious tease of her cleavage. My shadows are begging for me to step closer, to allow them all over her, to touch her in ways they haven't been allowed yet.
"It's pretty rare for someone as powerful as you to not be able to read my mind," Reese says. She steps closer to me, prowling like a predator circling her prey, and how I long to be at her mercy.
"It is," I tell her.
My shadows tighten even more against me. I'm surprised they aren't going absolutely insane in their celebration of our Reese, knowing how badly we want her and what it means to be wanted by us. They're nervous it's too good to be true, though, and I don't blame them.
This absolute goddess of a woman is looking at us like we're even remotely close to being in her orbit, and it's a lot to take in. At least before, I could pretend I wasn't telling her she was mysoulbond so I could continue my job. Now I'm worried that I'm not going to be enough for her.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Reese asks as she stops in front of me. Her hands twitch by her sides like she wants to reach out and touch me, but is stopping herself. I wish she wouldn't. I want her hands on me, want her anyway I can have her.
I inhale deeply, dropping any pretense of this being fake. If that's not what she's asking, I'll deal with the consequences, but I'm pretty sure I'm reading this situation correctly.
"If it made you uncomfortable, Kolos would've taken my place, and if you thought I was jealous of a smoke machine, you would've been shocked by how much I wouldn't have been okay with another Sombran touching you in ways only I should."
Reese looks up at me with wide eyes, her makeup making her expression seem even more surprised as the light bounces off the glitter and makes her shimmer.
"Oh wow." She sounds almost surprised by my confession, and for the briefest moment, I'm irritated with myself for telling her so much without knowing if she knew. "So you do want me then? It's not just me imagining it?"
My shadows decide that's good enough of a reassurance for them and lunge for Reese before I can talk them down from overwhelming her. Thankfully, she lets out a high-pitched squeal as they weave around her skin and tug her tight to me until we're barely a breath away from one another. I wish I were in her head, wish I knew if she wanted me to lean down and take her lips against mine, if she wanted me to strip her robe from her, make a mess of her makeup and her hair. Instead, I'm left guessing as my shadows scream at me to do something.
"What have you been imagining?" I ask, my voice barely above a whisper as I lean closer to her, the glow from my eyes reflecting against the iridescent shimmer on her eyelids.
Reese's smile is huge. The red stain on her lips makes me want it to leave marks all over my skin to show everyone that this woman has claimed me.
"I thought I was imagining your boner," she says in a conspiratorial whisper, her eyes glancing down to where our bodies are pressed together, my cock swelling even more at the idea of her noticing it. "That's what made me curious about looking Sombrans up."
"My cock?" I ask, brows rising in amusement.
She huffs and rolls her eyes. "Well, yes, but more so the fact that you said you weren't attracted to me and then when we kissed, you were all hot and bothered."
"I never said I wasn't attracted to you," I say, needing to make that abundantly clear. "I might not have told you I found you attractive, but that's not the same."
"It's pretty much the same," Reese teases, her breath warm against my lips now that she's stretched to her tiptoes.
"Not the same," I whisper, my lips brushing against hers.
One of my shadows, in all his infinite wisdom, strokes against Reese's lower lip, wanting to slip inside her mouth and be the first to feel her there. The sensation startles her, breaking the moment between us, and I, along with the other shadows, mentally scold the one who just ruined things.
Reese steps away just a little, but stays close enough that my shadows can freely move across her skin. She presses her fingers to her lower lip before looking down at the shadows all over her. When she looks up at me, I can't tell if it's horror, confusion, or a little bit of awe.
"So they're really part of this, too?" she asks, the question confusing me for just a moment.
"If you're asking if they want you, the answer is yes," I tell her, watching for her reaction to that.
