He took a moment to get himself under control, eyeing the clock and coming to a decision. He made sure not to broadcast his thoughts as he walked back around his desk to close his computer down. He was done with work for the day. He needed to get rid of his frustration, and he knew exactly where and who was going to help. Enough was enough, no more pussyfooting around.
In his part of the house, after going via the cellar to grab a bottle of their oldest champagne, Thorn went into the well-equipped kitchen and found two old wine goblets that Ledger had gushed over. He placed them on a tray with the champagne bottle.
Next, he went to the fridge and eyed the fruit selection. He made fast work creating an exotic fruit salad and placed the bowl on the tray too, along with a small plate of cheese pieces to complement the wine.
Giving himself a mental high-five, he smirked and went to the cupboard where he had hidden something that had arrived just the day before. The To’ak chocolate was like a vintage wine and aged like a whiskey. It was sourced from an Ecuadorian cacao, considered the best and rarest cacao variety on earth. It also happened to be Ledger’s favorite, not that he treated himself often because of the cost. Thorn had bought a considerable amount—he’d bought out the wholesaler—to sweeten up his mate, something he would never tell his brothers.
He picked two different flavors that worked with the fruit, then carried the tray through his home and into their bathroom. He placed the tray on the small table he used to hold a wine glass on those occasions he liked to relax in the bath at the end of the day.
The sun was setting beyond the large window, but the air was still warm, so he opened the doors to allow in the fragrant scent from the vines. Going to the large tub, he sprinkled in thelavender bath salts, another favorite of Ledger’s, and ran the bath.
Calculating the time, he eyed the bathroom and the candles sitting around the base of the tub. With the flames flickering in the soft breeze, Thorn walked back into their bedroom, removing his tie and throwing it on the bed before stripping off his shirt and toeing off his shoes. He was down to his boxer briefs when he sensed Ledger enter the house.
He quickly darted into the bathroom, removing his underwear and turning off the water. Checking the temperature with his hand, he climbed in. The scented steam wafted about him as he groaned in appreciation, placing his head on the bath cushion as he heard a door to his part of the house open and then close.
He shut his eyes and worked to relax his large body, especially his shoulders that felt like he’d dug stones into the muscles. His senses attuned to Ledger, he knew the second he walked silently into the bathroom. He resisted opening his eyes as he heard the air hiss between Ledger’s teeth.
Chapter Nine
Ledger
He’d taken a breath before he’d opened the door into their part of the house, willing himself to hold on to his resolve to prove a point to Thorn. A week and he was ready to crumble faster thana paper tent in a rainstorm. His body instantly reacted to the scents inside the room where Thorn spent most of his time.
Why can’t I block his smell the same way I can block his thoughts?he grumbled to himself, walking through the empty room in search of Thorn. Ledger knew he was somewhere close, the blood thrumming through his veins attested to that.
He stripped off his jacket and threw it over the back of a chair as he toed off his shoes and continued on, figuring exactly where Thorn was, the fucker.
A pause in the doorway to the bathroom and Ledger knew his battle with abstaining was futile.
“You don’t play fair!” he gripped half heartedly when he felt a giddy burst of affection at the scene before him. It was so romantic that Ledger couldn’t find fault, especially at the label on the bottle of sparkling wine and his favourite chocolate waiting for him on a decorative tray beside the tub.
Thorn peeked at him from under his long, dark eyelashes, and Ledger caught the sparkle of delight before they shut once more.
Ledger’s lips twitched in amusement. The reality was he couldn’t hold on to his aggravation. He loosened his tie, leaving it dangling around his neck while his gaze roamed over the gorgeous body on display in the pale lilac water that scented the room with lavender.
He tugged off one sock and then the next, throwing them in the direction of the laundry basket, continuing to stand just inside the doorway, making Thorn wait. His fingers went to the buttons of his shirt, his gaze feasting at the delight on display for him. Despite how acutely aware he was of his arousal, it wouldn’t do to fold too fast when Ledger could still easily conjure pictures of the shifters Thorn chose for bed partners.
The lingering insecurity had pushed Ledger to do something he wasn’t proud of. He had questioned Rowan about Louis and Brigg, wanting to know if, in fact, his mate had a type. Whathe’d found was that Thorn had a longish list of conquests from around these parts, and they all resembled the large shifters. That being said, none of them had gotten to come to the winery or, if Rowan was right and Ledger had no reason to doubt him, gotten more than a quick fuck somewhere that wasn’t near Thorn’s home.
It should have made Ledger feel better, reduce the anxiety, except Rowan basically confirming Ledger’s suspicion that his mate had a type did the opposite. He’d tried to reason with himself that everyone had a past, himself included. Thorn’s conquests, though, were right there, shoved in Ledger’s face and exposing the differences between him and them.
Ledger had gone into town on a mission twice in the last week. He’d seen Brigg but not Louis. He didn’t want to admit that he was looking for him, but he definitely was. He wanted to see if the reason he perceived the other man as a threat was actually just because of the few beers he’d had. Brigg’s appearance left Ledger with a sour taste in his mouth, despite how word had gotten around about his mating to Thorn, thanks to Rowan.
He’d gotten stopped several times in town and congratulatedby women. Not one man had approached him. What did that tell him?
You’re thinking too hard. Our mate only wants us!
Ledger really wanted to believe that one hundred percent. Shirt hanging open, Ledger’s hands fisted at his sides at how those insecurities tainted what his mate was trying to do for him—for them.
“I can feel your worry, Sweetling. Talk to me, please?” Thorn begged, finally stopping the act of pretending he was alone. Coming up to sitting, water dripped off the arms resting on the edge of the tub, a worried expression appearing. “For me, there is no one on this planet that compares to you. No one, Sweetling.”
Ledger heaved a sigh, working on the buttons on the cuffs of his sleeves.
“I know.” He did, deep in his soul. In every fibre of his body, except there was no logic that worked to dispel the insecure thoughts that nipped sharply at his heels.
“They’re so different from me,” he confessed, despite how feeble he sounded, because there it was. The truth. It was easier to focus on removing his clothes that meet Thorn’s stare as he continued to watch him undress, remaining silent.
Naked, Ledger walked to the edge of the large tub and his heart fluttered when Thorn effortlessly plucked him right off the floor to place him into the warm, scented water between Thorn’s spread thighs. He kneeled, his gaze somewhere around Thorn’s chin, finding it easier than meeting the disappointed stare.
