Lily glared at him before she relented. “Fine. Come in.” She stepped back so he could do so, then closed the door behind him.
Declan stepped inside when she moved out of the doorway. “Nice place.”
The apartment had an open floor plan that allowed visitors to see the entire front of it without effort. There were two doors, one that led to the bathroom and the other was her bedroom. Her furniture was old but in good condition and it looked comfortable. There were splashes of color throughout the space, from the blue and gold throw pillows on the sofa to the butter-yellow cabinet doors in the kitchen. Wood floors stretched from one end to the other, and small area rugs added warmth and color to them, as well. “Thank you. Can I get you something to drink?” She might be irritated with him showing up at her door but she wouldn’t be rude.
“What have you got?”
“Coffee, tea, beer?”
“Beer. Woman after my own heart.” He winked at her and chuckled.
She rolled her eyes and grabbed two bottles from the fridge. She would much rather be drinking the wine but she wasn’t going to drink that with Declan there. Maybe she’d have a few glasses after he left. “I know you think our conversation isn’t over but you’re wrong about that.” She handed him one of the bottles before taking a drink of her own.
“Babe. I am never wrong, about anything.” He smirked and took a swig of his beer. “I also always get what I want so you might as well just give up now.”
“You’re an arrogant bastard, aren’t you?” She sat in the comfortable chair she had and motioned him to the sofa. “You might as well sit.”
He chuckled. “Yes, I am, with good reason.” He didn’t seem the least bit fazed by her words. He sat and watched her a moment. “He’s a fucking idiot.”
“Who?” Lily frowned at his comment.
“That human you’re dating. Only a fucking idiot would walk away from an offer to spend the night in your bed.”
“You were eavesdropping on our conversation?” A growl slipped from her and her eyes narrowed at him.
“Of course I was. I needed to know what you were saying.”
“That was a private conversation. You had no right to listen to it.”
“Listen, doll, the sooner you realize I don’t give a shit if something I do pisses you off, the better. I’m here for a reason. Your father sent me after you. I made him a promise and I am a man of my word. I’m not leaving until I finish the job.”
Her eyes narrowed at him. “Did my father tell you why I left?”
“He said he gave you some kind of ultimatum you didn’t like and you took off in the middle of the night.”
“Leave it to my father to only give part of the information,” she said with a soft growl. “See, here’s the deal. My father is the Alpha and I am his only child. Several months before he pushed me to the point I chose to leave, he decided that, as the only child of the pack’s Alpha, it was my duty to settle down with a fellow shifter and have lots of babies with the hopes of me having at least one male child so he would have an heir. Normally that might not be such a big deal, right? Well, it is when you are given no say in who you are to take to your bed. My father chose two of the dominant males in the pack, the two he felt were worthy of me, and told me to choose between them. One is someone I don’t get along well with, and the other is someone I have no romantic interests in. He refused to listen to reason, and when I continued to refuse to choose, he forced my hand. He told me I had until the full moon to make my choice or he would do it for me. I chose to leave instead.”
“He fucking tried to force a bond between you and another pack member?”
Lily was startled by his snarl. It was a bit over the top but at the same time it made her feel warm. She pushed that feeling down and tried to ignore it. “Yes, he tried to force a bond. I will not go back there just to have him try to force me to choose someone I am not drawn to.”
“I wouldn’t let that happen.”
“How, pray tell, would you stop it? Challenge him for Alpha?”
“If need be.”
Lily stared at him. Why would he even say such a thing? “You’re crazy. Go home, Declan. Tell my father whatever you want to tell him, but just go. New Orleans is my home now.” She was struggling with her attraction to him, and the longer he stayed in New Orleans, the harder it would be to fight it.
“I already told you, Lily, I’m not leaving without you. I know you feel it—the attraction between us. It’s not just because we’re both shifters and you know it. So why fight it?” He moved off the sofa and was suddenly in front of her. He leaned down, invading her personal space, and breathed her in. “Fuck, you smell so damn good.”
Lily’s eyes closed at the growl that escaped him, and she felt a small shiver work it’s way down her back. “I’m with someone I care very much about, someone who makes me happy and doesn’t expect me to live up to the standards society has for women. That’s why.” She tried to push conviction into her tone but she wasn’t sure if she succeeded. Her fingers itched to trace his jaw, and she curled her hands into fists in her lap to keep from reaching out to touch him.
“A relationship that can’t fulfill all your needs, because you can’t share a core part of yourself with him, one with an idiot who went home when he could have you under him right this very minute. That’s really what you’re going to cling to?”
“What I do or don’t do in my personal life is none of your damn business, Declan. I think you should go. Please. Just go.” What she really wanted to do was strip and beg him to fuck her, but she refused to betray Keith’s trust in such a way. She refused to hurt him like that. She refused to give in to animal instincts.
“Not yet,” he said before he gripped her face in his hands and crashed his mouth down on hers.
