“Get into bed, Tee. I’ll be right there.”
I didn’t really think about the fact that Louis and I would be sleeping in the same bed. We hadn’t done that since we were kids, and this time we were definitely not innocent. Sleeping together like this almost felt more intimate than all the sex we’d just had, and I wasn’t sure my heart could survive it. At the same time, I wasn’t prepared to let him go yet, so I would just have to deal with it. I usually slept naked, because clothes annoyed me in bed, and since we’d just had a shit-ton of sex, I figured I might as well be comfortable.
Once I was properly dry—I used magic on my hair—I slipped beneath the covers, snuggling into the warm bed. The fire was starting to die down, and I didn’t bother to add more magic, because I didn’t like my room too hot when I slept.
Despite my nerves over sharing a bed with Louis, exhaustion won out as my eyes fluttered shut and I sank even deeper into the comfortable mattress. Sometime later, the bed dipped slightly and I felt his energy wrap around me.
His power was so strong it followed the damned sorcerer around like an entourage.
My body was tense, despite my half-asleep state, as I waited to see what he would do. A strong arm snaked around my middle, dragging me across the bed and into him. He’d pulled on soft pajama pants, and I wasn’t sure if I was relieved or not.
His hand slipped around my front and pressed possessively, his fingers stopping short of the place that ached for him. “Didn’t take you for a naked sleeper,” he said, close to my ear.
I relaxed back against him, forcing myself not to arch and slide those fingers a little closer to where I wanted them. “Yes, have been for most of my adult life. Clothes are annoying.”
His chest rumbled against my back as he laughed. “Fine by me if you want to ditch them permanently. Of course, you’ll never be able to leave the house, or have any friends….”
He trailed off and I could tell he was pleased with that suggestion. “Never gonna happen, Louis. You get to control me a little during sex, but in the rest of my life you get no say.”
His hold tightened on me, but he didn’t reply. I felt the predatory nature taking him over as he staked his claim on me. “You weren’t sure about the bond, remember?” I said breathlessly, because his fingers were stroking me softly.
His teeth sank into my shoulder and I shuddered, spreading my legs a little further. He was turning me into a sex addict. I couldn’t seem to get enough.
“I want you,” he said, so softly I almost missed it. “I’m not sure I can let you go, even though it’s the worst fucking idea ever to mate with someone like me. I’m not good for you, for anyone.”
“Fuck,” I groaned. “I don’t want you to be with me just because of this bond.”
But if he moved his hand right now, I would kill him. Two fingers slid inside, while his thumb stroked across me.
“It’s not just the bond, Elizabeth, and you know it.”
I didn’t know anything in that moment, because his expert fingers had me in my new favorite place. As he continued to stroke me, my mind turned into a dizzying sensation of pleasure before I cried out, my body tightening around him. When I was done, I let out a low groan and chuckle. “I think it might be safer if I put underwear on at least.”
Louis made an annoyed sound but didn’t protest when I magicked some underwear bottoms from my drawer nearby. I didn’t bother with a top, because that really would annoy me, but I could do panties.
I remembered what Louis had said about the bond, about it being more than that. He’d used my full name, which he only did when he was serious. “We can talk about the bond tomorrow,” I said around a huge yawn. I wasn’t sure what he did after that, because darkness dragged me under. Apparently all a girl needed for a good night’s sleep was half a dozen or more orgasms. Good to know.
17
Louis
She slept like the dead, barely stirring even when I pulled her back against me. I was tired as well; the last week had been hell without her, and I’d barely slept. I wanted to just feel her in my arms. To touch her soft skin.
This night had been more than I ever expected. I guess I’d never really let myself imagine being with her, so I shouldn’t have had any expectations, but somehow I had. And this blew them all out of the water. She had shattered under my hands, her body so responsive. I was getting hard just thinking about it.
It amused me as well, the way she challenged me. Four orgasms. That would be a short night between us if I had anything to do with it. In her sleep, she turned toward me, snuggling in closer, and my heart did some sort of fucking stupid twirl in my chest. Tee knew how to bury herself under my skin; she’d been doing it since we were children, but it was only now I realized just how deep her hold was.
You cemented the bond further. What the hell did you expect?
I’d been too weak to stay away from her, and now, whether she realized it or not, she belonged to me. I would never let her go.
Eventually I buried my head into her luscious hair, which I was probably scarily obsessed with, and sleep dragged me under. I had not slept soundly for many years, since before Regina was murdered, and I expected the nightmares to jerk me from sleep, but I didn’t stir until I sensed someone on the edge of Tee’s wards. She’d done a very good job at securing her property, and if she wasn’t so asleep right now, I knew she would be sensing the alert too. I didn’t move immediately, because I knew who was outside, and those handsy bastards could wait a few minutes. Their presence bothered me though, so eventually I slipped out of bed and shut down the ward alarms so they wouldn’t wake Tee.
Striding across to the front door, I opened it before I even got there. Three bears stood on the other side, eyeballing the hell out of me.
“What are you doing here?” I bit out, sending power with those words. The three of them flinched, but they didn’t move.
The tallest stepped a little further forward. “Elizabeth is a member of our family, and even though she said stay away, I don’t fucking trust you, mage. We’re here to check on her.”
