“That you’re messy.” I laughed. “You threw that shirt on the ground like it was nothing. Just like your desk in your room.”
He sounded embarrassed. “You weren’t supposed to see that.”
“Crystal said the maid doesn’t see it either.”
He huffed. “What’s your point?”
“Nothing. I just think it’s kind of endearing,” I said honestly. “You’re so well put-together and proud, like nothing can get in your way. You’re kind of strict. And the rest of the house is spotless.”
I dug my thumbs deeper into Eric’s back, where a tight knot lay hidden beneath the surface of his skin.
“So it’s just kind of funny that it’s a mess behind your door,” I continued. “Plus the fact that you use kids shampoo. It’s cute.”
Eric began to retort, but my thumbs dug deep into his lower back, and the words melted into a loud groan. The sound startled me--and I think it startled him, too, because he immediately tensed again.
“Relax,” I instructed.
He grumbled something, then loosened up.
“What was that?” I asked.
“I said I’m notcute.”
I grinned behind his back. “Sure you are. What’s wrong with being cute?”
“I’m an alpha, and the leader of West Pack,” he growled.
I rolled my eyes and gave him a hard dig to unfurl the knot in his shoulder, making Eric groan again. “And your point is?”
He had no smart reply for that. I snorted.
“You’re really just a softie, aren’t you?” I teased.
Eric whirled around. With the same speed that his wolf used to pin me down at the beach, his arms came down at my sides as I yelped and fell back onto the bed. He towered over me, his face over mine, blocking out the light.
“You’re really testing me, aren’t you?” he growled.
For one brief second, I had a flash of fear, thinking that I had really upset him. But then I saw the curls in the corners of his lips. He was smirking at me.
Something fluttered in my chest. My cheeks grew warm. Eric was pinning me down, the same way he had before to teach Ramsay and Colton a lesson, but this time it felt much more intimate.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and managed to reply, “Maybe.”
Eric’s eyes raked over my face and down my body, studying me. His energy was wholly different than when he first walked in the front door. The fatigue was gone, replaced with… something else.
Eric didn’t move, his arms still pinning me to the bed. My heart began beating faster. Was it getting hotter in the room?
Eric inhaled deeply, shutting his eyes. In the moment his eyes were shut, my gaze flicked down, and I forced myself to swallow back a yelp of surprise.
Underneath his pyjamas, he was hard.
Oh.
He wasn’t the only one.
“I don’t know what to do with you,” Eric murmured.
“What d’you mean?”
