Hanging my head, I waved for him to continue. “Go ahead. I think I already know what this is going to be about.”
He waited for me to look at him, and he shook his head when I did. “Did you actually think you’d be able to kill my brother at that meeting?”
Truthfully, I didn’t think I would get as far as I did.
“I don’t want him to underestimate me, Seth. You’re not the only one who can get what they want. Nikolai got a taste of how far I’ll go and what I’ll do to get there.”
Seth clasped my face in his hands. “Just promise me you won’t do anything like that again.”
Guilt spread through me. I wanted to tell him about my conversation with Nikolai, but the words wouldn’t come out. That could’ve been another part of Nikolai’s plan. He probably wanted me to tell Seth to rile him up and get him to act on his anger. Luckily, Seth wasn’t irrational like his brother. That was how I knew Nikolai would fail.
Seth’s grip on my face tightened. “Promise me, Wren. I don’t want you going after my brother. I don’t know what I’d do if anything happened to you.”
In that moment, I realized that I was doing what I’d never thought I’d do in a million years; my feelings for him were getting deeper every second I was with him.
“I promise,” I said.
Seth rubbed his thumbs gently over my cheeks, his gaze full of heat. “Do you have any idea what I want to do with you right now?”
I bit my lip and smiled. “I have a few guesses.”
He nodded toward the house. “Care to join me?”
Before we could go inside, Stefan appeared around the side of the house, his steps were determined as he thundered toward us.
“I tried to apologize to him,” I said in a low voice, “but he wasn’t having any of it.”
Seth chuckled under his breath and slid his arm around my waist. “I talked to him about it. His ego is hurt, but he said you impressed him. I wouldn’t count on him talking to you anytime soon.”
My smile faltered the closer Stefan got; I could tell something was wrong. When I glanced down at my watch, it was a few minutes after midnight. My gut clenched, and I held my breath as Stefan stopped in front of Seth.
“We spotted a car down the road, but they left a few minutes ago. I’m almost certain it was one of your brother’s guys.”
Seth’s arm tensed around me. “Keep looking out. I want you to get me the moment another car comes by.” Stefan nodded and turned on his heel, marching back toward the front of the house. Seth sighed and took my hand. “If only I knew what my brother had up his sleeve. When he wants to go after someone, he does it in a deranged, fucked-up way. I’ve never understood his way of thinking.”
Again, I wanted to tell him, but it would only make things worse. We walked inside and down the hall to his bedroom. The room smelled like his cologne, and it was intoxicating.
I clutched his face and pressed my lips to his, feeling the tension evaporate from his body.
“Right now, I don’t want to think about your shithead brother or any other danger that’s lurking around the corner. All I want is to feelyou.”
Eyes dark with need, he picked me up in his arms. “You sure?”
I wrapped my arms around his neck. “Yes.”
Seth laid me down on the soft mattress of his king-sized bed, and as I sunk into its plushness, I inhaled his musky scent that seemed to linger everywhere. The room was dark except for strips of light from the hallway spilling in through the slightly ajar door, but I could still make out Seth’s face which was illuminated by its faint glimmer. His gaze burned with raw desire as he stared down at me.
Kicking off my shoes, I shuffled further up onto the bed and nestled into one of his pillows. Seth followed suit and crawled onto the bed beside me, propped up on his elbow. He ran a finger along the hem of my shirt, lightly grazing my skin underneath, sending a flock of chill bumps scattering across my body which produced a satisfied smirk on his lips.
“I love that I can do that to you.”
My core swelled at the thought and I bit my lip, knowing full well what it really did to me.
As if sensing my arousal, Seth rolled himself over the top of me and wedged his knee between my legs, parting them. His golden-hazel eyes scorched into mine with unbridled passion as he brought his mouth down over mine in a gentle yet demanding kiss that deepened quickly as our tongues entwined together.
“I want you so fucking bad,” he rasped.
“Then take me,” I breathed back.
