Bijou held her breath, willed him to let himself go.
When he finally did, she felt an echo of pleasure shoot through her lower extremities. Not wanting him to know she’d seen him, Bijou hurried to her bedroom, closing the door behind her.
And as she brought herself to orgasm with her trusty pink vibrator, she closed her eyes and thought of Oliver, wondering…
What if?
Chapter Thirty-Four
Sunday, November 17, 2019
Eclipse awoke to the sound of aphone ringing.
Knowing it wasn’t his, he rolled over, reached for Orianna, nudged her shoulder. “Sezari.”
“Hmm?”
“Your phone’s ringing.”
She bolted upright like he’d taken an electrical wire to her skin. He sensed her panic, smelled her fear, and it had sleep crumbling away as he pushed himself upright, leaning against the headboard. The wood was cold against his back, and he peered over to see the flames from the fire had subsided while they were asleep. He was tempted to get it going again but held off when Orianna answered the call.
“Mom? Are you all right?”
Eclipse couldn’t help it, his hearing was too acute not to catch the words coming through the phone. The panic in Orianna’s mother’s voice was evident when she requested Orianna come home immediately. Apparently, Orianna’s father was threatening to have her committed to a hospital for treatment—drugs, he surmised, based on the slur in her mother’s words—and Elizabeth feared he was trying to take the house.
“Mom, it’ll take me some time to get there, but I’m on my way.” Orianna paused, listened. “I know, Mom. I’ll hurry. It’s a nine-hour drive.”
Eclipse knew from the sound of Orianna’s voice, she wasn’t going to listen to reason. Despite the danger that resided outside the walls of the mansion, she was going to see her mother, with or without him. Which meant Eclipse was going with her.
He immediately thought of Asmia, of the mission they were on to locate the Fae and bring her home. It had been their sole focus since the day Perfidious had pulled his shit-tastic snatch and grab. But while he wanted to dedicate all his attention to Asmia, he couldn’t put her above Orianna. It wasn’t the way he was programed, no matter how shitty it seemed.
Eclipse waited patiently for her to finish the conversation, to disconnect, to set the phone down.
“I’ll take you,” he said softly, his mind whirling with things he needed to take care of before they hit the road.
Orianna twisted, peered back at him over her shoulder. “You’ve got so much going on here.”
There was fear and anguish in her eyes, and it broke his heart to see her in pain.
“You’re my priority,sezari. Where you go, I go.”
Orianna shook her head. “Eclipse … I can get there faster if you stay here. I can’t afford to stop for the daylight and since…”
“Your argument won’t change my mind,” he told her, his voice firm.
Eclipse saw the relief on her face, and warmth spread through him. It humbled him to know she wanted him at her side. Despite this whirlwind they’d been spinning in for the past month, they were growing closer. Minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day. Having Orianna at his side made it easier to breathe, to exist, even if neither of them knew what the next night would bring.
“I need to talk to Obsidian,” he told her as he dropped his legs over the side of the bed. “Why don’t you shower and get ready.”
She nodded and wasted no time heading to the bathroom.
Eclipse dragged on his jeans from that morning and snagged his T-shirt. He pulled it on as he stepped out into the hallway. He could hear voices coming from the third-floor living area. He padded barefoot down the hall, turned the corner, and found Obsidian and Stygian reclined on the sofas, staring at the television.
He figured ripping the Band-Aid clean off was the best approach. “I’m taking Orianna to Oklahoma. Something’s up with her mother and she wants to go.”
Obsidian sat up, worry instantly pulling his face tight.
“I know the dangers,” he assured his brother. “I’ll protect her.”
