Chapter 9
The sun was peekingthrough the limbs of the stately fir trees when they drove up the driveway to Broadmoor.
“Thanks for swinging by my place so I could pick up a few things,” Selena said, shifting the small duffel bag on her lap.
“No problem.”
Although he would never admit it, she could tell he was exhausted. She’d seen him yawn a number of times. The few minutes he’d been exposed to the early morning UV rays had really taken their toll.
“Oh look,” she said, pointing at the lights on in front of the house. “The power is on. You stay here and I’ll open the garage.” No need for him to be in the sun any more than he already had been.
Once inside the house, he sunk to the couch. Even though he protested, she helped him remove his boots and tucked a blanket around him.
“Can I get you anything?”
“I’m not an invalid,” he growled.
“No, but you helped me, and because of that, you’re paying the price.” Selena went around the room, making sure all of the heavy draperies were secured. By the time she was finished, Mateo was fast asleep.
She grabbed a book from the shelf and sat at the other end of the couch near his feet, glad that she didn’t have any catering jobs for the next few days. One reason to be thankful for the slow season.
After reading the same sentence ten or fifteen times, she glanced over at Mateo. A thick strand of hair hung over his face, covering his eyes. Setting her book down, she moved closer, gently brushed it away, then kissed him lightly on the forehead. He looked so peaceful like this, all the worry gone. What she wouldn’t give to see him laughing like he used to. She got emotional thinking about how he’d come all this way to save her and ended up saving her again when she fell. She turned to sit down again, but his hand shot out and circled around her wrist.
Startled, she stifled a gasp. “Mateo?”
He mumbled something she couldn’t quite hear. Then he pulled her down on the couch with him, spooned her from behind, and started snoring.
She let out a long, slow exhale, loving the feel of his arms around her. And damn, he smelled good. Like cedar, sandalwood and man. As she reflected on what she’d learned about this dangerous, new-to-her world, she knew she should be afraid of him, but she wasn’t. On a deep, emotional level, she knew he’d never hurt her. What she did feel with him was safe and protected. A sense of belonging, like being at home. Something that, as she thought about it now, had been missing from her life for a long time.
It didn’t take long until she was fast asleep as well.
She hadn’t intended on taking anything longer than a cat nap, but she must have been more tired than she thought, because she woke hours later to the feel of his warm, broad hand covering her breast. From the sound of his breathing, he was still asleep. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d slept this soundly. Mmmm. So warm. So cuddly. Nestling in closer, she could feel his erection pressing against her. Was it still called morning wood when you woke in the afternoon instead?
The thought of him reaching for her in his sleep stirred a deep, aching need inside her. If she were in her bedroom right now, she’d take out her battery-operated toy and slip it between her legs to relieve this sweet, delicious pressure.
Mateo groaned. She couldn’t tell if he was waking up or if this was just a sleep noise.
“What are you doing?” His breath skimmed her ear, causing goosebumps to form up and down her arms.
“Sleeping. Same as you.”
He kept his hand in place, possessively cupping her breast. “Not the way you’re moving against me, I’m not.”
“Guess you should’ve thought about that first.”
“What are you talking about?” he asked, the sleep gone from his voice.
“You pulled me down and spooned me.”
He stiffened, removed his hand from under her shirt, and hurriedly brushed the hair from her neck. “Is that all I did?”
She turned in his arms to face him and saw the worry and concern lining his forehead. “You didn’t bite me, if that’s what you’re thinking. We slept. And it was nice.” She ran her hands along the hard plane of his chest. “But if you did bite me, I guess you didn’t kill me.”
She was trying to make a joke, but he was not amused. Pushing up on his elbow, he looked down at her. “This isn’t anything to fuck with, Selena. You have no idea what you’re dealing with. I can’t emphasize that enough.”
“My blood?”
Anger flashed in his dark eyes. “And your scent. And your taste. Everything about you. You are the perfect prey. And I am your predator.”
