Page 61 of Unravel Me

For a second I just stay there, enjoying the closeness, as warmth floods through me. My hands automatically land on his biceps, and the feeling is incredible. They're solid, rounded, practically bulging beneath my fingertips. I have nice biceps too, but he’s on another level…

Holy shit! This can't be happening, but I'm getting hard.

Everyone knows that during heat recovery, sexual arousal is extremely rare. It's supposed to be the body's time to heal after an intensely sexual period, when desire drops almost to nothing, especially since certain parts are usually swollen and overly sensitive. Although, I have to admit, I don't seem to have that problem this time, which is pretty shocking in itself.

My erection is answered almost immediately… by another one. Even with the difference in our height, I can feel him against my lower abdomen, pressing lightly into me, while Mauro's eyes stay locked on mine. There's unequivocal hunger in that gaze; he isn't shy about it. His fingers slide from my waist to my hips, and with a subtle movement, he pulls my hips closer to his. The meaning behind it couldn't be any clearer, but at that exact moment Veyron speaks, after staring at us with his mouth hanging open.

"Jared… could I talk to you in private for a minute? If that's okay, of course?"

Pulling myself away from Mauro takes far more effort than it should. He lets out a low, warning growl, fixing Veyron with a hard stare.

"Sure. No problem. We can talk," I say, because I know this man drove twelve hours just to make sure I was safe, and it would be pretty unfair not to give him even a few minutes of my time.

I take a step back from Mauro and say in a soft voice, "I need to talk to him for a minute."

Mauro's full lips press into a tight line, but he doesn't stop me when I slip past him and head toward the patio. The dizziness hits again, and I have to pause by the sliding glass door for a moment before I can keep going.

Once we're outside, Veyron carefully slides the door shut behind us. Mauro immediately takes up position on the other side of the glass, watching both of us as though he's standing guard, obviously making sure nothing inappropriate happens.

Veyron lets out a quiet sigh. "Are you absolutely sure you want to stay here, Jared? These people are… intense, to say the least."

I lean against one of the rattan chairs on the patio to steady myself, since the world is still spinning.

"Unfortunately, I don't think I'm in any shape to spend half a day in a car while I'm recovering from heat, but yeah, I have to admit these people are… unusual. They all act like they already know me, and that's pretty weird."

"I was actually about to ask you about that. That older omega, Silvio… have you ever met him before?"

"No. Never. I saw him for the first time when Renato introduced him as his dad. I honestly don't even know how he could've overheard my conversation with Alex, because everything he knew could only have come from that call."

"Actually, that part has a pretty simple explanation." Veyron points toward the house. "He could've been standing on the staircase. He came down those stairs for breakfast afterward, so he might've already been up there listening while you were talking. It's close enough to the living room."

I glance toward the stairs. That's actually a good point. Maybe there wasn't anything supernatural about that after all.

"Okay… yeah, he could've overheard everything. But that still doesn't explain why they're all acting so friendly or why they're trying so hard to keep me here. It's… a little unsettling."

Veyron tilts his head slightly, studying me in silence. I can practically see his mind working through every detail, like his detective instincts are waking back up.

"Can you walk me through what actually happened during those three days, Jared? Where were you?"

I close my eyes. Somehow I feel ridiculously embarrassed talking about it.

"Like I said, I went into heat while I was deep in the forest. There was… someone there who helped me." I press my lips together and look away, heat creeping into my face. "This is going to sound really weird, so just bear with me. That… someone wasn't human."

Veyron stares at me with his mouth slightly open before finally speaking.

"You're right. That is really weird. Are you sure nothing else happened out there? Some kind of intoxication? There are all kinds of plants in those woods. Maybe you accidentally ingested something?"

"Believe me, I've wondered the exact same thing. I've seriously considered whether I hallucinated all of it. But I really did spend three days completely cut off from civilization! Then, I woke up this morning, that… entity was gone. I simply can't explain what happened."

Veyron scratches his chin thoughtfully.

"What did this being look like?"

"Weird. Like… some kind of forest spirit. Completely green, woven together with vines and stems, glowing like he was surrounded by an aura of magic, tiny little sparks. I couldn't make out his face very clearly because it shimmered the whole time, but when I touched him, his body felt exactly like a normal alpha's."

Veyron goes quiet again, staring off into the distance before rubbing his jaw.

"How tall was he? What kind of build?"