AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He didn’t look up to see her nod. “He knows putting you within one hundred feet of me is enough to keep me off-kilter. Given our current situation, it’s enough to keep me oblivious to pretty much everything that’s going on around me.”
Tielle decided to pull back her hand, but Grae strengthened his grip a second before she moved.
“I’ve suspected for a long time that he’s up to something,” he said. “I’ve made moves to confront what he’s got up his sleeve, and I pray I won’t have to use them. My family’s had to deal with enough drama, courtesy of me and Faro. Besides, there’s a lot more I’d rather focus on.”
Tielle watched him studying her fingers. She observed the wicked flex of muscle along his jaw when he traced her ring finger, which was bereft of his adornment.
“Grae…Faro only ever wanted you to be a brother,” she softly encouraged.
“I was.” Grae’s smile was sad. “Just not the brother he wanted.”
“Grae—”
“My family’s terrified of me, Ti.”
“Honey…” She moved closer, her heart breaking on what she heard in his voice. “No…”
“That horse’s ass that masqueraded as your husband for the last eight months of our marriage, he’s gotten worse. Some of them blame you for it.” He pumped her hand. “That only makes me angrier.”
The slow, rumbling breath he expelled stirred the fine hair along Tielle’s nape.
“They love what my ability to coax and strong-arm has done for them financially. They just wish I’d tuck away the crazy alpha during family get-togethers.”
“I fell in love with that crazy alpha,” Tielle confessed.
“I know you did.” He nodded. “You tamed me. But I think I’ve got more rough edges now than you could ever tolerate. That’s gonna make it harder for me to get my ring back on your finger.” His hand tightened on hers when she attempted to withdraw her own.
“You know I want you back,” he said. “I never wanted you to go and you know I have no qualms about doing what I have to to get you back where you belong.”
“Grae, you’ve got your family to deal with and all this you’re saying about us—you’re trying to deal with us being around each other—”
“Stop, Tel. Don’t do that. You know that’s not it.” He pinned her with a long stare. “You don’t have to admit it, but don’t play the role like you’re good with the way we are.”
“All right. But this isn’t the time to discuss it.”
“Fair enough, but you know it’s coming.”
Tielle could only confirm that with a shaky breath.
Grae lifted her hand, holding it to his mouth for a time and then grazing a kiss across her knuckles. Then her wrist…
She flexed her fingers next to his cheek and leaned in helplessly when his tongue bathed the pulse point at her wrist. The damp kiss traveled to her palm, the tips of her fingers…
Grae sitting on the arm of the sofa put them eye to eye. He only needed to tug once in order to bring her mouth full against his.
The kiss began with a series of quick, sweet pecks. Gradually, their lips parted, tongues just barely peeking past and then seeking, finding, nudging and entwining.
“Grae…”
“Make me stop.”
She pretended not to hear the tortured warning. She deepened her exploration of his talented mouth and moaned in a manner that was undeniably ego stroking.
Chapter 5
“You’re gonna have to stop me, Ti…”
“I will…”
Tielle made no moves to stop him. She didn’t seem to be interested in stopping anything, especially when Grae tugged her closer so that she was straddling his lap during their kiss. His hands skimmed her waist and curved down to cup and squeeze her ample bottom when sudden knocking fell to the parlor door.
Murmuring something indecipherable, Tielle was kneading Grae’s broad shoulders beneath the midnight-blue jacket he wore over a shirt of the same color. Stopping wasn’t on her mind, only her consideration for pushing Grae to his back on the sofa.
“Dinner!” someone announced through the door.
