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He carefully laid his fork and knife down. Piercing me with a heated look, he said, “I’m a man of my word. My word means something. It carries weight and that’s why I don’t give it lightly. Anyway, it makes more sense for you to stay here. I live closer to your school.”
Relief swept over me as I confirmed, “I know you’re a man of your word, and I’ll stay as long as you want. I have to get clothes from my mother’s house and explain to her that I’m moving back into the apartment because the commute to school is too much. That would be the simplest way to go. She wouldn’t understand otherwise.”
My mother was as traditional as his mother, so he’d see the necessity in lying.
“Are you okay with that?” I inquired. “Will you tell your mother, or will this be a secret thing?”
“I won’t need to tell her anything. I’m a grown man, Nina. She’ll see what she sees and come to her own conclusions.”
“Of course,” I agreed quickly. Heat seared my nape. We were of different genders, ages, and statures. He had no reason to hide any part of his life. For me, it was simpler to keep my mother in the dark, especially if Alex and I fizzled into nothing. He’d made no promises. Despite the uncertainty though, I was willing to take a risk and follow this to its end.
His eyes lifted from his plate and locked on me. “Your mother wouldn’t understand now, but what if this were to become a permanent thing between us?”
Permanent? As if he has to ask. Sharp hunger flared in my chest. My appetite fled, but I forced down a bite of omelet.
With a nervous laugh, I said, “That would be different. While our mothers aren’t exactly friends, they’re super friendly. They respect each other. As things stand right now, my mother would feel like she lost face. She doesn’t understand hookups or flings. She’d only see this as tarnishing my reputation. Her pride would be bruised if she thought you were using me. That’s not what this is about,” I hurried to add, “but that’s how she’d see it.”
While this was a difficult conversation, it was surprisingly easy to talk to Alex. I was generally reserved about my private life. Maybe it was because Alex was tied to Tasa in my mind, and I shared everything with her. A pang hit me in the sternum as a wave of longing for my best friend crashed over me.
Scraping my hand through my hair, I let out a short exhale. “Things are tense at home. Very tense. I moved back after Tasa left because Yo-Yo needed me to protect him, not just because I couldn’t stand living in the apartment without her.”
“You won’t be there, though. You’ll be here,” he reminded me.
Pressing my lips together, I stood and crossed over to the refrigerator to pull out a bottle of orange juice. I poured some into a glass and guzzled it down, savoring the pulpy tangy-sweet juice. Holding up the bottle with a questioning look in his direction, I waited for his response. He shook his head, so I returned it and sat back down. “I’ll stop by every couple of days to do what I can. I don’t know how long Yo-Yo can take it. They’re screaming at each other every day. It’s horrible.”
Alex crooked his index finger at me and ordered, “Come here.”
Oh, God. Was he going to try to comfort me? Bouncing my knee, I hesitated.
“Come here,” he insisted.
I wasn’t used to being physically attended to for my emotional needs. Feeling awkward, I rubbed my legs before rising to my feet and approaching him tentatively. He turned in his chair and spread his thick thighs. He was bare-chested, with a smattering of dark hair along his pecs. The thin strip of hair going down the center was enticing me to trace it with my tongue. His wolf’s head shifted as his muscles flexed, the emerald eyes winking at me.
Biting my lip, I paused in between the V of his open legs. Ever so slowly, I took a seat on the hard muscle of his thigh. The instant my butt hit his lap, he looped an arm around my waist, bringing me into his chest, and closed his legs to pin me between them. I was enveloped in his sandalwood scent, and that, while wrapped in all those chiseled, hard muscles, made me feel protected. Coveted. Precious.
While the juncture between my thighs was getting moist, especially knowing I was completely nude under his simple sweatshirt, I knew this wasn’t sexual. Alex couldn’t change the circumstances of my family dynamics. But by giving me a hug, he was giving me comfort. He was a protector at heart. His instincts were to shield, comfort, fix. My body melted into his chest. We sat together quietly, him cradling me and rocking me a little. It was a balm to my aching heart. To my soul.
We stayed like that for some time, him nuzzling my hair. Breathing me in. And I did the same to him.
Eventually, his cell phone rang in the distance.
Not hurrying, he said, “I should get that. It’s almost noon. I’m surprised it’s my first call of the day. Everyone must be hungover.”
Nodding, I forced myself off his lap. He gave my butt a playful little swat as he went in search of his phone. Hearing his gravelly voice in the distance, I set about cleaning the dishes and putting the kitchen to rights.
He’d finished with his call by the time I was done, but the energy had shifted; gone was the sexy man I had cuddled with before.
A muscle in his jaw ticked away.
Something had happened.
“What is it, Alex? Did you learn something about Tasa?”
“No, but Nelu has. He found out she’s gone. It’d be an understatement to say that he’s not pleased. I have to prepare for a meeting with him in a few hours.”
The tension permeated the air. The son-in-law comment he’d made about Nelu earlier popped into my head. What if he was pressured into taking Tasa’s place? Of course, since I overheard it while eavesdropping, I was powerless to bring it up.
Wiping my hands dry, I said, “I’ll get out of your way. Would you like me to get my clothes and come straight back here, or should I stay in Queens until the evening?”
