AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Uh-oh. My troll and my wolf are going to lose it on each other if I can’t get this situation under control. “Calm down, you big, possessive brute,” I say to Rook. “He didn’t hurt me.”
When I meet his scowl with an unwavering glare, Alpha Toth gently says, “With finesse, Nora.”
“Finesse?” I scoff. “Look at him. He’s not going to respond to finesse. He needs to be put in his place. He’s not my damn mate!”
Rook’s eyes flare brighter, and when he growls at me, there’s a low rumble that sounds more like a purr.
“That’s why you need finesse. Your dominance right now will only make it worse.”
“I don’t see how. Aren’t you supposed to be firm with shifters?”
“You’reexcitinghim, Nora,” Gorgeous explains dryly.
“Oh.” I meet Rook’s eyes again and finally notice that the heat is definitely not about being mad or wanting to protect me. I wince. “Oops.”
Nick snorts. I shoot him a glare, then offer Rook a gentle smile. “Hey, buddy. Can I have Rook back now?” Of course he growls at this. I sigh. “I’m okay. He didn’t hurt me.”
“Hetouchedyou,” Rook snaps. “He left his scent on you.”
I roll my eyes. “I’ll go up to Cecile’s room and wash it off, if you hate it that much. You can even replace it with your own scent, if you need to. You just have to calm down for me, okay? You’re making Terrance nervous, and we don’t want the troll to lose control.”
“Yes,” Rooks says gruffly. “Wash it off.”
He grabs my hand and starts dragging me toward the stairs. Damn bossy wolf.
“Nora,” Parker calls. “He’s not safe like that. You shouldn’t be alone with him. He could be pushed over the edge and decide to turn you.”
The vampire has a point. I can’t entirely trust Rook like this. His wolf is lost to my curse. I don’t want to be alone with him. I meet Alpha Toth’s gaze, and he steps forward to follow without question. That’s perfect, because I need to talk to him anyway. Nick follows, too. Double perfect. We can just all have a little powwow in Cecile’s suite while I wash Axel’s stench off me. That should be fun.
When we get up toCecile’s suite, Rook marches me straight into the en suite bathroom and starts to remove my dress. He gets the zipper all the way down before I can stop him. “Oh, whoa! Whoa, whoa, whoa! No way. You are not undressing me.”
Rook’s eyes flash fiercely. He means to get his way. I don’t care if defying him turns him on; I am standing my ground on this.“No.”
I zip my dress back up, then reach for a hand towel and turn the water on in the sink. Rook watches my movements with narrowed eyes, and when I move to squirt some hand soap on the towel, Rook snatches the soap away from me.“No,”he grunts.
I cock a brow, and he glares at me. Then he moves to the tub and starts rifling through a large basket of soaps. He sniffs several and finally hands me one. “This one.”
My jaw falls slack. I turn to Alpha Toth and Nick, who are both watching with amusement.“Seriously?”
Nick laughs and Alpha Toth bites down on his lips, doing his best not to join Nick. While I gape at my non-helpful friends, Rook grabs me by the waist and lifts me onto the counter. “What the—Rook!”
He grunts in response and takes the towel from my hands. Then, to both my horror and fascination, he wets the towel in warm water, lathers it with the sweet-smelling soap, and gently begins to wash my arm. His face softens as he works, and he starts to calm down.
I’m speechless. Rook iswashingme. The moment is completely surreal. It’s humiliating that he’s washing another man’s scent off me, but at the same time, it’s a little exciting to have this kind of attention. Most men just want to rip my clothes off and take my body. And while Rook did try to undress me, he’s trying to takecareof my body. There’s a huge difference.
Unexpected warmth spreads in my chest. Warmth that shouldn’t be there. I send a pleading look to Nick and Alpha Toth. They share amused smirks, and then Nick says, “Why don’t you tell us what you figured out?”
Both men snicker. Assholes.
Alpha Toth grabs a bath towel and winks at me as he drapes it over me to protect my dress from getting dripped on. He then looks at me as if waiting for me to start talking. I guess we’re really doing this while Rook gives me a freaking sponge bath. With a sigh of defeat, I say, “Well, Evan is completely innocent. He seems like a really good guy, and he pretty much loathes his scumbag alpha. He’s actually hoping Rook will challenge Axel because he thinks Rook has claimed me and he’d much rather Rook and I be his alpha pair.”
Rook’s eyes snap to mine.
“Down, boy. I’m not ready to turn furry and have your pups.”
He does that rumbly purr thing in his chest again.
I huff, exasperated, and move the conversation along because he likes the idea of pups way too much. “Anyway.Evan is not part of some grand plot to overthrow your pack.”
