William was a bad guy, and Jamie was involved in something that made her feel regret. That's why she wasn't so forthcoming with it. Dylan just wanted to let it lie because he didn't have it in him to find out more.
Getting ready for bed was a little different. Both of them took showers, and of course, he suggested that they take one together and she said that he should go first. The idea of getting naked with her again got him excited, and he immediately responded likewise. It was uncomfortable in his jeans, with his need pushing so hard to escape its confines.
He did the gentlemanly thing and let her go first. Dylan figured that it would give him time to pull himself together. One minute he was doing so well, and the next, he was questioning everything again.
Dylan was doing okay. He had pulled himself together while she was in the shower and thought he had mastered the desires that were rushing through him and making everything so complicated. All he had to do was just not think about it.
Then she came out of the bathroom, the room filling with perfumed steam, and he knew that he had lost.
Jamie looked at him questioningly. “What?”
Dylan shook his head. “Nothing. I just, damn.”
Dylan didn't know what to say. Her hair was wet and curly, sticking to the side of her face and leaving an ever-growing dark spot on her shoulders. He had let her borrow one of his T-shirts and she didn't seem to have anything else underneath it. Her nipples that he shouldn’t be noticing were begging for attention, and he was more than happy to oblige.
“I am going to get in the shower.”
He left as abruptly as that, practically running into the bathroom. He shut the door behind him and leaned against the wood. He rested for a moment, taking deep breaths, trying to get it together. What the hell was wrong with him?
Dylan had made a promise that he would not try anything. That was going to come to be one of the biggest mistakes he had made in a long time. If it wasn’t, it sure the hell felt like it.
He took a very quick and cold shower, trying to dispel the feelings that were taking him over. When he emerged, Dylan was feeling a little bit better. There was still the rage inside of him that was dying to be released.
When he got back out to the bedroom, she was already in bed and under the covers. After a moment, he realized that she was actually asleep, and part of him started to relax a little bit. At least if she was asleep, he could control himself better. He wouldn’t have to put on a show.
Dylan was wrong, though. He did not know how wrong he was until about an hour later when he was inundated with Jamie’s flesh.
The T-shirt that he had loaned her was no longer where it should have been. Her legs were completely exposed up to the waist, and at that moment, one of them was hiked up on his body. Her arms were over him and pressed his body up against hers.
It was a strange form of torture, and Dylan was not enjoying it one bit. Desire was wreaking havoc on his mind and his body. He was rock hard, painfully so, but the woman next to him was completely oblivious. She didn’t seem to know how badly she was driving him crazy. He couldn’t have told her if he wanted to.
He had made promises to not touch her, but again, he was regretting those words. Jamie wasn’t going to make a move, not when she was sleeping anyway. That meant that he just had to lay there with her all over him, torturing himself with needs that he couldn’t fulfill.
Jamie was moving around a lot and settled in against his body, whimpering in her sleep. Whatever she was dreaming about was rather interesting from his point of view. Dylan would have done anything to have gotten a sneak peek into her mind. He liked to believe that she was dreaming about him and that was why she was so animated in her slumber.
Dylan tried to get himself away from her. He needed to get some space from her. Jamie did not seem to mind that she was slowly driving him towards insanity. Every moan sent shivers through his spine, and Dylan never had to work so hard to not break a promise before in his life. What he would have done to have been inside of her then…
Not only did Jamie have animated dreams, but she was constantly on the go. One minute, she was lying face to face with him and her arm and leg were around him, and then she was flipping over. Next, her butt was pressed hard against his ever-growing junk and he was the one that was groaning.
Dylan didn’t know how much more he could take as she rubbed up against him repeatedly. All he could do was grit his teeth and hope that he could survive it. Dylan was on verge of breaking a promise.
How hard would it have been? Dylan was sure that she wouldn’t have minded as long as he made her pleasured enough. She wouldn’t be mad if he could blow her mind with orgasms, right?
Dylan’s name was sent through the air, Jamie calling to him from her dreamworld. At first, he thought that she was finally going to do what they both needed so badly. They both needed to be together, their bodies alive in close proximity. But that wasn't what it was at all. She was actually asleep, and Dylan finally had to get out of the bed altogether before he talked himself into something that wasn’t right.
Before he could stop himself, he was outside, transformed and running towards the woods. He needed to run long and hard as he tried to get his shit together. He had made a promise, and he was going to stick to it, but that did not mean that he was going to be able to do it while stuck in bed with her. That damn T-shirt had covered nothing, and now those long legs were burned into his memory.
Dylan ran until he couldn’t run anymore. He didn’t remember a time when he had to do that. The more he ran, the more he thought of Jamie and those soft sounds of pleasure that had come from her. While he liked to believe that he was making her sound that way in her dreams, Dylan wanted to do it in real life as well.
Jamie had taken over all of his thoughts, and Dylan was unable to stop it. He was out of control, and he hated that. Love made him vulnerable.
Chapter Twelve
Jamie woke up refreshed. She had some crazy dreams the night before, but she felt good the next morning. It was like her body didn’t know the difference between fact and fantasy. She had found real satisfaction in her dreams with Dylan. He had done wondrous things to her body that made her buzz with excitement.
The bed was empty next to her, and she felt her smile drop. Jamie felt so rested and she wanted to wake up next to the man that had made it all possible. Did he really want to marry her? Would she want to live that way, in a cave dwelling in the middle of nowhere? Her life wasn’t there, but could it be?
“You look like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders. What can be bothering you so early?”
Jamie jumped at the voice next to the bed. She had been so disappointed to find that she was alone, but now she knew that she wasn't. He had just been waiting for her to get up.
“I was just thinking about things.”
“Anything good?”
Jamie finally looked at him and noticed he looked tired. He did not look refreshed like she did. It looked like he hadn’t slept at all, and she noticed that he was already dressed and showered and ready for the day. He had black marks under his eyes, but the smile was easy and lit his face up.
“You're ready to go. You must have woken up early.”
“I never went to sleep.”
Jamie felt a little guilty because she had slept so well and knowing that he didn't made her feel strange. What kept him up? When she asked him about it, he just kind of grinned a bit wider and shrugged.
“That damn promise I made you really did me in. I didn't know that you were going to tempt me in the way that you did last night. It really was hard to keep my word.”
She felt her face getting red and didn't want to ask him what he was talking about. Jamie had a feeling it was just going to humiliate her further. Had she done something in her sleep while having those wonderful dreams about him?
“As nice as it was to stay with you, Dylan, I really do need to get to work. I have to go find you a bride and see a few clients.”
Dylan's face fell and she immediately regretted her words. That was her job. As much as Jamie enjoyed their time together, she was not the target. Real life did not include her living like royalty in medieval times. Not only that, Jamie still thought deep down that it was all just a joke to him. It wasn't to her, though. Her feelings were starting to get real and confusing.
Jamie got into her workday and did her best not to think about Dylan. It was too complicated, and although her mind was still reeling with the evening they had together, she still couldn't believe that he was for real. He could have anyone, so he wouldn’t want her. She kept searching for him and found a few more that she put on a sort-list to meet up with.
“Hey, Dylan, I just wanted to let you know that I set you up for another date this evening. Her name is Melanie, and she's a little bit older, more to your liking, I hope.”
“Still won’t go out with me?”
“No. This one is perfect for you.”
“How?”
“You need a bride, and she needs a groom. It seems like a match made in heaven. You should see her; she's beautiful.”
“I don't want anyone else.”
Jamie sighed.
“You have to be serious, Dylan. You need to get married in a little under two weeks. We have to find the woman for you to marry.”
“I told you before, Jamie, you’re it, and as soon as you figure that out, I will be more than happy to marry you. I will even give you the commission if you like, though I will be paying you with your own money once we’re married.”
“You really aren’t going to let this go, are you?”
“As soon as you can kiss me and tell me I am wrong about us, then I will. We both know you can’t, though.”
She wanted to disagree but knew he was right. She felt something different when it came to Dylan. Jamie wasn’t sure what it was, but it didn’t matter. All that mattered was that she was still fighting it. She just wasn’t ready to go all-in, not yet.
“So, while I have you on the phone, you want to go out tonight? We could get anything you want, go anywhere, do anything.”
He said this with a bit of innuendo in his voice, and she ignored it. She didn’t want to talk about that. Not yet anyway. The mere mention of it made her body come to life, and Jamie had spent all day trying to silence it.
“I am actually having drinks with the girls tonight. I can’t skip it or they will crucify me the next time I see them.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to do something later? I don’t mind staying up.”
“You need to get some sleep, old man. You know, get your eight hours. You said it was hard to sleep with me, remember?”
“I will deal.”
Jamie paused for a moment, thinking about how good she had slept the day before, and she couldn’t resist, or rather, she didn’t want to.
“Fine, you can come by later. My place this time, with air conditioning and lights.”
He chuckled on the other end of the line and agreed. “Whatever I have to do to get you in bed.”
“Promise still stands?”
There was a long pause and she waited for his answer. Jamie may have even been hoping that he would change his mind about it all. She wanted him to be inside of her, badly. She needed him, and Jamie wasn’t a virgin. Her reasons to stop it from happening were becoming harder and harder to come up with.
Finally, he said that the promise did stand, but he didn't sound very happy about it. She giggled at the tone of his voice.
“This time, you at least have to wear some bottoms though. If you sleep next to me practically naked again, there's no way that I can make any promises like that. I only have so much control.”
Jamie said that it was duly noted, and she shivered inside a bit from the words. Maybe the pleasure and satisfaction that she had found in her dreams had not been exclusively in her dreams.
“I will do my best to cover up since you can’t handle a little bit of skin.”
He growled at her, much like he had before, and she snickered some more. Jamie was enjoying herself too much. She got off the phone with a smile on her face, knowing full well that she was going to think of him the whole night.
Jamie got in bed, and he wasn't too far behind her. They laid together for a long time. Jamie made sure that she stayed on her side of the bed. Finally, after she had fidgeted for a while, he asked her if she wanted to get closer.
“It's okay if you want to lie next to me, Jamie.”
“But you said that I make it too complicated, remember? You couldn’t get any sleep and you have only so much control?”
He agreed that he remembered all too well. “How can I forget? You're the one that's going to fall right to sleep in my arms and I'm going to sit here rock hard for the rest of the night.”
“If you can't sleep, you can always go back to your place. I don't want to make you tired.”
He chuckled. “Yes, you do. If you didn't, you wouldn’t have made me promise something like that. You know how I feel about you. I think I have made myself crystal clear.”
Jamie wasn't sure what to say. All she knew for certain was that she did want to get closer to him. The heat of his body and the safety of his arms was what she looked forward to the most.
She blew out a breath and got closer. He folded her into his arms, and she almost immediately felt like everything was right in the world. That was a hell of a feeling, and she sighed, completely content.
“This isn’t so bad, is it?”
He said that it wasn’t, but his voice sounded tight. Obviously, something was bothering him, and when she looked into his eyes, she knew that it was because of the closeness that they were sharing. While she was feeling good, he was finding it hard to be close to her. She asked him if he wanted her to get back where she was, and he held her tighter.
“It’s worth it.”
Jamie lifted her lips to his and brushed them softly.
“Thank you for coming over, Dylan. I’m really glad you did.”
Chapter Thirteen
Dylan laid awake next to her long after she went to bed. He listened to her sleep for a while, but it became too much like it had the night before. He had to get away, and before he could do much else, he was out of her house and trying to find somewhere to run. It really was the only way that he could clear his head as of late when it came to Jamie.
When he realized that he wasn't going to be able to run in his true form, he took off running on foot. It wasn't as satisfying. He couldn't go as fast, and he couldn't go as long, but it was at least enough to get his blood pumping and his mind racing to the point where it was too tired and finally collapsed. That was about how his human body felt when he was on his way back to her house. From the look of the sky, he had been gone for hours.
The sky was just starting to lighten up when he got back to Jamie’s house. He could feel someone else there, and immediately, he thought of William and his hackles raised. Dylan almost regretted that he didn't take care of the man permanently the last time they’d met. There was something that Jamie wasn't telling him about William, but in truth, he didn't really need to know. Just the fact that he had threatened Jamie was enough for him to rip his head off.
The door was open when he got up to the porch, and by then, he knew for sure that something had happened. Or something was happening. His heart was racing and he felt guilt again. Why couldn't he just stay next to her? It wasn’t that bad, but he’d left her unprotected.
Whoever was there shouldn't be there and he was going to make sure that they left and were gone for good. If it was William...it better not be him, because Dylan wasn’t going to be able to control himself this time.
Voices came from up the stairs and told him immediately that it was, in fact, William.
Dylan took the stairs two by two and was quickly up to her room. William grabbed Jamie and flipped her around, holding her by the neck. He had a vicious-looking knife that was up against her throat. It was p
ressed up against it so hard that there was a trickle of red coming down from the blade. That was more than he could see and not act. Before he could think, he’d moved forward, shoving the man hard enough backward that he went through the pane of glass of the window.
William didn’t make too much sound before it was cut short as his body hit the ground with a loud thud. Dylan wasn't worried about him for a moment. He was worried about Jamie and making sure that she wasn’t hurt.
“Are you all right?”
She assured him that she was, but it was quite obvious that she was shaking from the experience. He pulled her in front of him, and her whole body was trembling against his. Guilt wracked his body. He shouldn't have left. He should've stayed next to her and kept her safe. Dylan didn’t know if he was ever going to be able to forgive himself.
“What the hell is he doing here? Why will he not leave you alone? You have to tell me what's going on.”
She agreed, but first, he had business to take care of. He had no intentions of letting him go. William was going to pay for what he had done to her. Dylan had already decided that William was going to pay with his life.
He told her that he would be back in a few moments. She tried to get him to stay, but nothing would have worked. Dylan couldn't let him go again. He had let him go before, and because of it, he’d come to her house and attacked her.
She wasn't too happy that he was leaving, but she didn't say much of anything.
Dylan went outside to find William. He was sure that he would be on the ground somewhere. The fall and the velocity and how he got there told him all he needed to know. But he was surprised to find nobody when he got downstairs. William had somehow got away. A big part of him wanted to chase after William. He wanted to hunt him down and take him out. Then he wouldn't have to worry about him messing with her. There would be no worries over it then.
Alpha Shifter Bride Service: (A Paranormal Romance Series) Page 27
