Midnight Orchids_Book Three of the NOLA Shifters Series

by Angel Nyx

  Kylie sat there, shaking her head. “You don’t understand, Remy. You don’t know all of it.” When he reached for her she flinched. “Don’t. I don’t want to feel your disgust when you know…” She closed her eyes because she didn’t want to see the look she was so certain would be on his face with her next words. “He put me on my knees and used my mouth, not just my body. You deserve a mate who isn’t so weak, one who wouldn’t just let another male use her body any way they wanted. You deserve better.”

  Remy

  Just when he was certain Kylie was going to shut him out again, she’d started talking. It only took him a few seconds to realize she was afraid of what his reaction was going to be. He’d known Ezra raped her, but he hadn’t realized the full extent the other leopard had taken it. Hearing her words, he wished like hell Ezra was still alive so he could make him suffer the way Kylie was suffering. He reached for her and pulled her close even though she struggled against him for a moment. “Stop, Kitten. Da only ting you’ll see on my face is da rage I feel, knowing dat bastard got off easy. He raped you. He forced hisself on you in multiple ways. None of dat is your fault. Not now, not ever.”

  He waited until she lifted her head to look at him so she would know he meant what he was saying. “I’d be a pretty piss-poor bastard to hold what he did against you, cher. He spent five years beatin’ da resistance out of you. He’d trained you to respond a certain way, and he used dat to his advantage. I wish to hell I’d gotten dere before he had da chance to touch you. I wanted to keep you safe, to protect you, and I failed you, Kitten. Dat’s someting I will have to live wit’ every day—knowin’ I failed you.”

  “No, Remy, it wasn’t…”

  He cut her off by placing a gentle finger against her lips. “Oui, it was my place to keep my mate safe and I didn’t. I am so sorry I failed you like dat, but it will never happen again. I won’t let it.” His heart hurt for the fear and pain he saw in her eyes.

  “C’mere,” he murmured and pulled her close. “Let me hold you tonight, Kitten. Please. I just need to have you in my arms tonight.” He waited with baited breath to see if she would agree.

  Kylie

  Kylie sat there in stunned silence. For days now she’d been afraid to let Remy in, afraid to tell him about what had happened because she’d convinced herself she didn’t deserve him. She’d convinced herself he would be disgusted by her. And yet, here he was telling her everything she needed to hear but was afraid to hope for. Here he was telling her it wasn’t her fault.

  When Remy pulled her close again, a soft sound escaped her. Even to her own ears it sounded like a cross between a sob and a mewl. She was mortified that sound had come from her. A part of her was afraid, but it was only a small part, The rest of her wanted nothing more than to be held and feel safe, “Okay,” she murmured after several minutes.

  Kylie let Remy lead her into his home. She didn’t spend much time looking around as they made their way to his bedroom. She was still too emotional to really take in her surroundings.

  “Would you like someting to sleep in, cher?”

  Kylie nodded at his question and watched as he went to his dresser. When he returned to her he had a T-shirt and a pair of drawstring pants. “I’ll let you change in here, Kitten. I’ll take the bathroom and I’ll knock before I come back in.”

  “Okay.” As soon as he left the room, she stripped out of her jeans and camisole top. The clothes he’d given her to wear were clean but his scent still clung to them faintly. Kylie closed her eyes and breathed it in. She was only mildly surprised to realize his scent calmed her.

  She was pulled from her thoughts by his knock on the bedroom door. “It’s safe to come in, Cajun.”

  “You must be feelin’ a little better if you’re teasin’ me.”

  There was a gentle teasing note in his voice that made her smile faintly. “If I’m honest, I am feeling a little better.” She stood there, fidgeting nervously.

  “It’s a’right, Kitten. You don’t need to be nervous. We’re just sleepin’.”

  Kylie sighed softly. “I know. I don’t know why I feel nervous. It isn’t like we haven’t already fallen asleep together like this once before.”

  “Dis is a little different from da night at da gazebo. You’re still feelin’ a bit raw over what happened a few days ago, Kitten.”

  His hand lifted to caress her cheek and Kylie found herself leaning into his touch. “I’m tired of being afraid,” she whispered. Her eyes widened. She hadn’t meant to say that out loud.

  “I know. I’ll do ever’ting I can to erase dat fear.”

  She heard the conviction in his voice. “I believe you mean that.” She smiled a little and yawned.

  “A’course I do, Kitten. Come on, let’s get some sleep.”

  She waited until he pulled the covers back before she crawled into bed. When he joined her, she curled up next to him and rested her head on his chest. “Good-night, Remy.”

  “Good-night, Kylie. I’ll be right here to chase da bad dreams away.”

  A faint smile graced her lips at his words. As she slowly relaxed, her eyes grew heavy and her breathing evened out. Her last conscious thought, before sleep dragged her under, was about how much she liked being in his arms.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Remy

  When he awoke the next morning, Remy propped himself up on one arm and watched his mate sleep. He knew they still had a long road ahead of them but at least he’d gotten over one hurdle. Now that she knew he didn’t hold her at fault for what Ezra did to her, he could focus on helping her heal.

  After watching her for a while, he leaned over and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. “You just keep sleepin’ a while longer so I can surprise you wit’ breakfast in bed,” he murmured softly so he wouldn’t wake her. Then he slipped out of bed and headed to his kitchen.

  After he got the coffee going, he set about making breakfast for both of them. He’d decided on omelets thick with hash browns, diced ham, onions, peppers, mushrooms, and three different cheeses. He added sausage links, Potatoes O'Brien, and thick slices of toast. He was just getting the last of it finished and plated when there was a knock on his front door. He opened it to find Emelise standing there.

  “Mornin’, Emelise.”

  “Good morning, Remy. Please tell me Kylie is here. I went to check on her this morning, to let her know breakfast was done if she was hungry, only to find the guest cottage empty.”

  “A’course she is.”

  “Thank Gods. I was worried when I realized she didn’t come home last night. How is she?”

  “Better, I tink. We talked, cleared da air a bit. I’ll let her know you were worried about her when she wakes up.”

  “I’m awake.”

  “Damn, dere goes my surprise.” He saw her puzzled look before she moved to the door to speak to Emelise.

  “I’m sorry I worried you. I just…I couldn’t stay there last night.”

  “No need to apologize. I’m just glad you’re okay. I’m gonna get out of here. I want you to take a couple of days off from work, Kylie. Take this time to start healing.”

  “Okay.”

  After he closed the door, Remy carefully wrapped his arms around her. “You bein’ up ruins my plans. I was plannin’ on bringin’ you breakfast in bed.”

  Kylie stared at him. “Really? No one has ever done that for me before. Well, okay, that’s not entirely true because Emelise did that the other day but…before that, nope, nada, it didn’t happen.”

  “Oh, Kitten, you’ve been missin’ out. Why don’t you go relax in bed and I’ll bring da tray in to you? We can just spend da day in bed together.”

  “Remy, you can’t stay in bed with me all day. You have a resort hotel to design. That’s more important.”

  Remy growled at her. “Dat, cher, is where you are wrong. Dere is no’ting in dis world dat is more important den you.” He swooped down and kissed her without thinking.

  Kylie

 
Kylie froze when Remy’s lips touched hers. Just when he started to pull away, she wrapped her arms around his neck, holding him in place. The sudden heat that burned through her startled her. She felt his arm’s wrap around her as the kiss deepened. His obvious arousal pressed against her lower belly, and it helped her to pull back from the lust that was consuming her. “I can’t. I’m sorry…I just can’t.”

  His groan was loud in the foyer they still stood in. “You have no’ting to apologize for, Kitten. I’m da one who needs to be apologizin’. I know you’re not ready for anyting. I shouldn’t have kissed you like dat.”

  “No, please don’t apologize for the kiss. God, Remy, it was the hottest kiss I’ve ever had.” She felt tears stinging her eyes. “I hate this! I hate that he ruined me so I can’t even enjoy a kiss. I don’t know why you don’t walk away and find someone who doesn’t panic over a fucking kiss.”

  “When are you gonna get it, Kitten? I don’t want anyone else. I can be a patient man when I need to be. I’m willin’ to wait however long it takes to help you heal.”

  “Even if it takes forever?”

  “Even den.”

  She stared at him before she laughed and shook her head. “You’re crazy, Cajun.”

  Remy chuckled. “Like I haven’t heard dat before.”

  Kylie took the initiative and lifted a somewhat shaky hand to trace his jaw with her fingertips. “You’re something else, Remy Delacroix. I’ll go crawl back into bed and let you bring me breakfast before it gets cold.”

  “Good girl,” Remy said with a wink.

  Kylie gave him a look before she shook her head and went back to the bedroom. Part of her kind of liked the comment. She crawled back under the covers before she fluffed up the pillows to prop herself up. If she gave herself the chance, she knew she could really get used to this.

  Remy

  He’d been a little leery of calling her ‘good girl’ because he wasn’t sure if it would trigger something from her time with Ezra, so when all she did was shake her head at him, he released the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. He waited to give her time to get settled, then went to fetch the tray from the kitchen. “Here we are, cher, breakfast is served,” he said once he stepped into the bedroom.

  “It smells really good. What are we having?”

  “We’re havin’ omelets wit’ ham, onions, peppers, mushrooms, hash browns, and three cheeses, sausage, Potatoes O’Brien, and toast. Wit’ orange juice and coffee,” he replied before he set the tray across her lap. “I’ll be right back wit’ mine,” he added with a wink.

  When he returned he noticed Kylie hadn’t touched hers. “What’s wrong, Kitten? Are you allergic to someting in the omelet? Or did I put someting in it you don’t like?”

  “What? Oh, no, it’s not that. It’s…habit. I wasn’t allowed to eat until Ezra was eating,” she replied quietly.

  Remy set his tray on the bedside table before he sat next to her on the bed. “Listen to me, Kitten. You never have to worry about waitin’ for me before you eat. If you’re hungry, you eat. Every time I learn someting new about how he treated you, it makes me wish I’d made him suffer longer. He got off too damn easy,” he growled.

  “I’ll try to remember that, Remy. Five years of training is a lot to get past, though. It’s going to take me time.”

  “I know, cher. Just as long as you keep workin’ to put all dat behind you, dat’s all I ask.” He leaned in cautiously and brushed his lips across hers. “Eat before it gets cold,” he murmured. He re-positioned himself on the bed so he was propped up against the headboard, as well, pulled his tray to his lap, and dug in.

  “Oh, God, this is good,” Kylie said after her first bite of omelet. “I never would have thought to put the hash browns in the omelet. This really is very good, Remy.”

  “Thanks, cher. I was tryin’ different tings one day and dat’s what I ended up wit’.”

  They ate in companionable silence for a little while before Remy spoke again. “Since Emelise is givin’ you a few days off from work, I’d like to take you away from New Orleans for a day or two. We can get away from ever’ting here and just enjoy bein’ wit’ each other.”

  He watched from the corner of his eye as she considered his words. Please say yes he thought while he waited for her reply.

  “Where?”

  “It’s a little B&B over in Youngsville. It’s a lil’ over two hours away, so we won’t be all dat far. Say yes, Kitten.”

  Just when it seemed like she was going to refuse, Kylie nodded. “Okay.”

  Remy grinned. “Thank you.” He caressed her cheek. He was going to make this little trip as romantic as he possibly could. He wanted to erase the memory of what Ezra had done from her mind so that the only memories she had were good ones of the two of them together. He wouldn’t push her for more than she was ready to give, but he was sure as hell going to make her comfortable enough with him that she wanted, longed for, intimacy between them.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Kylie

  When they pulled up in front of Louisiana Cajun Mansion Bed and Breakfast in Youngsville, a soft sound escaped her. The exterior of the B&B was gorgeous and she was already imagining what the inside looked like. When she tried to help with their luggage, Remy just gently removed her hand and shook his head at her.

  “I got dis, Kitten.”

  She decided it wasn’t worth the effort to argue with him and let it go. If she thought the outside of the B&B was beautiful, the inside was nothing short of breathtaking. It had such a romantic ambiance from the moment they walked in the front door.

  “Welcome to Louisiana Cajun Mansion B&B. Do you have reservations?”

  “Oui, cher. It’s under Mr. and Mrs. Delacroix.”

  Kylie arched a brow at him and he winked at her. She wasn’t sure if he did it to ‘protect’ her reputation or because that was how he saw them in his mind. With Remy, there was no telling.

  “There you are,” the front desk clerk said after a moment of looking it up on the computer. She passed over the key to their room and gave them directions to it.

  Once in the room, Kylie blinked. On a table near the bed sat a tray of chocolate-covered strawberries, and a bottle of wine was chilling in an ice bucket. The walls were a deep sea green that was warm and inviting. A gold-framed mirror hung on one wall, giving the room a slightly opulent feel. There was an over-sized chair in one corner, perfect for cuddling up together in, and the four-poster, queen-sized bed was so soft, she wasn’t sure she would even want to get out of bed.

  “It’s beautiful,” she murmured.

  “Oui, it is.”

  When she realized he was looking at her, not the room, Kylie felt her cheeks warm from the compliment. “I was talking about the room. You’ve outdone yourself, Cajun,” she teased.

  Remy set their luggage down and went to her. “No’ting but da best for my girl.”

  She smiled up at him before she took the initiative and leaned up to kiss him. “Thank you.” She felt his arms slip around her and she leaned into him.

  “You’re welcome, Kitten.” He brushed his lips across hers for a second kiss before he moved away so he could open the bottle of wine. He poured two glasses and handed one to her. “To new beginnin’s.”

  “To new beginnings,” Kylie replied and took a sip. The wine was sweet, just like she preferred it. “I get the feeling this is only the start of you wooing me.”

  Remy chuckled. “Figured dat out already, eh?”

  “Of course I did. Woo away,” she replied with a cheeky grin.

  Remy

  Every step of this plan he’d put in motion hindered on Kylie reacting favorably. So far, so good. He took several drinks of his wine before he picked up a strawberry and offered it to her. He watched, almost mesmerized, as she bit into it, then moaned at the sweetness. When her tongue flicked out to get the bit of juice that had trickled out when she bit into the berry, he had to stifle a groan. She was killing him. Did she have a
ny idea how sexy she was?

  “What are you thinking? I can practically see the wheels turning in your head.”

  Remy smirked. “I was just tinkin’ about how sexy you look and wonderin’ if you even realize it.” When she rolled her eyes at him he growled. “I mean it, Kitten. You’re so fuckin’ sexy, and dat little moan you just made, you’re killin’ me here. Dat sound went straight to my cock.” He saw a flash of something in her eyes and reached out to caress her jaw. “Don’t worry, we’ll take dis as slow as you need to. Dat doesn’t mean I don’t crave you, cher. You’re like a drug and I need my fix.”

  “That’s almost corny, but it’s sweet at the same time,” she replied with a laugh.

  “Maybe, but it’s true, Kitten. I’m like a junkie needin’ my next fix, when it comes to you.” He reminded himself to go slow with her. This trip away was about showing her she could trust him and let him in. He wouldn’t do that if he pushed too hard, too fast.

  Remy watched as Kylie moved to the bed and flopped down on it. He imagined what she would look like sprawled across the covers with her skin glowing and her hair mussed from their lovemaking. Down, boy. “Are you hungry, Kitten? We could go into Lafayette, get a bite to eat.”

  “Did you have a place in mind?”

  “Mm-hmm. Bon Temps Grill. I’ve heard dere food is great.”

  “Then let’s go get something to eat. Then we can come back here and cuddle. And…see where we go from there.”

  He didn’t miss the promise in her words. At least she was willing to try to get past all the trauma she suffered at Ezra’s hands. “No rush, and no pressure, Kitten,” he said and kissed her cheek before he escorted her out to his truck.