by Vivian Wood
“Luke! Luke, hey!” Aubrey was saying, tugging at his hand.
Luke looked down at her, torment raging in his chest, and understood something.
“No wonder you can’t love me. I’m a fucking killer,” he said, rising from the couch. He needed to leave Aubrey’s house. Drive off into the sunset and never return.
“SIT. DOWN.”
Luke froze. He turned back to Aubrey, finding her seething with anger. He could barely believe that commanding voice had come out of his petite Aubrey. Her chest heaved, her fists were clenched, and her expression was enough to chill him.
“I said, sit the fuck down. You are not leaving this house right now,” Aubrey ordered. She sat down, staring at him in challenge until he mirrored her movement. He wasn’t much for taking shit from anybody now that he was out of the Army, but the look on Aubrey’s face said that she wasn’t afraid to shift and try to fight him. If they threw down, Aubrey might get hurt, and that was unacceptable.
“Are you done talking now?” Aubrey asked. Luke could see that she was keeping a tight rein on her bear, even as he struggled to do the same.
“Yeah,” he said.
“Good. I want to hear your story. Not right now, but soon. I want to hear the whole thing, because it’s clear you need to tell it,” she said.
“Half of it is classified, Aubrey,” Luke snapped.
“I don’t give a shit. If you’re here, supposedly courting me as your mate, I deserve to hear it all. And not because I’m disgusted, or think you’re a bad person, but because that’s what mates do.”
“Aubrey—”
“No arguments. I can’t be angry that you didn’t come chase after me, especially after the way I left, but I sure as hell can be mad if you can’t use these newfound talking skills of yours to tell me your whole story.”
Luke hesitated, his stomach still leaden, but after a minute he nodded his acquiescence.
“Fine. If that’s what you really want, Aubrey. But if it’s show and tell time, I want to know why you were so sad when I first met you. Why you had the most incredible weekend of your life with me, and then you just walked out on me without a word. There’s a story there, too.”
Aubrey sucked in a deep breath, her eyes widening.
“Do I need to repeat all the things you just threw at me?” Luke asked.
Anger flitted over her face for an instant, chased away with resignation.
“Fine. Fair’s fair. You tell me about your lowest moment, and I’ll tell you about why I was standing in that bar in San Diego, trying not to cry.”
Luke’s heart squeezed at the way she dropped her eyes, showing him her shame.
“Hey,” he said, reaching out and tipping her chin up. “We don’t have to talk about that any more tonight. All right?”
“Right,” Aubrey said, letting out a breath. “Not tonight.”
Luke pulled her into his arms, inhaling deeply of her unique scent and relishing the soft warmth of her body against his own. Somehow, holding her close like this, trying to chase away her pain with an innocent touch, was almost harder than admitting to the woman he loved that he was a killer.
Luke looked down at her, his gaze dropping to her lips. Before he knew what he was doing, his mouth was on hers. This time, her lips parted under his right away, giving him access. He sucked in a breath at the sweet, distinctive taste of her lips, a honeyed delight quickly branded into his senses. He cradled her jaw in one big hand, sweeping the other down her shoulder to grip the plushness of her hip.
When Aubrey leaned forward to press her body closer to his, Luke’s animal side took over. He grabbed her hips and picked her up, settling her onto his lap. The soft chuff of surprise that escaped her turned him on like no other. He felt his body hardening, muscles tensing as his cock came to full attention.
The soft weight of her on his lap made him want to groan out loud. He sought her mouth again, his tongue teasing and tasting as he ran his hand down to explore the bounty of her ass. She was so soft and warm under his touch, as if she were made for his pleasure.
Aubrey pulled back for a second, uncertainty plain on her face.
“Luke, I’m not sure we should do this,” she said, sounding a little breathless. He wanted to reassure her just as badly as he wanted to take her, so he settled on a compromise.
“I’m going to stay clothed,” he said. “Let me make you feel good, no strings attached.”
“Luke… are you sure?” Aubrey asked. The excitement in her voice, the hunger in her eyes… it was going to be the death of him.
Luke pushed her back onto the couch, giving her a slow, deep kiss before peeling off her cardigan and dress. Underneath she wore a black lace bra and a sexy pair of red panties that made his cock twitch with want as he knelt before her. Just as she had the first time he’d undressed her, she blushed and tried to cover herself. Luke was having none of that, catching her hands and pushing them up behind her head.
“Don’t move these,” he said, giving her hands a squeeze before releasing them.
Aubrey bit her lip and nodded, her eyes gone dark with desire. Luke put a hand on each of her knees, skating his touch up the top of her thighs. He felt Aubrey shiver as she watched him, anticipation making the fine muscles in her thighs flutter and tighten. Luke grabbed her hips, parting her legs as he pulled her to the edge of the couch. The scent of her desire flooded his senses as he brought her heated core right up to press against his own body. He surged forward just once, rubbing his erection against her to remind her of his size and all the amazing things he could do to her.
Aubrey gasped and writhed. She moved her hands, but a deep growl from Luke had them back in place instantly. Luke might be lost in everyday civilian life, but the bedroom and the battlefield were his element, the two places where his Alpha was truly free. He wasn’t about to let Aubrey forget it, either.
Lifting his hands to her shoulders, Luke slid the black satin straps of her bra off her shoulders. He brushed butterfly kisses over the tops of her breasts as he edged her bra cups down and down until finally she was bare to him.
“God, your tits…” he marveled, lifting them in his hands. They were more than bountiful, each far more than he could hold in one hand. Perfectly round, pale orbs tipped with lush, velvety nipples. He leaned in and nuzzled the curve of one breast, dropping kisses and nips of his teeth as he worked his way inward to one pebbled nipple.
Aubrey cried out and sank her fingers into his hair as he closed his mouth over her sensitive flesh. He rolled his tongue over and around it, teasing the tip with his tongue and teeth until she was panting and bucking her hips against his cock, driving him wild. He gave her a soft nip, making her back arch with surprise and pleasure. Squeezing her breast in his hand, he switched his attentions to the other one. Licking, teasing, scraping his teeth over the most sensitive part, he was rewarded with her plea for more.
“Luke, please!” Aubrey breathed. He drew back and licked his lips, loving how her eyes followed the movement of his tongue.
“Please what?” he asked, weighing her breasts in his hands, brushing his thumbs over her nipples.
“I need…” she began. Before she could finish, Luke hooked his fingertips in the top of her panties and tugged them down. Aubrey released a breath and lifted her body, helping him strip her naked. Luke glanced up at Aubrey and noticed that she was blushing, despite how turned on she was.
“Look at you,” he growled. “You make me so fucking hot, Aubrey. Your body is so perfect. I can’t wait to taste you.”
He moved back and leaned down, spreading her thighs wide. Her bare, pink slit glistened with her excitement, and Luke couldn’t resist sampling her. He parted her lips with two fingers, using the tip of his tongue to trace a hot line from her core up to her clit. Aubrey tensed under him, sucking in a breath. Luke closed his lips over the tender bud, sucking and swirling his tongue over her most sensitive spot until she cried out.
“Luke, Luke…” Aubrey moaned.
Luke slid a single thick finger into her hot, tight core and nearly came himself when her inner walls tightened around him. He withdrew and slid in two fingers, licking and sucking her clit as he thrust his fingers into her channel over and over. When he felt her tense once more, her orgasm growing close, he added a third finger and fucked her relentlessly, sucking up every bit of her sweet juices as he brought her to the edge.
Aubrey hovered on the brink, her cries growing desperate. Luke repositioned himself as he worked, using his free hand to explore. He sent one juice-slicked fingertip past her tight, full core and up until he circled the tight circle of her ass. He flicked and fluttered his tongue over her clit as he circled his fingertip around the rim, invading her sensitive flesh with the barest fingertip.
Aubrey screamed as her orgasm took her in a sudden jolt, making her muscles lock up as she bucked her hips against Luke’s mouth and fingers. He kept sucking and pumping his fingers until she moaned and pulled his head away. Only then did he rise, wiping his lips as he returned to sit next to her. Luke pulled Aubrey’s limp form into his arms, reclining on the couch as she struggled to catch her breath.
As he held her, he kissed the top of her head, inhaling her scent and feeling her heart beating wildly against his chest. After she’d calmed, they lay together for a long time without speaking or moving. At last, Luke knew he had to leave. He didn’t want to rush Aubrey into anything, or demand that she change her life for him. Not yet, not until she knew that was her own heart’s desire. He couldn’t stay the night tonight, and he needed to tell Aubrey about his plans for the rest of the week.
“Aubrey, I’m going to leave in a minute,” Luke said.
“You don’t have to go,” she said, but he could feel her body tense against his. She was ready to shield herself, ready for him to push her too far.
“I do, actually. I have to get some things in line. I have a job interview in Portland on Friday, so I’ll need to head back Thursday night. Just to be on the safe side,” he told her. “Always a boy scout. I like to be prepared.”
Aubrey snorted, but he could tell by her expression that his announcement was irritating her.
“Alright. So… that’s that, huh?” she asked. Her tone was casual, but her body was even more tense than before.
“Uh, no. I have to leave for a couple of days, but I’m coming right back. And I’m not even leaving for three days. I’d like to see you again tomorrow or Wednesday, if possible.” He’d gone through the schedule in his head a dozen times, trying to figure out how much he could see her before his plane took off.
Aubrey was silent. As usual, not the boundless enthusiasm he wanted from her, but at least she hadn’t kicked him out of the house yet. At least she was being still, letting Luke hold her in his arms.
“You’re job hunting in Portland,” she said at last. A statement, not a question.
“Yeah. This has been on the books for weeks. It’s a great position, actually. Something I might actually like and be good at.”
Aubrey gave him an odd look that he couldn’t decipher, and then squared her shoulders.
“I need to ask you something,” she said. The expression on her face nearly made him wince, because he could tell that she was going into battle mode.
“Okay, shoot,” he said, taking a deep, calming breath.
“The decree from the Alphas’ Council that we should all take mates… How much did that factor into your decision to come find me?” she asked.
Her tone was harsh, as though she already found him lacking and didn’t want to hear his excuses. Luke blinked, feeling a little shell-shocked even though her question was not unreasonable or even unexpected.
“Well… In some ways, a lot. In some ways, none,” he replied.
Aubrey crossed her arms, her mouth tightening into a scowl.
“Right. Gotcha,” she said.
“To be honest, I always assumed you had a mate. I was planning to track you down anyway, out of curiosity, but I wasn’t in a rush about it. When my parents announced the mateship thing, you popped into my head. Then I saw you at the mixer, and knew you were still available…” he said.
Luke cleared his throat and shifted in his seat, feeling uncomfortable explaining his motives and thought process. He wasn’t even getting it half right, either. He’d obsessed about her, thought about finding her, been elated when he’d known she hadn’t taken a mate.
“Okay. Well, thanks for being honest,” she said.
Aubrey pulled out of his gasp and grabbed her dress, tugging it on over her head and covering herself. Luke stood, knowing that he was being thrown out on his ass.
“Can I see you before I go on my trip?” Luke asked.
“I’m not—” Aubrey paused, blowing out a frustrated huff. “Let me think about it.”
“Okay. If not, just let me know. I can wait until I get back, I just don’t want to,” he said.
Aubrey gave him another of those odd, undecipherable looks.
“Goodnight, Luke,” she sighed.
Luke leaned in and dropped one last kiss on her lips, and then headed out.
“Lock the door behind me, okay?” he asked.
Aubrey shot him a glare, but followed him.
“Bye—” he said on her doormat, only to have the door shut in his face.
As he walked away, he gave a low whistle.
“Well, shit,” he told himself. “That did not end well.”
Luke kept moving to his car, refusing to give in and run back to her door for the second time. A man had his pride, after all. Shaking his head and cursing the serious case of blue balls Aubrey’d given him, he headed back to his hotel.
22
Thirteen
Aubrey swirled the last sip of her cocktail in its glass, gazing at all the gorgeous people packing Wilson & Wilson, her favorite fancy bar. Though Aubrey knew that Val just wanted the latest gossip about her situation with Luke, when Val had invited Aubrey out for drinks, she couldn’t resist. A champagne cocktail and some girl talk had sounded like just the ticket to her mateship blues.
So they’d dressed up and come downtown right after work, early enough to score a good table at the popular bar. Three drinks later, Val was pushing Aubrey for details on her date with Luke.
“That’s it? You guys hooked up, but didn’t go all the way, and then you kicked him out?” Val said, disbelieving. “You should have hit that, girl. He’s sooooo hot.”
“Yeah, he really, really is,” Aubrey sighed. “But I told you, I can’t figure out his motives.”
“Luke seems like a pretty decent guy to me,” Val said with a shrug.
“They all do, at first. And with Luke… I can’t really explain it, but I think he’s just interested in me because his family wants him to settle down, and he thinks I’d sort of… fit the bill. Not very romantic.” Aubrey pulled a face.
“Yeah, but couldn’t he basically just date whoever? From everything you’ve told me, he’s kind of a catch.”
“I told you, we’re from the same culture,” Aubrey said.
“Oh, yeah. The Norse thing,” Val said, rolling her eyes. “That’s a pretty lame connection, if you ask me.”
“It’s really important to our families.”
“But not to you, it seems,” Val noted.
“No, not to me. My father promised me years ago that I wouldn’t have to deal with any of this shit.”
“Was that…” Val hesitated. “Does that have something to do with all that vacation time you took a few years ago?”
Aubrey’s gaze snapped up to her friend’s face. She’d taken three months off from work, claiming that she was going abroad to refresh herself. In reality, she just hadn’t been able to face her day-to-day life after her engagement with Lawrence had gone off the tracks. She and Valerie hadn’t been as close back then, so it surprised Aubrey that Val had figured out that her ‘vacation’ had been tied into the demands of her crazy family.
“Ah. Um, yeah,” Aubrey sai
d, unwilling to get into the whole tale.
“I figured your absence was guy-related. You and that guy Lance were getting pretty serious—”
“Lawrence,” Aubrey corrected automatically. Even as the words left her mouth, she wondered why she even cared.
“Yeah. Well, you guys were all hot and heavy, then you told me you might break it off, and then…” Valerie shrugged. “You were gone. When you came back to work, you never talked about it, but you stopped going on dates. Luke must be your first date in… I don’t even know how long.”
Aubrey nodded, knowing that her friend was right. She had waited way too long between men. Now her lust was uncontrollable around Luke, making it hard for her to think clearly when he was around. Not an ideal situation when her future freedom and happiness might be at stake.
“Hey. Earth to Aubrey,” Val said, waving a hand in front of Aubrey’s face. “I didn’t mean to send you down some kind of rabbit hole, buddy. I was just curious.”
“I don’t want to talk about the past anymore. Should we have one last drink before we hit the road?” Aubrey asked.
Val shook her head.
“I can’t. One more drink would mean leaving my car here for the night. Between the valet and the Uber rides, it would bankrupt me,” she joked. Val’s figure was slimmer than Aubrey’s, something Aubrey occasionally coveted. Still, Val’s petite frame meant that she couldn’t hold her liquor worth a damn.
“Alright. Let’s get moving, then,” Aubrey said, signaling the waitress to bring the check.
After Aubrey and Val hugged and parted ways, heading to parking spots in opposite directions, Aubrey’s phone rang. Fishing it out of her purse, she was surprised to see that it was her parents’ home number. It was almost nine at night, way later than her mother felt it polite to make phone calls.
