by Elin Peer
“Are you sure you wanna do that?”
I jumped back at the sight of Willow looking at me from around the shower door.
“Fuck! Why the hell didn’t you lock the door?” I blamed her in my defense.
“I thought I did.”
I looked back at the door as if I could blame it too.
“It’s okay, I’m done anyway. You can have the bathroom.” She gave me a smile and it confused the hell out of me.
Bending over, I reached for my shoes on the floor. “I’ll wait outside.”
“Actually, there was something I wanted to ask you.” Her head disappeared. The shower door wasn’t see-through but just the thought that she might be naked on the other side of that thin separation had me sweating profusely.
“I shouldn’t be here,” I muttered and turned around.
“But now that you are here, could you hand me the white dress in the bag?”
My hand was on the door handle, my heart hammering in my chest. When I heard the shower door swing open behind me, I closed my eyes and focused on breathing and getting my brain to work again. The damage was already done. If I stormed out of the bathroom now and someone saw me, they would assume that something had happened between me and Willow. This was bad!
“Since you won’t do it, I’ll get the dress myself.” Twenty seconds later she added, “There, now I’m dressed so you can turn around again.”
My whole body was tensed up when I turned in a slow motion. Willow was wearing a white summer dress with thin shoulder straps, one that showed her arms, neck, and a nice cleavage, especially from my vantage point looking down at her. I averted my eyes to look at her elbow. “People will think I touched you.”
She took a step closer. “Stop being so paranoid.”
I gave her a hard stare. “Paranoid? Twice, I’ve gotten close to dying because I was found alone with you. The minute I walk out of here and someone sees me, I’m fucking dead and you know it.”
She moved even closer and without thinking, I took another step away.
“Solo, relax, I’ll tell them nothing happened.”
“It won’t matter. Tristan will have the right to…” I didn’t finish the sentence because Willow had a look in her eyes that made my spine tingle. I’d seen it before and it wasn’t one of hate or disgust. It was softer, and I swallowed hard.
“I can’t imagine Tristan killing anyone. It’s Hunter you have to worry about, but both of them think I’m meditating in my room.”
“Good, then maybe we can get out without being seen together.”
“Maybe.” There it was again. The look of trouble in her eyes. “But I wonder.” She turned around and stood with her back to me, the summer dress caressing her beautiful body as it slimmed in around her waist and fell loosely around her hips down to her mid-thighs. Looking straight into the wet bathroom mirror, her eyes met mine. The reflections of our faces on the steamy surface were a bit distorted, but she was still the most gorgeous woman in the world.
“If you truly think these are your final minutes on earth, how are you going to spend them?”
There was something less confrontational and more alluring in being behind her and not face to face. I was still suspicious of her motive for talking with me but allowed my eyes to take her in.
“Aren’t you curious to know if we still have that special chemistry that we used to have?” She paused and looked down. “Despite my anger with you, I wonder about that.”
“But you have Tristan.”
She hesitated and Zasquash’s words about her and Tristan faking it played in my mind. If I knew anything about Willow it was she loved with gusto. She might have started out loving Tristan, but whatever was going on between them now didn’t excite her much. She wouldn’t still be in this room if it did.
“Willow… what are you doing?” My voice was low and hoarse.
“So you don’t wonder about it?”
I took a small step closer. A test to see if she would move. She stood perfectly still and then in a slow deliberate movement of her hand, Willow reached behind her head, pulling her hair to one side, baring her neck to me – something she had done so many times in the past as an invitation to kiss her and hold her. Instant tingles ran up and down my spine, but just below the excitement was that small voice whispering in warning that it might be a trap.
“I’m not going to touch you.” My words seemed to be more for me than her.
“Is it because of Salma?”
“Salma? What does she have to do with anything?”
“You said you’d answer any question I had.” Willow’s voice was a soft caress.
“What do you wanna know?”
She looked back over her shoulder. “Are you in love with Salma?”
I scrunched up my face. “What kind of question is that?”
“It’s all right if you are. I’m just curious.” She turned back to meet my gaze in the mirror again.
“Why would you even care, Willow?”
“I wish I didn’t but I’ve always been curious by nature.”
My tone was flat. “So at least that part about you hasn’t changed.”
“No.”
I moved a little closer, confused by her mixed signals. “I’m not in love with Salma.”
“Do you think she’s more beautiful than me?”
“Willow…” I sighed. “Why would you ask me that? Stop playing tricks with my mind.”
She lowered her head and whispered low. “I’m just asking questions. If these are your last minutes on earth, don’t you have questions as well?”
My head was exploding with questions and warnings at the same time. Looking around I searched for cameras, but this was a bathroom and there were none.
“If these are truly my last minutes on earth I would want to know one thing,” I muttered low.
Willow gave a slight twist of her body and looked over her shoulder again, her green eyes calling to me like a cool lake in a lush forest. Come play, come dive in. In those eyes was a flashback to the young woman I’d known before the hate and the blame took over.
I could hardly breathe when I stepped close to her, my naked torso feeling the heat emanating from her delicious body. My t-shirt was on the floor, the top of my pants was open, and my hands were begging for me to touch her but our bodies were still a bit apart.
“What is that one thing?” she asked and while keeping eye contact with me in the mirror, she licked her lower lips in a way that made my pants tighten.
I managed to answer, “How it would feel to hold you in my arms again.”
“Is that all? You just want a hug?”
Was that disappointment in her voice?
I closed the gap between us, my body now firmly pressed against her back, my hands still not touching, but my mouth breathing into her left ear. My nerves were on alert for any sign that she would call for help.
I closed my eyes when her hand touched mine. Our fingers merged together, squeezing each other as old friends saying “I missed you.”
Fuck it!
Letting go of my fear and ignoring the warnings in my head, I placed my other hand across her belly, pulling her back against me and leaning my head against hers. Willow lifted her free hand to touch my hair and it made me insane with hunger for her. Turning her around I cupped her face and kissed her with a ferocious hunger, my whole body shaking with eagerness and desire for her. Our tongues were playing tag, like two children rediscovering games from the past.
“Fuck… Willow…” I moaned and picked her up while still kissing her. “What are you doing to me?”
She broke our kiss and looked into my eyes. “I still hate you.”
With a deep groan, I turned our bodies to press her back up against the wall. Her legs were wrapped around my hips and her hands fisted deep in my hair. It hurt from the way she was pulling at it, but if she needed to punish me a little, I could take it. We kept kissing and I sucked in a breath when Willow rotated her hips. With
my crotch against her soft core, I pressed harder against her, and she pushed back.
“Fuuck…” This brought back sweet memories from our week on the run. Our hips met in rhythmic movements imitating mating. I was so fucking turned on that I couldn’t think straight. The tip of my cock escaped my briefs, making her white dress and panties all that separated her pussy from me.
As our bodies ground against each other and her heels bore into my back, Willow’s hands moved downward over my naked shoulders and chest, leaving scratch marks from her nails.
I had one hand behind her neck, keeping her in place to kiss her, and the other slid up her body to feel those amazing breasts that had developed since I knew her.
Blood was pumping through every part of my body and I was breathing fast and heavy, enjoying the friction from rubbing my cock against her. We were having sex. Maybe not full intercourse but this was definitely in the category of sex and I was mind-blown that it was happening in a bathroom when both Hunter and Tristan were close.
The thought sobered me a bit, and I stopped grinding my hips and pulled back to look at her. “Why are you doing this?”
Again, her nails bored into my skin and I suddenly suspected it was all part of her plan. “You’re going to tell them, aren’t you?”
Willow opened her eyes and refocused from the haze she’d been in. “What did you say?”
I placed her back on the floor taking a step back and looking at my back in the mirror. “The scratch marks. You want them to think I raped you.” She didn’t need cameras when she had physical proof now. “Fuck! I fell right into your trap, didn’t I?”
She tugged her long brown hair behind her ears and brushed her hands over it.
“Willow?” I stared at her in disbelief. “You planned this all along.”
Finally, she lifted her gaze to look into my eyes. Every second before she spoke felt like a year. “I’m not going to tell them anything, so you can stop looking at me like I’m your enemy.”
My shoulders were tensed up.
“I didn’t plan anything.” She looked down, straightened her dress, and cleared her throat, “This shouldn’t have happened.” She didn’t meet my eyes. “I don’t know what came over me but don’t worry, it will never happen again.”
I bent down to pick up my t-shirt. “Because of Tristan?”
“Yes. And Hunter. But mostly because of our history.” She took three steps to the door and looked back at the bathtub, which was close to full. “Enjoy your bath.”
I kept quiet when she cracked the door open and peeked out. Just when she was about to leave, I made a sound and her eyes asked a silent “What?”
Picking up her small bag from the floor, I handed it to her. When she took it, our fingers touched and I wanted to grab her and pull her back into my arms.
I didn’t, though, and a second later the door closed without a sound behind her.
With heavy steps, I walked over and locked it.
She won’t tell anyone.
I sighed and covered my face with my hands. What did you do? She threatened you before and told you straight to your face that she hates you… still you jumped right in.
Convinced that any minute now angry men would break through the door, I waited with my heart pounding, considering what I’d do. Should I fight for my life or let them kill me?
If I left now, I might have a chance of escaping into the woods and never be found again.
Except… Zasquash was here and he would be hard to trick. He knew me too well and would have a fresh trail to follow.
Would he let me go?
I ruminated on that while lowering my hands to my sides, my eyes on the bath in front of me. This wasn’t the first time I’d flirted with death. As a Huntsman I’d fought men who’d done their best to kill me. I’d rappelled down steep mountainsides and climbed up in places where a single mistake would have killed me. That I’d made it to twenty-four was a miracle it itself.
“Fuck me,” I mumbled. “A life lived in fear is no life at all.”
That bath looked luxurious and inviting. It would be a good place to relive the exhilarating moments that had just taken place between Willow and me. If nothing else, I would die with the taste of her lips on my mouth.
CHAPTER 18
Freeman
Willow
We arrived at the capital of the Northlands around noon and were surprised to see a large group of people gathered in front of the hotel we were staying at.
Leo looked down from our drone to the sea of men. “Shit. I feared this would happen.”
“Looks like you have a lot of fans here now.” Ben smiled at Salma but after one glance, she pulled her legs up in front of her and wrapped her arms around them. Hiding her face against her knees she began rocking back and forth.
Tristan and Hunter were flying with us. Both of them gave me a worried glance, not understanding what was going on.
Ben talked in a calming voice to Salma and I regretted not taking the seat next to her. I wanted to take her hand and tell her everything would be all right.
Leo leaned closer to Zasquash. “Call up Solo and ask him to be ready to receive us.” With Hunter and Tristan in the drone, Leo had agreed to let Solo fly with the orchestra. “I’ll take the front and I want Zasquash and Solo on either side of Salma.” Leo pointed to Ben. “You’ll walk next to her and hold her hand. Make them think she belongs to you.”
Zasquash scoffed and objected, “Ben is hardly going to scare any of them away. No offense, Ben, but they know Motlanders don’t marry. It’s public that’s she single.”
“How about Hunter holds her hand? He’s used to the publicity anyway,” I suggested, knowing that if anyone took Salma’s hands the news media would be speculating that she was in a relationship with him.
“Or I could hold her hand.” Zasquash pushed his chest out.
Leo gave him a sharp look. “No. You focus on protecting her and let someone else play the romantic part.”
“Why? If Solo or I hold her hand, no one is going to fuck with her. How many men do you know who would go up against a Doomsman?”
“None. Which is why you’ll be on either side of her.
“Salma won’t be holding any man’s hand,” Ben cut in.
Leo gave him a hard stare. “We’ve never had a situation like this, but I guarantee you one thing. Those four or five hundred men down there all want to hold Salma’s hand. If there’s one thing that entices Nmen it’s a single woman. The moment she’s claimed by a man they back off. We can guard her with ten large men, but Salma’s holding the hand of a large Nman will be the strongest protection she can get.”
“How do you know they’re here for Salma and not Willow or some of the other performers?” Hunter asked.
Zasquash frowned. “My guess is that they are here for both of you ladies.”
“As I said,” Leo said in a matter-of-fact tone, “I’ll lead, Ben will hold Salma’s hand to calm her down and hopefully send a signal to the Nmen that she’s not single. Zasquash and Solo will…”
“But I thought she was going to hold Hunter’s hand,” I interrupted, knowing that none of the Nmen down there would take Ben seriously as her mate.
Leo threw up his hands with a sigh of exasperation. “I don’t care who’s holding her hand. I’m just trying to come up with a plan here.”
I leaned toward Salma, speaking in a soft voice: “Salma dear. Whose hand do you want to hold? Ben’s or Hunter’s?”
She raised her head from her knees and surprised me by looking at Tristan. Although she quickly returned to hiding her face and didn’t say that she’d prefer for it to be him, I got the hint. Tristan squared his shoulders and the expression on his face when he looked over at me said, Did you see that?
“We’ll keep circling until Solo is in place.” Leo was looking down at the area in front of the hotel where hundreds were standing hoping to get close to us performers. Right now, the large drone that had transported all the other Mot
landers had parked and the other performers were exiting, waving to the waiting men.
“It’s not different from back home in the Motherlands, just wave and smile at them.” Ben used a soothing voice and stroked her back.
“Salma, if you want I can try and distract them,” I suggested. “I’ll draw their attention with a dance and you can slip in fast.”
She didn’t answer but kept rocking back and forth caught in a visible anxiety attack.
Tristan, who sat between me and Salma, leaned in and whispered something to her. Whatever Tristan had going on it seemed to work, because Salma leaned back in her seat and put one foot back on the floor.
Leo and Zasquash were talking to Solo, who was on the ground, and once the second large drone took off we began descending.
“You’ve got this,” Tristan encouraged Salma, who was hyperventilating a little. “Remember what you told me. What is fear?”
“The body's alarm system.” She closed her eyes and spoke in a fast rant. “It’s just my amygdala that is making my heart beat faster so I can send more oxygen to my cells. I’m a brave person and brave people are still fearful but they manage their fear better. I’m brave and I can do this. I’m brave and I can do this.”
“Woo-hoo…” Tristan gave a joyous laugh. “Now control that fear. Channel it into excitement.”
Salma opened her eyes, her shoulders pulled high and her breathing fast. “I can do it. I can do it.”
“You’re damn right you can do it. Just smile and wave.”
When the door opened, Solo was standing right outside. His eyes found mine and I felt an instant surge of my own excitement.
Leo got out. “Solo, how bad is it?”
“So far they’re staying back. We’ve got a chain of police in place up front. I estimate there are around four hundred fans.”
“Just do as you always do. Wave your hand, smile, and walk inside the hotel,” Ben told Salma and followed Zasquash out of the drone, but Salma didn’t follow. Biting her lips, she glanced at the large crowd and pulled back into the drone.
“Salma, look at me.” Tristan stood in the opening and spoke directly to her. “A smile from you will be the highlight of their life; just sprinkle it like fairy dust and stay close to us. You’re surrounded by protectors. No one will get close to you but us.”
