Instead, he lifts my chin with a forefinger. “It would be my greatest honor if yeh’d wear this, my beauty.”
I can’t find words, so I take the tiny orb and slip the chain over my neck. It lands level with my heart, something I suspect he planned. Because, if nothing else, Dirk is an insane planner.
“It’s beautiful,” I whisper, tears springing unbidden to my eyes.
He presses forward and brings his cool lips to mine. “Yeh deserve the world, Louanna. And Connall and I will strive togive that to yeh every fookin’ day. Do yeh hear me? This world and every other that exists, mate.” He kisses the tip of my nose. “We’ll be worthy of a box full of letters to Caroline.”
I gulp around words that choke me. I’m still figuring out this dynamic and what it means, and I?—
But Dirk banishes those thoughts from my mind when he slants his mouth over mine, his tongue dipping in to taste me. A soft moan from him has me rocking my hips against his.
When Connall’s big hands slide up the back of my neck, holding my head while Dirk kisses me, I decide I’m going to beg them both to stay home today. No matter that we all have work to do.
But when Dirk’s comm watch pings, we part. He looks at Arkan’s name hovering over the band and groans.
“I’ve got tae go.” His voice is mournful, so I suspect he’s feeling the same thing as I am.
Connall grips my neck and turns me to face him. “Are you working today?”
I nod. “Yeah, my shift starts in an hour.”
His expression goes soft. “I’d like to walk you to work, if Dirk is leaving. And maybe take you to lunch after you’re done?”
It’s on the tip of my tongue to snark about not needing someone to walk me the five minutes to Alkemi, but when I think back to what happened with Amatheia, I decide not to.
“Sounds good,” I agree. “To both.”
“Och, Louanna’s tryin’ not tae sass yeh,” Dirk says on a laugh. “She thought about it; I could see it in her face.”
Connall’s grip tightens as he presses his body to my thigh. “Let’s play with that sass a little bit tonight.”
Heat spears through me, and I squirm on the countertop. Gods, I love Connall in dominant mode.
Eventually, we can’t delay any longer, and Dirk disappears on a lazy gust of wind.
Connall and I dress, and then he stands in the doorway and stares at me while I braid my hair.
As I loop the elastic around the end, he joins me in the bathroom, wrapping the braid around his fist. Green eyes roam over the strands before meeting mine in the mirror.
“Would you teach me how to do this sometime? The idea of braiding your hair is appealing.”
I raise a brow. “Appealing, huh?”
He comes to stand behind me, pressing me to the sink as we stare at one another in the mirror. His big hand comes to mine, and he guides it to his heart, green eyes locked onto mine.
“Appealing, Lou,” he says to our reflections. “Because I want to be part of every moment of your day. The big moments, the smaller ones.” He twirls my hair around his fingertip. “I want to take care of you, sweet girl, just like Dirk does.”
“I’ve been thinking about that,” I admit.
“And?”
“I’d like us to plan something special for Dirk.” I lean back against Connall’s chest, lifting my head to look up at him. “He’s this crazy master planner when it comes to us, and I don’t want him to feel like it always has to be him. What we’re doing, it's…new. But in his mind, it’s been all about us since he met us.”
“What do you have in mind?” Connall’s voice goes deep, his wolf’s sheen swirling through his irises as a hand snakes around my front to rest between my breasts.
“Not sure,” I admit. “Think about it, and we can make a plan over lunch?”
“Done,” Connall whispers into my hair, kissing the top of my forehead.
