He pulled her onto his lap, his arms wrapped around her body, creating a cocoon of safety. His green eyes flashed with a certain satisfaction.
“You’re silly, you know.” He rubbed her back, then smirked my way. “What’d you do to my baby girl today, Blade?”
“I found out she has more skills than I thought, and I’m not talking about her mouth, either,” I teased. She looked so comfortable sitting on his lap.
“Well, you should know this is shark week. So you might want to take it easy. Apparently, it’s like clockwork,” he joked. She pulled back and gave him a dirty look. “You said to talk about anything.” He gave her a kiss on the cheek, and she shook her head before resuming her position.
“It’s not an entire week, you know.” She looked adorable as her pert little nose inhaled him. “You smell good. Like coffee. I love it.”
“Good to know. How about if I sing something foryoutonight instead?”
“You sing?” She pulled back once more, looking shocked. He nodded. “Then yes, please. I’d like that.”
Nik sang. His rich voice rang out, soothing her, and as he rubbed her back, tears fell down her cheeks. Then her eyes closed, and her breathing deepened. He held her for close to an hour, then motioned.
“Come get her, Ivan. I can’t take it anymore.”
I picked her up off his lap. The feel of her warm body in my arms made me glad Alek had insisted we still share in this task.
“Fuck, she makes me hard.” Nik adjusted himself as we left the room.
“Welcome to the club,” I threw over my shoulder, adjusting her slight frame, and headed toward my room.
She stirred. Her hand came to rest on my chest, and she traced a random pattern against my shirt.
“Ivan, are you really sleeping with me tonight?” she asked sleepily, moving her hands around my neck.
“No, little love.You’resleeping with me. My bed is more comfortable.” I set her down in front of her door. “Go change. I’ll wait here for you.”
She nodded and disappeared into her room. Not long after, she came back out in her pajamas. “Lead the way, mighty Blade.”
I smiled. She was too much. Her hand slipped into mine as we walked the short distance to my room. I took her over to the bed and tucked her in. She looked incredibly small lying there, and something about it tugged at my heart.
Her eyes were transfixed on me, so much so that I had to force myself to leave her side. I went into the bathroom to get ready for bed, already needing a minute.
The second I crawled under the covers, she turned toward me, and I raised my eyebrows as she scooted in close, tucking her head under my chin. Warmth bloomed across my chest beneath where her hands rested.
“Ivan?” She yawned loudly.
“Yes?”
She drew small circles on my upper chest. “Why did you want me to talk to Marcel about the spanking?”
“He’s my best friend and was concerned about you. It’s his thing.” I kissed the top of her head, savoring the soft silkiness of her hair against my lips. Damn, she smelled good.
“Talking to girls about spankings is his thing?” Her voice was strangely quiet, reflective almost.
“That and other things.” Her mentioning the spanking only made my hands itch to rub her ass again.
Visions of her sprawled across my lap, my hand smacking her perfectly round cheeks, and hearing her moan teased my mind. Then the kisses from the war room filtered in. I was lost in my thoughts when her voice broke through.
“I’m not a whore. I promise I’m not.” Hot tears fell on my chest, and a small sound escaped her.
“Whoa, where did that come from? No one thinks you’re a whore.” I pulled back so I could look into her eyes.
“Sure you guys do, and I don’t blame you. I liked it, and then I hated myself for liking it,” she whispered.
Fuck, her confession was not what I was expecting to hear. I sighed. “I’ll let the others know that’s how you felt. Maybe you should talk to Marcel. I’m sure that if you enter into a therapist-patient relationship with him, he’ll protect your privacy. He’s a good man. I promise.”
