Alpha Male Incorporated: Take Control (25 page)

A searing pain cut him deep as a life without Raya flashed before his eyes as the “sleep of the dead” took him over. He always avoided attachments to or getting involved with any woman because they never stirred up the protective side of him like this. He didn’t want to be alive for another minute if Raya wasn’t at his side loving him.

Love was something that had never existed in his life until now, and the thought of losing it as quickly as it came scared him. He had to talk to Raya and get everything out in the open, but now wasn’t the time. She was worn out from their lovemaking and needed to rest. He would get everything out in the open once they woke up from their sleep.

Thorsten set several spells around the house to keep anyone from getting inside while he was asleep. Glancing down at Raya, he ran his hand gently over her head, sending her into a deeper slumber than she already was in. He couldn’t afford her to wake up while he was still sleep. Satisfied, he had everything the way he desired. Thorsten closed his eyes and allowed the much needed sleep his body yearned for to take over.

What did I do
?

Raya lay in the bed next to a peacefully sleeping Thorsten. She had slept with a man…no, a
vampire
that she could barely tolerate on a good day. They had both been asleep, but she had finally struggled to wake up.

Confusion, hurt, and wanting to leave without waking up Thorsten controlled her racing thoughts. In her mind, nothing had changed between the two of them because they had sex last night.

He was still the same…God, why was she still lying to herself. Everything had changed between her and Thorsten. He made her have an out of body experience and she wanted to feel it again and again, but she couldn’t do it. They weren’t ever going to see things the same way.

She had to keep things simple by telling him what was on her mind. Why should she waste unnecessary energy by fighting with Thorsten? He got a thrill out of women jumping at his every command, but she wasn’t the kind to do that for him.

In her world, things boiled down to being either black or white, no gray areas were allowed. Someone was good or bad, right or wrong. However, nothing fell in the middle when it came to Thorsten and the way he could make her body explode with unleashed passion.

If, he could make her feel like this without being tied to him as his mate, what would her life be like if she agreed to let him turn her?

Tonight, as much as she tried to stand firm against his seductive allure, gave into sleeping with him. She wasn’t going to lie. He was a damn good…no, an excellent lover. He made her entire world feel like it was on another realm, but hot sex didn’t equal love. Honestly, she wasn’t sure if the man next to her even knew the meaning of the word.

She might not act like it, but she valued being deeply loved and adored by a man who could give her affection without wanting anything in return. The kind of love that came in all shapes and forms from nurturing, romance, and most of all friendship, but Thorsten wasn’t capable of giving her any of those on his own. He might do it to prove Jax or Zander wrong. However, it wouldn’t be done just to win her heart. His life was about competition and winning, no matter the cost.

You told Thorsten you trusted him
, her mind reminded her.

Yes, she did tell Thorsten that she trusted him to make love to her, but she
never
mentioned the trust included any part of her heart.

Turning her head, Raya watched Thorsten sleeping so soundly next to her without a care in the world. Nevertheless, he did have a right to be cocky because his face was beyond handsome and he had the toned, chiseled body to go with it. But none of his good genetics would help him understand he needed to open her to her more. He needed to be there for her to listen to her thoughts, what she wanted, and how she felt. It couldn’t always be about him and his desire to have her as he wanted her.

He might have known about her for centuries, but finding out she was one of the mysterious
Unique
women was new to her. Patience wasn’t a big factor in Thorsten’s way of thinking about her.

Laying here this close to him, she felt the natural pull towards Thorsten as her mate. She couldn’t let their chemistry control her common sense. She wouldn’t allow herself to fall in love with him no matter how close she might be at the edge of doing it.

She shouldn’t act on her first instincts, because she had to be sure this life would be the right decision for her. Didn’t everyone understand this was going to be the rest of
her
life? She was going to still be alive when her parents, sibling, and everyone else she knew and loved was dead.

Raya couldn’t allow Thorsten to fool her with his handsome face and well-spoken words. She required time and she wouldn’t get it staying in bed with him. How could she resist him once he woke up and wanted to make love again?

There was only one problem with her plans of escape. She didn’t have anything to put on. Earlier when Thorsten had given her the nightgown he had taken her clothes. She couldn’t leave his house naked and without any transportation. She knew her car was still at the park where she left it when she decided to go for a run.

She had to think of something because spending the morning in Thorsten’s bed wasn’t an option. Sitting up, Raya glanced around the room, hoping to spot something she could put on. Just as she was about to give up hope, she noticed a clothes hamper over by the bedroom door.

Sneaking another glance at Thorsten, Raya made sure he was asleep before easing out of the bed and hurrying over to the bin. She opened it and dug through it until she found one of Thorsten’s dress shirts and slipped it on.

After searching a little further, she located a pair of gray socks and slipped them on her feet. Once she had gotten dressed, she went over to the bedroom door and eased it open just enough for her to slip through before heading down the hallway towards the steps.

Downstairs in the living room, Raya picked up the telephone on the table by the couch. She dialed Sahara’s number, silently praying that her best friend would answer instead of letting it go to voice mail.

“Hello, Thorsten. Is everything okay with Raya?” Sahara asked, concerned.

“Sahara, it’s me,” she whispered into the phone, hoping her voice wouldn’t travel up the stairs and wake up Thorsten. She couldn’t afford for him to wake up on her.

“Raya, why are you whispering? What is going on over there?”

“I need for you to come over here and pick me at Thorsten’s house,” she answered.

“What? Why? It’s six o’clock in the morning. Why can’t you just wait and have Thorsten take you home later? Besides, I have your car keys and purse at my house. How are you even going to get inside your own house?”

“Great. You can bring my stuff with you when you come to get me. I want to be gone before he wakes up.” God, why was Sahara asking her so many questions? “I don’t have time to answer a lot of questions. Will you do it or not?”

“Raya, tell me what is going on. Did Thorsten do something to you? Tell me. I’ll have Jax come over there and have a talk with him. He has been warned about pressing you to accept him as your mate.”

Raya glanced down at her lack of clothing and panic set in. Jax couldn’t come over and see her like this. It was bad enough she was about to tell Sahara why she wanted to leave so early in the morning.

“No, Thorsten didn’t hurt me,” she said, glancing back up the ajar door to his bedroom. “I…I slept with him. So, I can’t be here when he wakes up. I don’t want to hear him bragging about how I fell for his charms. He told me that I wouldn’t be able to refuse him.”

Raya waited for Sahara to gloat about not being able to resist her mate after all her talk about hating Thorsten, but it never came.

“Sahara, are you there?” she whispered loudly. “Sahara…Sahara.”

“Stop yelling my name. I’m here,” her friend answered. “I just had to pick myself up off the floor. “I almost passed out from shock. I can’t believe you finally slept with Thorsten. I thought it wasn’t ever going to happen in this lifetime. I know he’s your mate, but you were so determined to keep him at arm’s length. I think this is wonderful. You’re one step closer to being a vampire. Now, all you have to do is admit you love him and let Thorsten change you.”

“I know, but last night I couldn’t do it. Will you
please
come and get me?”

“Give me twenty minutes and meet me outside of his house,” Sahara told her.

“Wait, don’t hang up. I need your help. I tried to leave last night but I couldn’t open the front door. What if I still can’t do it this morning? Something is going on and I can’t figure out what it is.”

“Thorsten probably placed some kind of protective spell around the house to keep you safe since he hasn’t turned you yet. Since he’s there with you now, it’s gone. You should be able to open it without any problems this morning,” Sahara said then hung up.

Hitting the end button on the phone, Raya laid it back down on the table. She blew out a breath as she ran her hands up and down her arms. She took one final glance upstairs and fought off the need to go back up there. She wasn’t ready to face the truth of what Sahara told about being in love with him.

For the moment, she would focus her attention on getting back home and sorting things out in her head. She had to get out of here before he woke up, but why did a part of her truly feel like she was making a mistake? She wandered restlessly around the room, trying to get her roving thoughts together before Sahara showed up to get her.

If she was so sure about her dislike for Thorsten, why was she agonizing over her phone conversation with Sahara?

Disconcerted, she crossed her arms and pointedly looked around Thorsten’s beautiful but cold-feeling living room. Nothing about it read as a home, it seemed like a rental space instead of a welcoming place to come back to and relax after a long, hard day at work.

A tumble of confused thoughts and feelings assailed her. Raya was unnerved by her sudden change in attitude concerning Thorsten, but one thing was for sure. She
had
to get out of this house, his house, before she did something out of character again.

Slowly, Raya eased towards the front door. The further she got away from Thorsten the clearer her judgment would become, allowing her to get back to her old self again. Standing in front of the door, she sent up a quick prayer before touching the door handle.

It had to open because Thorsten coming downstairs to find her still here wasn’t an option. She turned the door handle and swallowed down the shriek of excitement when she heard the bolt unlock. She didn’t waste a second opening the door and going out, then closing it behind her.

Standing on the porch, she rubbed her arms to keep her body warm. She walked back and forth on the porch as she waited for Sahara to come and pick her up.

Thank God, Thorsten’s house was located away from the rest of his neighbors on a hill, because she would hate for anyone else to see her doing the “walk of shame” when Sahara showed up. Out of nowhere, a sudden gust of cool air blew over her bare legs, making her shiver. Shit, she didn’t know it was so chilly this far from town. She hoped Sahara showed up soon because she was more than ready for a hot shower.

A war of emotions raged within her as she realized that she loved the view on Thorsten’s porch. It was a sight she could get used to seeing every single day. The level-headed woman she used to be disappeared the more she hung around the man inside.

Could she forgive everything he had done to her so far? Was he truly the reason no other man, even Alec, could get her into his bed? None of his touches brought her body alive like Thorsten’s had done last night.

Pushing up the sleeve of his shirt, she ran her finger over the birthmark he swore connected their souls to be together forever. He had made it seem so real for her to be his as much as he was hers, but the vampire thing was still a little freaky to her.

Thorsten acted like it was nothing, yet it wasn’t tossed to him after spending most of his life believing he was supposed to marry a human woman and have kids with them. What if she wasn’t made for the eternal aspects of his world?

Raya dropped her hand and looked around. Where in the hell was Sahara? It seemed like she had called her a while ago. What was taking her so long to get here? Sahara and Jax lived a lot closer than she did. Just as she was about to give up all hope, Raya spotted her girlfriend’s black BMW turning into Thorsten’s long, circular driveway.

Running down the steps, she got inside and slammed the door closed behind her. “I thought you might have forgotten about me,” Raya said, fastening her seat belt.

Turning in her seat, Sahara gave her a long, inquisitive look. “Hmmm…do you mind telling me where your clothes are, young lady?”

“Not now, okay?” she sighed, leaning on the headrest. “Let’s just get out of here. I don’t want Thorsten making any sudden appearances trying to make me stay with him.”

“Fine, but I want details,” Sahara said. “I told you about my first time so I expect you to do the same thing.”

Raya glanced at her crazy friend from the corner of her eye. “I will, but not right now. Can we leave, please? I have spent enough time at this house. If I don’t leave now, I’m not sure if I’ll be able to do it later.

“Something about being here felt so right that it scared me a little. I was trying my best to find fault with it.” She closed her eyes, missing the worried look Sahara shot her way before driving off.

****

His eyes snapped open from a long, peaceful slumber a second before Thorsten shouted, “Raya!” Tossing the covers off his body, he got out of the bed and vanished downstairs to his living room.

He opened the front door and rushed out on the porch in torture as Sahara’s car rounded the corner with Raya sitting in the passenger seat. A strong, burning need raked over his entire body to go after his mate.

Thorsten couldn’t help but wonder why Raya left without a word. They had made love most of the night. It was absolutely the best experience he had ever lived in all of his existence. He was so close to being mated with her.