Bad Blood (Book 4 of The Warden series) (6 page)

He popped the cork just as Cori finished the salad. They sat down at the table and started devouring the food with hardly a word of conversation apart from groans of appreciation to compliment the cook. Though he would never burden her with supper duty every night, he did prefer her cooking to Ethan’s and even his own. It was a benefit he loathed to be rid of, but he had put off the hard conversation long enough.

“I have something I want to talk to you both about. We should probably discuss it before Ethan leaves.”

“What’s up?” Ethan said with a mouth full of noodles.

“I assume the house has finally decided on your apartment?”

“Yes,” Ethan said swallowing. “It’s the perfect combination of modern and comfortable.” Cori nodded in agreement.

“At some point we will need to consider other accommodations.”

After a meet and greet between them and dropped forks, they both swallowed hard and looked at him. “Are you kicking us out?” Cori asked.

“No, me. Other accommodations for me.”

They once again shared a glance before returning to him. “But this is your house,” Ethan pointed out like he had gone senile.

“I know that, but you are going to be warden. This is your house.”

“No,” Cori said. “This is
our
house.”

Danato shook his head. “You two are married now. You don’t want me cramping your style.”

“Do you want to leave?” Cori questioned with notable pain in her voice.

“No, I love it here.” Danato put his hand over hers, so she didn’t think he was trying to escape them.

“Danato,” Ethan exchanged a look with Cori. “I think we both agree that we don’t want things to change.”

“But this house could be your house. The way you want it. Your style.”

“We like this house because it’s home. We like it for the contents currently in it.” Ethan pulled up his napkin and tossed it on his plate. He motioned to the table. “Do you see the three unoccupied chairs at this table? I don’t want more empty chairs at my table. I want more butts in the seats. I don’t want fewer people in my home, I want more.”

Danato smiled. He had expected them to demur as any polite person would, but he didn’t expect them to outright refuse to let him leave. He thought he was offering them a way out of their awkward cohabitation. He had no idea they actually preferred being with him.

“I guess it’s settled,” he said raising his glass to drink.

“Damn right it is.” Ethan toasted the air and joined for a swig.

9

Ethan woke to the soft pressure of lips trailing his belly. He wasn’t sure what time it was, or how long it had been since he had finally laid down to sleep. Between saving her life that morning and him leaving on the next, Cori had already made advances on him twice that night.

Cori rarely instigated sexual advances, but since her amnesia incident, she had been more open to his advances. Part of her would always be a little temperamental about it and he had long since accepted that. He couldn’t smell her emotions like Vince had, so he had to rely on good old-fashioned instincts.

Ushered once into the throes of passion he didn’t question it. Twice he was still not surprised by. However, as she made her way beyond the horizon of his elastic waistband he was wondering what else might have prompted her devoted attention.

He cupped his hand on her cheek, before she could begin her ministrations and change his mind. She looked up at him baffled that he might refuse her generous offerings. “Hey, why don’t you come up here and talk to me,” he whispered still half asleep.

She balked, but eventually slid back up to face him. Her old t-shirt and sweatpants were far from the sexy lingerie that men fantasized about, but he preferred the honest soft cotton to silk and lace. Cori may have been an emotionally complex person, but her vanity was simple.

“What’s wrong?” She asked. The question was loaded with undertones of:
I thought you liked that. Aren’t you attracted to me? Don’t you love me anymore?

Ethan tucked her flaxen waves behind her ear so they weren’t blocking her view. “I was about to ask you the same thing.”

“What do you mean? Are you too tired?”

“Probably, but that’s not the point. Why so much attention?”

“You’re leaving tomorrow. She glanced at the clock on his side table. Today.”

“For a few days, not a month.”

“If you don’t want me, just say so,” she grumbled and flipped back over to her side of the bed.

He reached under her, wrapping his arm around her, and dragged her back. He rolled himself on top of her and pinned her down beneath him. He could already see the panic in her eyes and feel the wrenching in her muscles as she fought the submissive position. He knew he was playing with fire by handling her this way, but he didn’t have time to thread through her walls and labyrinths.

Despite years of familiarity and months of intimacy, she bucked against him trying to free herself. He could feel her heart racing through his chest. She panted from futile exertion.

After a moment, she stopped struggling, but he could see she was resisting the urge to yell or cry. He relaxed the tension on his grip and she looked up at him begging for a complete release, but not willing to admit defeat to him.

“I don’t have enough time to weed through your crap, Cori.” He wasn’t mad, but his frankness still gave her pause. “Tell me what’s got you coming back for thirds.”

“I thought…” He could almost see her give up on the sentence, like she knew he wouldn’t believe it. “I don’t want you to sleep with Leona.”

He chuckled. “I wasn’t planning on it, but I’ll put you down for a vote of nay.”

“I’m serious!” Her neck muscles strained as she lifted to head butt him. Just short of her goal, she settled back into the mattress. “She’ll seduce you. I know it won’t be your fault, but I don’t like it.”

“Cori, werewolves have no particular power for seduction, although you might the exception to that rule. What is with you and the girl on girl hypno-kisses?”

“I don’t know,” Cori grumbled bucking to get away again.

“It seems to me the only person she wants to sleep with is you.” He smiled.

“No, she doesn’t. She just does that to intimidate me, and throw me off.”

“Are you sure? If you want, I could get her number for you.”

“Shut-up!”

He laughed feeling her give one last-ditch effort to get him off. “Why do you fight so hard when you know all you have to do is ask me to get off?”

Her face blanked and her body froze. She looked over his face suspiciously. “If I ask you to get off me, you will?”

“Of course, you know I’m your slave once we enter this room.” He winked.

Her body relaxed and she started breathing normally even though he hadn’t actually changed anything about his position. “She’s beautiful you know. Sexy long legs.”

“You have a hang up about legs don’t you.” He released her left arm and reached down to grab her thigh. “I like your legs.”

“They’re chicken legs.”

“I don’t know what that means, but if it means they’re strong enough to ride a man into ecstasy, then hurray for chicken legs.” When she didn’t smile at his quip he realized this was more than simple jealousy. “Don’t you trust me, Cori?”

She nodded. “Yes, but I don’t trust her. She’s going to sleep with you just to get back at me.”

Ethan could see that she was already stealing herself for the inevitable downfall of his marital vows. Nothing he said was going to ease her mind. He released her and sat up pulling her along with him.

In a position not so dissimilar to where they were that morning, hanging from a dragon leash, he linked his fingers in her gold-ringed fingers and kissed each of her hands. “What can I do to convince you that it won’t happen?”

“Stay.” She shrugged.

“Done,” he said instantly. She hadn’t expected such a quick response. She stared at him baffled. “I’ll brave Danato’s disapproval, but if you want me to stay, I will.”

“You can’t.”

“I can do what I want. Short of Danato stuffing me in a box and shipping me to Leona—which might be the resulting punishment, I won’t leave if that’s what you want.”

Cori sighed. She shook her head. “No, you have to go. It’s who you are. I can’t just pin you down and make you be boring and safe just because I’m affected by your risks.”

“Wow, that’s very mature thinking.”

“It’s not mine. Danato told me that. I just didn’t really realize what it meant until now. I can’t ask you to avoid danger because I love you. Your willingness to face danger is part of why I love you to begin with.”

“And Leona?”

Her face cringed into what might have been tears, if she hadn’t snapped herself out of the thought she was in. “I know you’ll do your best. I hope it’s enough.” She touched his cheek as if he were the one that needed comforting on the subject. He had no doubts about his loyalties, but Cori did.

He shook his head. There was nothing more to be said. She had accepted his infidelity as retribution for her attack on Leona. Giving up on convincing her otherwise, he reached under the back of her t-shirt to grip her strap free shoulders. “Where were we before I interrupted you?”

She smiled and dove on to his mouth with a kiss that was as much anguish as it was lust. He reveled in her confidence, regardless of the motivation for it. He knew nothing would make him stray from her, and if it took a few days away from her with a werewolf to prove it, then so be it.

He leaned her back into the bed pressing his weight against her. He could feel her try to lift to get on top, but he wanted her under him. He released her long enough to remove her t-shirt and pants.

He stayed back a moment to look over her naked body. He knew her insecurities left her uncomfortable with his eyes on her, but she was beautiful. The legs she so often referred to as chicken legs, were firm and muscular. Her belly and breasts were pale from the years without the luxury of tanning.

When he saw her naked, he was reminded of how a woman’s skin was referred to as milky. He had never thought much of the statement until he had his own milky white flesh before him. She, of course, complained that she looked like a ghost, but his mouth watered just looking on her.

Cori rolled her eyes and pulled a blanket over the top of her body, which he promptly ripped away. She looked perturbed by his gawking, but she just turned her head so she didn’t have to see him.

He leaned down to her ear and whispered, “Touch me.” His voice was trembling and he knew she knew the restraint he was exercising not to pounce on her. She looked confused at first, but reached her hand below his waistband. He gritted his teeth against the pleasure and gently turned her chin with a trembling hand to look her in the eye. “That’s what you do to me,” he said trying to keep his focus on her instead of himself. “Just looking at you, turns me on. I am a slave to you, and only you.”

He could see her eyes flicker between his. She released him just long enough to remove his pants and push them down with her feet. She pressed on his lower back, begging for him. “Then give me what I want slave.” She smiled.

He descended on her giving her the embrace they were both aching for. He watched her as she climbed to ecstasy again and again, until he could no longer resist his own. Collapsing against those milky white breasts, he murmured I love you’s and promises of fidelity until he fell asleep.

10

The next morning, Ethan roused to the feel of a cold bed. Cori had long since slipped out of the room. He looked at the clock. It was nearly 9:00 a.m. He only had a few hours before the afternoon truck came in.

Ethan got dressed and headed downstairs. He could smell bacon and eggs before he hit the first landing and suspected Cori was making him a goodbye breakfast. He was surprised, given what he had put her through last night that she was even awake, let alone functional.

Cori wasn’t the best morning person and late nights of love making usually made for a grumpy-butt in the morning. It was a small sacrifice that was well worth the irritated looks and sarcastic tongue.

As he came out of the hall to greet his blushing bitchy bride, he found Danato hard at work making breakfast. Danato looked up as he entered. Ethan must have been wearing a terribly disappointed expression because Danato deepened his brow in confusion. “What is that look for?”

Ethan shook away whatever look he was giving and proceeding directly to the coffee, which was always, the first thing Danato prepared. “I was expecting Cori to be in front of the stove.”

“Sorry to disappoint you.”

“Oh, I’m not disappointed,” Ethan said as he grabbed a mug from the cupboard. “Anyone making me breakfast is welcome, but I just didn’t expect my morning kiss to involve whisker bristles that weren’t my own.”

Danato laughed. “You should be so lucky.”