We clung to each other as he pushed me so my back was up against the wall. The water was now hot and washing away the evidence of what we’d just done.
It wasn’t long before we had bathed each other and crawled into the center of the bed. In this moment, everything felt right in the world, and we couldn’t keep our hands off of each other.
We’ve had a long day and better get some sleep. His voice was like a whisper in my head. He pulled me beside him so that we were spooning. Soon, my eyes grew heavy as I took in his heartbeat and felt our true connection between us. We loved each other so much, and we could never live without one another. I just hoped we could find whoever it was out there hunting me before it was too late.
Chapter Four
A few days passed with nothing happening out of the ordinary, which usually meant something big was brewing if the past few situations had taught me anything. Thankfully, Louis healed. Still, I couldn't help but wonder where and when the next person would get hurt.
We were attempting to head out to Matteo's again. For some reason, going to his restaurant to eat always triggered some kind of attack. The first one had happened to one of his own workers there, a pack member. Then, the next time, my crazy cousin and aunt broke out of prison. Hopefully, this time it would go down without a problem.
"No dress tonight?" Mason appeared from the walk-in closet attached to our bedroom at our brownstone home and stared at my reflection in the mirror.
"Nope." I ran my hands over the black, wide-legged jumpsuit that I'd chosen. "At least, I can move comfortably in this."
"And you still look hot." He made his way over to me and wrapped his arms around my waist. "I'm one lucky man." He kissed down my neck, causing my body to warm.
"You know we can't be late." I turned around to face him, brushing my lips against his. Maybe we can be a little late.
"Don’t tempt me. But after we had to cancel so suddenly, we’d better not push our luck." He growled and stepped back. "However, if you want to change my mind, just keep looking at me that way."
"So dramatic." I rolled my eyes and decided to press one of his buttons. "I see where Ella learned it from."
He wrinkled his nose and pointed at me. "You knew that was too far. I'll have to punish you later."
"Promises, promises." I walked past him and ran my hand along his black slacks, touching one of my favorite places.
He caught my hand and pulled me into him. "You're not doing a good job of getting out of here." His lips crashed on to mine once more.
"Hey, guys. Are you ..." Ella entered the room and stopped in her tracks. "Eww." She huffed the rest of the way to step between us, pushing us apart. "You're going to mess up your makeup."
I tried calming my breathing. When my eyes landed on Mason, I couldn't help but snort. He had lipstick smeared all around his lips.
"And what have I told you about messing up her makeup?" Ella growled as she headed over to my makeup counter and picked up a cloth. "Wipe the lipstick off your face," she instructed Mason and turned toward me. "And you, fix your lips."
"It's not that bad. I have a neutral color on." I rolled my eyes as I glanced in the mirror. My lipstick was a little smudged. I'd decided to wear dark eyeshadow instead of red lips. I touched it up and turned to her. "Done. Let's go."
"Fine. Louis is waiting for us." She turned on her heels and stopped at the door. "Come on. I'm not leaving the two of you alone or you’ll cause us to be late. Louis wouldn’t let us be late, so you can’t have that kind of fun either."
"All right, Mom," I growled as I took Mason's hand and led him through the bedroom door.
"Is the car pulled out front?" I headed toward the front door when Kassie stepped in front of me, blocking my way.
"No, we can't risk it." Kassie pointed to the door that was at the end of the hallway past the den. "We're going through the garage."
"Still no clue about who broke your aunt and cousin out of jail?" Louis frowned and shook his head. He raised his hand and rubbed his now healed arm.
"Not one." Kassie closed her eyes and wrinkled her nose. "But we'll figure it out.'
"Let's go." Ella had been cooped up in the house all week with the rest of us. She was eager to get out and about. "Dinner is calling."
Within seconds, we were in the car and pulling out.
"If anything looks suspicious," Kassie said from the front passenger seat, "we won't be hanging around. You will all leave immediately. Is that clear?"
"Yes, we know." She'd been lecturing me all morning about not taking unnecessary risks. Apparently, she's on Mason's side about the whole Gabby situation, which doesn't surprise me. At times, she’s more protective over me than him.
"Relax." Tommy turned the wheel, heading on to the main road, and then brushed his fingers along Kassie's arm. "It'll be okay. The three of us are going to be there to keep an eye out."
Do the two of them have something going on? Mason turned his head toward me with an arched eyebrow. They are acting more and more cordial.
I was just thinking the same thing. I'd never seen them get along, so that was odd.
"All right, we're pulling up." Mona pulled out her gun in the backseat and checked it.
"Don't point that thing at me," Ella grumbled.
"It's not." Mona shook her head and put it back in its sheath. "Everything looks good back here. What about up there?"
"We're good. Let's go." Kassie climbed out of the car and opened the back door so the rest of us could pile out. Her eyes scanned the area, seeking out any potential threats. "Hurry."
Soon, Mona was out, and the six of us entered the restaurant while Tommy went to park the car.
Even though it was my second time here, I had almost forgotten what it looked like. The inside was dim with a large bar sitting on the left. It had displays of all of the wines and beers available for purchase. I took Mason’s hand and headed straight to the hostess desk where a familiar young woman resided. Her wolf scent hit me once I got close.
She bowed her head at me. "Queen Elena." Her eyes then went to Mason. "King Mason." She pulled some menus out and glanced at the rest of the party. "Please follow me." She turned and headed toward a set of stairs.
Our group followed behind her, and she placed us right next to a window that overlooked Central Park. It was near the same table as last time. "Here you go." She placed the menus on the table in front of the four chairs. "Is there anything else I can get you right away?" Her gaze was directly on me.
"We have seven tonight." My guards needed a place to sit as well.
"No. No you don't." Kassie moved so she was sitting at a table next to us, and Mona sat at the table behind us. "We aren't eating, and we are separating to keep an eye out. Tommy will be watching the back door to this place as well.”
"But ..." I hated that they wouldn't be eating with us.
"My Queen and King." Matteo appeared at the steps and hurried over to us. His golden eyes shone even more in the dim light and contrasted starkly against his dark olive skin. He had to be at least in his fifties. His eyes then went to Louis and Ella. "And of course my prince and ..." A smile played at the corner of his lips. "Dare I say his mate?"