Page 14

Chapter 14

Daff

Both guards entered, positioning themselves on either side of the door, guns drawn but not aimed.

King followed, only slightly hesitating before stepping past them.

Was he as nervous about this as I was?

I darted a look at Prowl, standing beside me.

His face was calm, his shoulders loose, his fingers tangled with mine firm but not clenched.

Two steps towards us, Prowl tensed.

On the fourth, he twisted, a warning growl escaping as he shielded me.

Both guns rose, and King froze, his eyes flicking between us.

My heart thumped as I reached for him, my hand sliding up his back, resting on a slab of hard muscle.

“I’m good, big guy. King’s here for you, not me. I’m not going anywhere.”

The tension left his body, ebbing away with his next few breaths.

“Brother.”

Prowl’s head dropped then he strode forward, eliminating their distance and gripping King in a fierce hug.

Prowl cleared his throat, and King’s eyes looked glassy when they separated.

“We’re good,” King said to the guards.

The guns were holstered, and the door closed behind them, leaving the three of us alone.

Prowl pulled out a dining chair.

“When Lara said you were out?—”

“It’s good to be on this side of the room,” Prowl said, pulling me onto his lap and wrapping an arm around my waist.

I leaned back against him and patted his arm, reassuring him I was staying put.

King hesitated, taking us in before sliding a book across the table and taking the other chair.

“It’s not smut, but it’s still a romance. When word got out about it, the library was flooded with requests. I managed to get hold of this one before they were all checked out.”

“Did they have many?” Prowl asked.

“Not enough, and there’ll be a wait before they can get more to us.”

“What about ebooks? If you guys can access porn, surely you could access those, too?”

“We’ve only seen the clips that have been stored on the server for educational purposes,”

I snorted.

“Seriously? Educational purposes?”

“Everything is done via satellite, with no access to the internet. And we don’t have personal devices.”

“So, you need hard copies. Did you read that one?”

“Yes,” he said, his thick brows falling into a frown.

“Is it an accurate representation of a romantic relationship? Of what a woman would like when in one?”

I glanced at the book.

It had a cartoon couple on the front, the both of them gazing at each other—her in a flowery dress and him in a cowboy hat and boots.

“I’d have to read it to tell you.”

It didn’t have skulls, guns or handcuffs on the cover, so it looked somewhat promising.

The last thing any of them needed was tips from a dark romance.

“There’s been lots of questions. Lots of disbelief. And anger,” he said, eyes flicking between us.

“Because of the books?”

“We had no idea monster romance existed. That women would be interested in it, or potentially us because of it. Even if it’s just out of curiosity.” He focused on Prowl.

“Word has also spread about Daff. How she’s not afraid of you, that she instigated touch and felt safe enough to sleep beside you, while comforting you.”

Prowl kissed my head, his arm tightening around me.

Which just infuriated me more.

Who the hell wouldn’t want Prowl?

Or any of them, if he and King were any indicators of what the rest of the hybrids were like.

“It makes me so freaking mad that you’ve been given zero expectation of ever having physical contact, let alone sex or a genuine relationship. What’s the point in bringing us here, of exposing you to us, if it was never going to be on the cards for you? To tease you? Test your resolve?”

“That’s the consensus behind everyone’s anger,” King Said.

“That they’d tell us we deserve the same freedoms and experiences as every other human, but also tell us to hold no hope of having what every other male has a right or desire to.”

“Have they given you a reason?”

“All they’ve said is they didn’t want to give us false hope.”

“That’s such a bullshit excuse. What’s the bet it was the asshole animal doctor that pushed this?”

“Lara seems genuinely upset by the pushback.” King leaned back on the couch, a sigh escaping him.

“This is new for everyone. It’s expected mistakes will be made along the way. In light of the new unrest, Sarge has called a meeting. It would be good if you could be there. The wolves are particularly restless, and another calm voice would be helpful.”

“Sarge? He’s the other hybrid they’re sending to visit us, yeah?”

“Yes,” Prowl answered, his breath tickling my ear.

“Is he still our representative?”

King nodded.

“He wants to nut out our biggest concerns and upsets and present them to Lara so we can address them quickly and efficiently.”

“When?”

“Thursday.”

I patted Prowl’s arm.

“If we keep progressing as fast as we have, and things go well with Sarge’s visit, three days should be doable.”

King’s face looked wistful for a moment, his gaze brushing over every place Prowl and I touched.

“I don’t doubt it.”

“How’s Rage?”

King’s shoulders fell.

“He’s claimed a home in the Wild Zone but won’t tolerate anyone except me within its vicinity. And it’s just that, tolerating. He barely speaks and runs almost completely on instinct.”

“I’d like to see him.”

“I’d like that too. I think it would be good for him.”

The buzzer sounded as he stood.

A guard entered and Kara followed, pushing our lunch through the door on her trolley.

King froze, the only sign of movement, the slow expansion of his chest stretching his black T-shirt even tighter with his inhale.

His frown returned with his exhale, shaking off whatever had gripped his attention.

“I’ll leave you to your lunch. I’m glad to see you happy, brother. I hope things go well with Sarge.”

King gave Kara a wide berth, but she still froze as he passed, her eyes glued to the floor.

“He won’t hurt you.”

Kara’s eyes flashed up to mine, widening slightly at my full-body contact with Prowl before dropping back to her cart, her movements jerky as she transferred our food to the table.

“I know.” She hurried to the short bench top next to the sink, grabbing our breakfast plates and making them rattle as she dumped them on her trolley and fled out the door.

“I thought it was just you she was scared of. But she responded the same way to King. Do all the other women act like that around you?”

“I don’t know. I was already here when the first group arrived.”

I shook my head.

“All she’s doing is reinforcing the belief that you’re too different or unsafe to be wanted.”

“You’re changing that.”

Prowl pulled my lunch to me.

I stared at the stacked sandwiches.

“I know. But it shouldn’t have taken this long for that to happen.”

“What matters is that they listen. For that, we need to clearly voice our issues and outline a plan to address them that Lara can sign off on.”

“That’s what Sarge’s meeting is for?”

“That and to remind them to keep their shit together while we figure this out.” He leaned back in his chair, drumming his fingers beside his plate.

“I think it would be good for them to meet you. To see how comfortable you are with me.” He glanced up, his gold eyes flashing.

“You’ll be safe, I promise.”

“I’m more worried about them being okay with me being there. It’s a hybrid-only meeting.”

“We’re a package deal. If they want me there, they’ll accept you being there with me.”

“And seeing us together won’t upset them more?”

“Possibly,” he said, picking up the first of his three sandwiches.

“But I think they’ll benefit from seeing us for themselves and hearing your thoughts straight from you. So far, they’ve only heard things through the grapevine. And your insight as a female on their suggestion changes, and ways Sarge could present them to Lara could better help them understand things from multiple perspectives and ultimately streamline the process.”

“Okay.”

He took a bite before pointing to mine.

“You need to eat.”

“I’m not hungry.”

“Did I do something?”

I reached up, my thumb soothing the wrinkled skin between his brows.

“No. I promise I’d tell you if you did.”

“Okay.”

“I’m going to shower, then I’ll see how I feel about eating.”

His eyes heated, his wide nostrils flaring.

I should’ve asked if he’d be okay with just my voice this time.

He’d survived my quick rinse yesterday without watching, thanks to King’s company.

There were no walls or bars separating us this time if he panicked.

And after the kiss we’d shared, ending up wet and naked in his arms, as he reassured himself I hadn’t disappeared, wasn’t a place I could trust myself.

Not after watching him touch himself.

And definitely not with the spark of heat already licking my insides at the thought of how hard he’d be watching me again.

My thighs clenched against the growing ache as I took two steps back and turned, my hands finding the hem of my shirt and pulling it off.

Prowl had already lived a lifetime of shitty experiences.

I loved the thought of adding a good one for him—of adding a million and one good ones.

Ones he could keep and remember long after I left.

My bra followed my shirt, then I leaned forward, tugging off my tights and underwear in one go, pausing just long enough to give him a full, bare view.

Thank God for waxing.

Because screw the cellulite and stretch marks, and everything else the world said wasn’t perfect about me.

Feeling his eyes on me, hearing his harsh intake of breath, knowing how goddamn hard he would be for me right now if I were to run my hand down the front of him, tracing the lines of his abs all the way down…

My nipples went hard at the sound he made, more growl than purr.

I pulled the shower curtain open, sliding it as far as it would go before flipping on the water and turning to face him.

Prowl was watching me, eyes hooded with lust, his forgotten lunch sitting between white fingertips, gripping the edge of the table.

I checked the water temperature, then stepped beneath it, letting its heat penetrate my skin before reaching for a hand towel and soaping it up.

I started at the dip by my collar bone, watching his golden eyes follow my movements like his life depended on it, up the sides of my neck and back down between the valley of my breasts, slowly circling each one, the brush of slick cotton teasing my nipples into tight, hard buds.

His low groan followed my next dip, down my stomach and each thigh, drawing back up again on the inside of each, so damn close to where I ached the most.

My eyes fluttered closed as I dropped the cloth, trading it for hands I wished were his.

“Eyes on me, Daff.”

I peeled them open to find him standing just out of reach, his hand gripping his hard cock through the front of his sweats.

“You’re so fucking beautiful.”

His rough voice whispered over my exposed skin, raising goosebumps.

“Touch yourself for me. I want to see you come.”

I whimpered at his request, the aching emptiness inside me demanding to be filled.

Demanding I see him too, that we do this together.

“Only if you come with me.”

His harsh breath answered as he slid his hand below his waistband and yanked it down, exposing two heavy balls and a cock begging to be rode.

He palmed the liquid on his broad head before sliding down a wide shaft with spirals of short, nubbed spikes.

Spikes that would no doubt feel like the tip of my nose if I pushed on the tip of it.

“Fuck.”

My finger found my clit, the ones on either side spreading my lips to better expose it, as my other hand cupped my breast, squeezing it before creeping higher to pinch my nipple, a quiet moan escaping me.

“Daff.”

I focused back on his cock, matching my tight circles to each of his strokes and keeping the biting pressure on my nipple.

“You’re a fucking goddess, Daff.”

My hips arched at the compliment, the building pressure within me starting to peak.

“I’m close, Prowl. So close. I want your cum on me.”

It was the next best option if it couldn’t be inside me.

He stepped forward and groaned, his free hand landing over my shoulder, his forehead pressing against mine, the only place we touched.

“Come for me, Angel. I need to hear what you sound like. Need to hear my name on your lips when you come.”

My hips thrust forward again, my breasts arching with the movement, my nipples grazing the hair on his chest.

“Prowl…”

His forearm moved faster, his hand twisting each time it reached his head.

My body went rigid, locking in place as my orgasm hit, gripping me harder than I expected.

“”Prowwwwwl!”

I floated down from my high, just in time to feel a stream of hot spurts hit my stomach, the falling water washing it away as quickly as it appeared.

A shudder ran through him as he released his cock for the back of my neck, his lips a whisper away from mine.

“Angel …”

“Kiss me.”

Prowl pressed his body to mine as he devoured me, his lips and tongue making love to me like our bodies would have.

Desperately. Fiercely.

And with a shit ton of worshipping.

We only stopped because of the cooling water.

He shut it off and reached for my towel, wrapping it around me.

“Daff—”

“We’re good,” I said, cutting him off with a too-brief kiss.

“I’m good. I promise.”

He hesitated, his watchful gaze searching my face.

“No regrets?”

“No regrets.”

Except for the niggling curiosity of how his cock would feel, dragging along my insides as he thrust inside me, how his balls would feel slapping against my ass each time he bottomed out.

Next time.

And there’d be a next time, I was sure of it.