Page 23 of Rescuing Mara (Warriors of Arracate #2)
CHAPTER 23
Mara
I feel like I’m floating. I’m warm and comfortable, and it smells so good. Fresh spices perfume the air, and I feel content on a deep level. I smile and try to hold on to that blissful feeling a little bit more. Something tickles my skin, and I hear a sloshing sound. The touch of a caress brushes over my spine, and I shiver, my body slowly becoming aware.
“Did you sleep well, my star?” O’Rec asks, making me jolt. Water sloshing all around us, and I feel something harden between my legs.
“I fell asleep,” I blurt out in confusion.
“Yes, you did,” O’Rec smirks.
“You are still inside of me?!”
“Yes, I am.” O’Rec gives me the most self-satisfied grin I have ever seen. He tenderly holds on to my hips and lifts me off his cock. “I did not want to wake you, but you must be feeling sore.”
He’s right. I definitely feel sore but also… happy and content. And strangely empty with the loss of his cock. I look down into the clear water, which is not so clear now with the mess we made.
I giggle. “We made quite the mess.”
O’Rec grins. “Yeah, we should probably let the bots clean up and find something else for us to do.
“I know something!” I blurt out.
“We should wait until tomorrow, because I think you need time to heal.”
I give O’Rec my most indignant stare. “I didn’t mean mating.”
He grins, and I roll my eyes before continuing. “I was thinking, maybe you could give me another tattoo?” I blush as he gives me a slow smile.
“We can definitely do that.”
O’Rec lazily swims to the other side of the tub, using his tail to hold on to my waist, and I plaster myself against him. He lifts me effortlessly, stepping out of the tub and carrying me to the cabinet, where he grabs towels. He slowly dries my body, and it feels like he’s seducing me all over again. I feel hot and achy when I am dry and nestled into the towel. I am also quite sore, I notice as I walk towards the bedroom to put on clean clothes. I sigh. O’Rec is probably right. We should wait until tomorrow.
My clothes are right where I left them on the floor. Guilt floods my system as I pull out the transmitter before I put them into the laundry bin. I have made my choice - I chose O’Rec. I will choose him again and again, but why do I silently put the transmitter into the pocket of my clean trousers? I should tell him about it. If I did, he would understand, wouldn’t he?
I spin the little device in my fingers, flipping it around and around. I should tell him. I should…
“O’Rec?” I look for him, but the bedroom is empty. Sighing, I flip the transmitter one more time. Later will work just fine.
I must have been so engrossed in my thoughts that I missed O’Rec walking out because I’m startled by the sliding doors when he walks back in from the hallway.
“O’Rec! I didn’t hear you leave.”
“I am sorry, my mate. I thought you heard me when I told you I would grab something to drink for us.” He holds out a bottle of water, which I gratefully take.
“Did you bring snacks as well?” I ask playfully, and he grins.
“Of course I did!” His grin is catching, and we just stand there for a moment, grinning at each other. He places the bottles and the bowl with snacks on the bed, and I sit down and grab the bowl.
“What is it?” And I peek into the bowl. “Is it fried roots?”
“It is something L’Ren thought up,” O’Rec says as he rumbles around in one of the cabinets, grabbing his tattoo stuff. “She experiments with food all the time. I like these. They are spicy and very crispy. She said they reminded her of something called chips.”
“Chips?” I let the word ring around in my mind, but it doesn’t ring a bell. I decide it’s worth the try and take one of the roots and carefully bit off a little bit. Taste explodes into my mouth. “Wow! It tastes really good!” I swallow and immediately devour the root. I take another one without thinking, and I only notice O’Rec staring at me when I’m happily munching on it. Blushing, I hold the root out for him, but he shakes his head.
“You should eat, my Zarra.”
He walks towards me, and I guess I was too hungry to really notice him because he looks way too good. He’s wearing soft gray pants that mold to his hips and show off his muscled thighs. The pants are just a shade lighter than his skin. He’s not wearing his harness, and I lick my lips at all that gorgeous flesh on display.
Growling, he takes the last step to reach me and kneels in front of me.
“Tell me you are too sore for me to touch you,” he rasps.
I whisper. “I’m too sore for you to touch me.”
“Good,” he says, struggling to regain his self-control. He leans in any way and gives me the softest kiss before he sits back on his knees. “Now, talk to me about that tattoo.”