Page 128 of Scarlet Vows

And in that moment, I’m in love with him.

It’s the orgasm speaking.

Right?

He pulls his fingers free and then kisses me, and I taste myself on his lips and tongue. In the darkness, he licks and sucks his fingers.

“You are so fucking delicious, Alina. Feel better?”

His erection presses into me. I reach for it, but he takes my hand and kisses my palm.

“That was all for you. Now go to sleep. We’ll take care of me in the morning.”

“But—”

“You blew me and let me fuck you hard last night. So this is for you.”

I frown. “And we went to bed and had more sex, and you also went down on me then.”

“Are we keeping score?”

“Maybe.”

He kisses me again. “That was just for you. Go to sleep.”

From his bed on the floor, Albert whines, and I snuggle in next to Ilya, who holds me close. Incredibly, I fall into a dreamless sleep.

I yawn and roll over,coming awake in stages.

Albert stands over me, barks once, and jumps off the bed, scampering off. I’m pretty sure I can hear him thump down the stairs. He’s good at going up, not so good at going down, and it makes me giggle.

Light streams in, and it must be like 10:00 a.m.

I roll over, grab my phone from Ilya’s nightstand, and nearly freak out. “Holy fuck!”

It’s one in the afternoon.

I’ve never slept this late in my life.

God, what am I becoming? A sloth?

I scramble out of bed and grab a T-shirt of Ilya’s, pulling it on and rushing up to my room, where I jump in the shower and wash off the night’s fun.

What I need to do is go to the shelter and take Albert for a visit. I think Eva will like that, and Albert may like to see some of his friends. It’s definitely been long enough that he won’t think I’m leaving him there.

Maybe Isla wants to join us.

My brain’s fracturing into hundreds of thoughts, and I need coffee. So I pull on jeans and the volunteer T-shirt, pull my hair back into a ponytail, and run down the stairs.

Albert’s finished his food from his bowl and waits for me, his tail thumping, his adorable face excited, like he knows we’re going out.

Or maybe he just wants me to go outside with him.

I get my coffee and scoop him up, taking him into the back garden where he wriggles to get down. I set him down, and he runs off, sniffing and exploring all the places he’s explored before. He also proudly marks his territory.

I sit on a chair near the herb garden and call Ilya.

“Why didn’t you wake me?” I gently chastise him the moment he picks up.