Page 64 of Taming Grumpy Dr. Beast

Iclenched my teethwhen instead I wanted to hiss out in pain with each step forward. The intense pain was only marginally better because Lily had her arms wrapped around me. I knew she was just trying to help, not fuel the lusty thoughts that claimed center stage in my head.

Her curves fit me in just the right way. I groaned as her hand moved from my chest to rest against my abdomen. The innocent movement incited the image of her hand drifting lower, to rub against my cock that now strained against my jeans.

“Fuck!” I muttered. I needed to calm down.

“You okay?” she asked, concern gentling her eyes, in the moonlight.

I made the mistake of looking down at her. Her mouth was slightly open. Her tongue darted out and licked her full lips. Fucking great. Now I imagined her sliding my pants down and watching her hungry mouth take me between her lips.

“Yeah,” I grunted.

Telling her I wanted her kneeling before me, giving me a blow job would probably wipe the concern away from her face. Knowing my luck, she’d storm off, leaving me here to limp along. I’d much rather torture myself with her nearness, even if it meant we were heading to our separate rooms once we got back to the house.

She rubbed her hand in a comforting gesture on my stomach. I wanted to yell, stop and keep going at the same time.

“We’re almost halfway there,” she reassured me, likely assuming the pain in my ankle was the cause of each groan. If she only knew.

I tipped my chin down, my stubble catching in her hair, sending the light scent of roses drifting over me. Even after the rain and mud, I could still smell her shampoo. On instinct my arms tightened and pulled her closer to my side. Her quiet gasp had me biting down on my tongue to stop from saying something I might regret.

I needed to think about something else. “Thanks for the help,” I grumbled.

“Only returning the favor,” she responded quietly, then released a heavy sigh. “This is all my fault. It’s the least I can do. I’m so sorry for running off like that.”

“It’s not all your fault,” I admitted. “I shouldn’t have gotten so angry with you. I’m the one who should be sorry.”

“Well, you wouldn’t be living up to your name if you didn’t roar about something every so often,” she teased, waiting a beat before asking, “Get it?”

I glanced down to see an impish grin on her face. I rolled my eyes and grunted, but couldn’t stop the smirk that settled on my lips. “Got to keep up appearances.”

A loud guffaw popped out of her. She withdrew her hand from my abs to slap it over her mouth. I missed her touch and the sound of the boisterous laughter she tried to hide.

We broke through the trees and noticed Ms. Ketill and Paul pacing in the backyard.

“Jaxon!” Ms. Ketill yelled and ran toward us.

“Shit, Jaxon, what did you do to yourself?” Paul asked.

I brushed off their concern. “It’s fine. Just a sprain. I’ll ice it and it will feel better in the morning.”

“Look at the two of you. Paul, help Jaxon to his bedroom so he can get cleaned up and take care of his ankle. I’ll see to Lily.”

Before I could protest, Lily was pried from my grasp, and Paul inserted himself where she’d just been. I wanted to snap at him and pull her back to my side but knew that would create questions I wasn’t ready to answer.

“Oh, but I ...” Lily trailed off and glanced at me helplessly. She turned back as Ms. Ketill talked with her, tsking about all she’d been through, and to never scare us like that again.

“Hey, Jaxon.” Paul waved a hand in front of my face.

“What?” I growled at him.

The asshole laughed. “I was asking if you still wanted my help to get you inside.”

We were only about fifty feet from the back door. “I can make it on my own.”

He shrugged, but didn’t move far from me. I could grab his arm if I needed to, but I was stubborn. The first hobble had me grunting, pain zinged through my ankle, but I gritted my teeth and pushed forward.

What felt like an eternity later, I finally made my way into my suite. Paul grabbed a pair of sweats and a sweatshirt from my drawers and placed them in my bathroom.

“Call if you need something,” Paul offered as he left my room.