Page 13 of The Aries Alliance (BLP Signs of Love #14)

Confrontation

As soon as I heard Scarlett’s bedroom door open and close, I turned to greet her.

When she entered the den, I wondered if my eyes were deceiving me.

Scarlett’s sexy black dress was so short that my eyes gravitated to her juicy thigh meat.

Then I noticed how the too-tight garment clung to her full breasts and hips like it was pasted on her.

I sat up from my lounging position and lowered the volume on the TV, as if the noise impacted my ability to see Scarlett’s skimpy attire.

I jumped up and sauntered toward her, walking to the table lamp closest to me and turning it on.

Several seconds passed before my eyes adjusted to the vision before me.

I stared at her from head to toe so hard that she froze.

“Where the hell are you going dressed like that?” I crossed my arms.

Although I wanted to flatter myself and think Scarlett wore her lacy teddy thing to seduce me, I knew better when I saw the small silver clutch in her hands.

She tipped toward me in black sling-back heels so high I thought she might topple over. With her free hand, she used her fingers to pull down the hem of her dress.

“You’re going to have to do more than that to hold that handkerchief down.” My eyes dropped to the see-through fabric of the lace dress, finally noticing her black bikini panties.

Scarlett still hadn’t spoken, making me wonder what was going through her head. Was she in crisis? In the calmest of voices, she finally smiled and stepped in front of me.

“I have an appointment with a friend.” She spoke the words as if she were a parent speaking to a child.

“What?” I asked the question since it felt as if my hearing went out for a few moments.

She pushed her long locs from her face, giving me a quick whiff of her scent and a front row seat to Scarlett’s mesmerizing beauty.

“You smell like vanilla and autumn leaves.”

My random statement made no sense, but whatever the smell, it was comforting and divine.

“Thank you, I think.”

“It’s a good thing.”

I clearly peered down her dress with its satin bow at the bottom of the V between her breasts. The roundness of her mounds, along with a peek of areolas through the lace, confirmed that she didn’t have on a bra.

“What happened to that wire mess?”

“I took it off.” She spoke in the same steady voice.

“Why?” I tried to match Scarlett’s energy but felt increasingly disturbed as she stood half-naked before me.

“What about this is bothering you, War?” Scarlett raised and lowered her clutch in front of her body as she hissed my name like it was poison.

“Where are you going dressed like a stripper at eleven o’clock?” I pulled my phone from the pocket of my sweats to confirm the time.

Scarlett cocked her head and pointed to the door.

“Out.”

“Out where?”

“Out of the house.”

I ran my hand over my goatee and half-turned from Scarlett to compose myself. Nothing about this made sense.

“I know that, but where exactly?” I looked her up and down again.

“I’ll be back by morning.” Scarlett attempted to walk past me, speaking the words as if what she said made sense.

I opened my arms wide and placed my hand on Scarlett’s waist to still her. Her sweet fragrance met my nostrils again.

Scarlett and I made so much progress during our planning session that I didn’t want us to regress.

The last thing I expected to do tonight was police her, but she was acting off.

Was I making a mistake recruiting her for my special assignment?

Who was this vixen leaving so late for an obvious liaison with God knew who?

I wanted answers to all my questions, but with Scarlett’s strong will, I needed to be gentle.

“I just want you to be safe. I don’t want some idiot pawing on you at the . . . club? You’re smelling all good and stuff. A guy could get the wrong idea. Like my grandma said, ‘The only thing open this late is people’s legs.’”

To my delight, Scarlett laughed.

“And the Waffle House. It’s late, and I’m with you late, and my legs aren’t open,” she added weakly.

I tilted her chin with my fingertips. She licked her lips and lowered her eyes before returning them to mine.

“Because I haven’t asked you to open them yet.”

Scarlett’s jaw dropped before she pulled away.

“You are so damn cocky.”

I tried to keep a straight face but couldn’t.

“Am I?”

“You know you are.”

We both grinned, relieving some of the tension between us.

“Seriously, I want you to stay safe.” I lowered my voice, refraining from asking her who might be opening her legs tonight.

I traced my finger down her cleavage and slipped it under the cup of her bodice. Scarlett sucked in a breath and lifted her bright eyes to mine. Only then was I aware how tightly she clung to my shoulder with her free hand.

“I’m going to see a friend.”

Now we were getting somewhere.

“What friend, sweetheart?” I cupped her chin in my hand.

“His name is Lil’David.”

I jerked my head back and released her, stunned that Scarlett’s seditty behind would connect with someone who sounded more like a rapper than a grown man.

“What the hell kind of damn name is that?”

She dropped her arms and tossed her head back in amusement.

“Stop judging, Warrick .” She spoke my name with sarcasm, reminding me that I didn’t have the most common name either.

“Lil’David is the tallest most chocolate brother south of the Mason-Dixon line. I’m talking about so smooth and shiny that he . . .” Scarlett shuddered, then bit her bottom lip, staring right through me as her words trailed off.

I didn’t like her response one bit. She was being straight-up disrespectful, agreeing to stay with me in this house and give another man everything that made her a woman. If she was giving out free samples, I wanted to be the first in line to partake.

“He what?” I wanted to know why she was being so loose in my presence.

“A woman has needs.” She bit her lip again and brushed her hand over her taut stomach.

“Are you in a relationship with this Lil’David?”

“Not exactly.”

Without meaning to, I breathed a sigh of relief.

“What are y’all . . . exactly?”

“Not that it’s any of your business, but we have sex.”

“I see. But why are you going out tonight? We have work to do tomorrow. I told you I’d be taking up a lot of your time.”

“It’s because I need . . .” She shook her head. “Never mind.”

“You need what?”

“A release. Dang. A release.”

I stared at Scarlett hard. Everything about her screamed sex. Even from here, I smelled her arousal.

“Before you go out, let’s chat.”

Scarlett raised her hand and checked out her watch.

“Why? My friend is waiting.”

“Woman, please. It won’t take long.” I reached for her hand and led her to the couch. I turned off the television with the universal remote, leaving us in silence.

“Sit down, Scar.”

She half rolled her eyes with her mouth tight, avoiding my eyes. When I guided her to the space beside me, she eased down.

“Get comfortable.” I patted the leather behind her.

She relaxed her straight back and exhaled. To my delight, her dress rose so high I got a front row view of her curvy hips.

I lifted my T-shirt over my head and threw it beside me, bending and twisting my upper body, flexing my muscles so my biceps popped.

Scarlett’s eyes followed my movements. When she shifted her body and closed her legs tightly without taking her eyes off my form, I had her where I wanted her.

“You okay?” I leaned into her and pushed her locs behind her right shoulder, placing my nose so close to her neck I could lick her skin.

“Yeah.” Her barely-there response pleased me.

“I can’t hear you,” I whispered directly into her ear.

She threw a mean look my way.

“You know you can. I said yes.”