Page 15 of The Wrong Bond (Wolf Billionaire #4)

CHAPTER 15

ARLENE

“ W here are we going?” I asked Shawn as the car zoomed past the bright city lights.

Our day yesterday had been a blur. After our very steamy hike, James had sensed something was wrong and had driven into the storm to look for us. Shawn and I had gone back to the villa, taken a hot bath, and gone right to bed.

It was extremely dreamy how he’d held me the night before, as if I’d grow wings and fly away.

The entire weekend getaway was something I should’ve avoided because it felt too passionate and intimate, but I couldn’t bring myself to stay away from Shawn. I felt safe and secure when I was with him, and that was as telling as it was concerning.

Ever since I was a child, I’d always relied on my own strength to keep me safe. Whenever there was danger, I had no one to turn to except myself.

I always envied people who had a support system they could turn to when things were tough, but I’d never had the time to build those kinds of connections. My main focus was keeping Coral safe.

It was a lot of work, so having someone I could lean on and trust to protect me was something I’d always dreamed of. And it was incredibly hard to let go of the feeling that Shawn could be that person for me.

“You’re going to keep it a secret, aren’t you?” I asked again.

He chuckled. “Maybe. Also, you’re very impatient.”

I frowned. “I’m not, I just like being in the loop.”

Shawn winked at me, his usual roguish charm returning in full force. “You have to wait and see, Ally. It’s a surprise.”

I chuckled. “I never get surprises.”

Shawn turned to me and tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear. “Well, as long as you’re with me, you have to get used to surprises.”

“It’s definitely something I could try to get used to.”

He leaned toward me and pressed his lips on mine in a soft peck.

I wondered if he kissed all his mistresses like this and planned surprises for every single one of them. Was my company better than theirs? Did he like spending time with me more than he did them? The comparison kicked in again. I tried to shake it out of my mind and focus on what the surprise could be.

Shawn had told me to dress fancy but comfortable, and I’d gone with a black bodycon dress and a red low-slipper heel. It was an outfit that could fit into any situation.

Was he taking me to a private museum exhibit? A concert under the stars? A hidden rooftop bar? The possibilities were endless.

“I really don’t think I can wait to see what the surprise is,” I whined.

Shawn chuckled, clearly savoring my ignorance. “You really need to work on your impatience.”

“I’ll do anything to know,” I begged.

“Nope, I’m not budging.”

“I’ll go hiking with you and not complain.”

“No.”

“I won’t laugh when you talk about a serious topic.”

“No.”

I sighed. “Wow, so you’re really not going to budge? Not even to give me a little hint?”

“Never!”

“Are you sure?” I asked with a smirk.

Shawn narrowed his eyes into slits. “What are you up to? I don’t trust you right now.”

“Nothing.” I shrugged and spoke in the most high-pitched voice I could muster so he could tell that it wasn’t nothing.

Shawn could be so strong-willed when he wanted to be, and I wanted to try my best to see if I could make him crack.

“I really want to know what the surprise is, and you don’t want to give up that information,” I whined, leaning closer to him.

“Whatever you’re doing right now, Ally, you need to stop.”

“Why?” I leaned closer to him, and my cleavage, which was exposed in my V-neck dress, spilled out a bit.

I caught Shawn’s eyes taking in my body before they snapped back to my face. I pressed a soft kiss on his check, trying to disarm him, but he didn’t crack.

I needed to do something more extreme to get his attention.

I reached for his groin and slid my hand into his pants, wrapping it around his very hard cock. His breath hitched and he gasped.

This was daring, even for me. I couldn’t believe that I was doing this, because Shawn had always been the one to initiate every sexual activity we’d had. I was surprised that I was doing this.

My heart pounded faster in my chest because I knew that James was just in front of us, with no partition separating us from him. He could just glance back and catch us, but somehow, I didn’t care.

“Ally,” Shawn gasped, as I moved my hand up and down his shaft very slowly.

“Just tell me what the surprise is, and I’ll stop.”

But Shawn said nothing, willing himself to take it.

“Alright then. Since this is the decision you want to make.”

I slipped off the seat and fell to my knees, close to Shawn’s legs. He gasped and then reached for the button by the side of the door, pushing it so the partition whirred up, separating us from James.

I’d never pleasured him before, and part of me was scared that I’d do it wrong, but tonight I had a kind of confidence that I’d never experienced.

I unzipped his pants and then pulled out his cock, which was hard and erect in front of me. Wetness pooled between my legs at the sight of it.

With my eyes fixed on Shawn, I brought my head down and took in his cock in one gulp, making sure it hit the back of my throat. I gripped the shaft and worked my way up and down with my hand while he was in my mouth.

Shawn was so big that his cock hitting the back of my throat made my eyes water, but I loved the challenge. I was a bit careful, moving slowly, but when I looked up and saw that Shawn was a writhing mess, I knew I was doing something right.

That sparked more confidence, and I went down on him like a woman starved. I licked and sucked and slurped like my life depended on it.

He sank his hand into my hair and pushed my head down, making me choke on it, which only intensified my hunger.

“Arlene.” My name fell from his lips like music through his groans, and I wanted him to take me here and now.

I looked up to see him looking down at me, and it made my entire body tingle. “Good girl,” he said with a pat on my cheek, and it took everything in me not to reach down and touch myself too.

Shawn panted hard as I went harder and deeper, making sure I tried to take in every inch of him. His breathing became ragged after a while and then with a groan, he spilled himself inside of me as I licked him clean.

I got off my knees, grabbed tissues from the side compartment, and cleaned him up, ignoring my soaked thong. Shawn pushed my hair aside and slammed his lips onto mine, kissing me. I returned it, running my hands through his hair.

Damn, we couldn’t keep our hands off each other. I’d never had this much emotional and sexual chemistry with anyone before. And the crazy part? It kept creeping up on me. I didn’t know what to make of it.

He pulled back and gazed at me, his eyes speaking a secret language I couldn’t translate.

“What?” I chuckled, my cheeks heating up.

“I didn’t know you had that in you.”

I looked down shyly. “Had what in me?”

He smiled. “Whatever that was. I liked it. No, I loved it.”

“I did too.”

He reached out again and kissed me softly, this time without all of the usual passion our kisses always had. It was soft and sweet and warm…everything I would want a kiss with someone I was in love with to be like.

I pulled back quickly, my heart pounding with fear. Shawn was not someone I could be in love with, he could never be. I needed to avoid situations that would only break my heart.

“We’re here,” James announced, cutting the moment short.

Shawn led me out of the car and toward a beautiful, ivy-covered building. It looked extremely vintage and so gorgeous that I gasped. A wrought-iron gate stood ajar, revealing a charming courtyard bathed in the soft glow of fairy lights.

“Where are we?” I asked, but before Shawn could respond, I heard music from the other side of the lawn.

We walked for a while before we came face-to-face with a live band and a singular table. It was covered with a white tablecloth, candles, and red roses, which also filled the rest of the courtyard.

I gasped again and turned to Shawn, who had a small smile on his lips, obviously pleased by how this had turned out. “Did you plan this?”

“I did. I wanted to apologize for my parents and for being a jerk last week.”

“But we hashed that out already.”

“You needed a real apology.”

No one had ever planned a “real apology” for me. I’d always had to settle for half-assed or no apologies all my life. The best part of this night was that there was no one else here. The entire restaurant had been transformed into a private space, just for us.

I swallowed, debating if I deserved this or not. “You rented this entire place for us?”

“Anything to show you how sorry I am. Do you like it?”

I turned to him, a big smile on my face. “Like it? I fucking love it. This is incredible.”

We settled in and ate in silence, using a large chunk of our time to stuff our faces with food. After a little while, Shawn leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers in front of him.

“I need advice, Ally,” he said.

I paused. “About what?”

“The rogue activity downtown. How have you been coping with it?”

I sighed. This wasn’t the best dinner conversation, but I could tell that it was bothering him.

I shrugged. “It’s something I’ve been exposed to for all my life, so I don’t exactly ‘cope’ with it, I just keep living like I always have.”

“But it’s getting worse. The break-ins, the vandalism, even the petty thefts. And they’re spilling uptown too.”

I took a sip of my wine. “I know, but what can you do about it?”

“I want to stop it forever, but my father thinks that segregation is the only answer.”

Segregation? Did he even know what that meant? Back when segregration was in full force, we had gone years without contact with the uptown wolves. Downtown wolves had lost their family and friends, and now uptown wolves wanted to bring segregation back?

“What do you think?” I asked, eyeing him.

“I obviously think segregation is a terrible idea.”

I nodded, relieved. “Me too.”

I reached across the table, my fingers brushing his in a gesture of silent support. I understood why Shawn wanted to stop the violence, but I could also see the desperation behind it; the lack of opportunity that drove young wolves to a life of crime.

“There has to be another way. Segregation is never the answer.”

Shawn’s gaze locked on mine, his eyes searching for answers. “You’re right,” he finally conceded. “But where do we even begin? The uptown council won’t even consider a single credit going toward downtrodden areas.”

His words hurt because they highlighted where I came from and how severely different we were. How we could never really work beyond the sex and weekend getaways and the nights we spent at Mark’s Bar. That was it for us, and nothing more.

“We could start small. Maybe with community centers for kids, to help them not fall into a life of crime.”

“That’s a brilliant idea,” Shawn agreed.

As we finished our dinner, the conversation moved to random, less serious topics. Speaking to Shawn felt so right and safe.

“Ready for a walk?” he asked as he stood up.

“Always,” I responded, getting to my feet. “I’ll always walk with you.”