Page 25 of While She Sleeps (The Hunter and The Thief #1)
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
ORION
I slip into the passenger seat of Killian’s Range Rover and ignore the look he gives me.
No one else would dare to question me the way he does, but that’s the reason he’s my second. I need someone to challenge me, and he sure as hell does that.
“Orion, you know this is dangerous,” he finally says.
“I know.”
“Lucas knows you care for the girl. Don’t you realize what kind of danger that puts her in?”
A growl rises up the back of my throat, but I quickly swallow it, because he’s right. He’s so fucking right that I’m desperate to slam my fist into his face just so he’ll stop reminding me how bad an idea this is. “He doesn’t know I’m the Hunter,” I force through gritted teeth.
“No, you don’t think he knows you’re the Hunter. But he might. Even if he suspects it, it puts Ember in danger, and she doesn’t even realize it.”
“She’s a survivor. She’ll know if something is wrong,” I say quietly, but he’s right. I’m taking a risk by stepping out of the darkness, and I just have to hope that it doesn’t blow up in my face and get my girl hurt.
“I’ve been tailing her for a week, Orion, and she hasn’t noticed. Not once.”
I press my eyes closed and force a deep breath into my lungs. “You’re not a danger, though.”
“She doesn’t know that.”
I rub a hand down my face and turn to face him. “What do you suggest?”
His eyes flare with surprise. It’s not that I never ask his opinion.
It’s that I only ever ask about it when it’s about the business, and while Ember will rule by my side once she’s ready, this is the first time I’ve ever asked for his opinion about my personal life.
“You either need to cut her loose or move fast. Lucas has something on her. That’s the only way she would be working for him.
I’ll work on figuring out what exactly it is that got her caught in his web while you work on getting her into your penthouse permanently. ”
I smirk. “I like that you know the first option wasn’t one at all.”
He rolls his eyes. “I know your crazy ass better than anyone else. Of course I know you’re not going to let the girl go.”
“Let me know what you find.” I reach for the handle and shove the door open.
“You don’t want a ride back to your car?”
I shake my head. “No, I’m going to watch over her for a bit.”
He chuckles. “You’re being a creep. You know that, right?”
I cut him a glare. “You’ll understand one day. Men like us don’t fall softly.”
Without missing a beat, I make my way back up the street and head into Ember’s apartment building.
I pause at her door and check the cameras to make sure she’s already in bed and find her exactly where I expected. She’s curled around one of her pillows, her eyes closed, and a soft snore fills the speaker.
I unlock the door and slip inside before shutting it softly behind me.
Moving quietly across the apartment, I pause in her bedroom doorway and take in the sight before me.
Sleep seems to be the only time my girl gets any peace, and even then, it’s usually short-lived. Nightmares plague her dreams, her subconscious tearing her apart as she rests.
Usually, I relegate myself to the chair in the corner. The dim streetlight misses that part of the room, so if she were to wake up, she’s not as likely to see me. But tonight I can’t force myself to the corner. Tonight I’m desperate to be close to her.
I shuck my jacket and shoes, keeping them near the door in case I have to make a quick exit before rounding the side of the bed she’s curled up on.
Dropping into a crouch, I brush the short brown locks from her face, and a foreign feeling settles in my chest. I spent so many years avoiding genuine human connection that I’m not quite sure what to do with the feeling of contentment that my little flame brings out in me.
A soft moan slips from between her perfect lips, and I smirk.
“What are you dreaming about, my sweet Ember?” I murmur so softly I barely hear my own words.
Another moan comes seconds after the first, and I have little doubt about what’s plaguing her dreams tonight. For once, it’s not nightmares, but instead, pleasure.
I consider my options for long seconds. I should sit in the chair in the corner and watch as this plays out, or better yet, I should leave.
But I can’t drag myself away from her.
Carefully, I pull the thin sheet from her body and suck in a breath at what she’s wearing beneath. A satin night dress clings to her body, accentuating each of her perfect curves until my cock twitches in protest at being locked away.
I swallow the rumble that tries to escape my throat and continue my exploration of her soft body. Usually, she sleeps in an old T-shirt or a ratty pair of pajamas, and I can’t help but wonder why she chose the thin black material tonight.
Once the sheet no longer covers her, I start working on the pillow she’s clutching to her chest. The thing has seen better days, but she holds onto it like it’s the most precious thing in the world.
Ever so slowly, I tug one arm, and then the other until her grip releases, and I can slip it from her hold.
I deposit it on the other side of the bed and stop to take her in as she rolls to her back.
Fuck. How did I get so lucky to find this woman?
Out of the millions of people in Los Angeles and billions around the world, I found my queen just a few miles from my own home.
Ember’s head rolls to the side, baring her neck to me, and I lean in, pressing my lips to the soft column. I breathe in her intoxicating scent and press my eyes closed, reveling in her perfection.
“You have no idea how much power you hold, Little Flame.” I press gentle kisses along her jaw as my hand skims along the silky fabric covering her. As desperate as I am to tear the flimsy material off her and soak her in, I want her awake the first time I see her naked.
I want her to see how utterly obsessed I am with every single inch of her body, even the parts she wants to hide from the world.
Forcing my lips from her delectable skin, I keep a close eye on her face as my fingers descend toward the place between her legs where I’m aching to bury my face.
Not tonight. But soon.
I push the fabric up her thighs, uncovering her scars, and a part of me settles when I realize there are no new cuts. It’s not that I don’t understand her need to control her own pain, because I do. It’s that I can’t stand the idea of my queen being in any pain at all, physical or emotional.
Her panty clad pussy calls to me, and I shuffle across the floor quietly until I’m level with her hips. I push them to the side and immediately give in to the need to run my fingers through her sex.
I barely catch the growl that tries to escape when I find her wet and wanting.
Fuck.
Even in her sleep, she’s ready for me.
I press my eyes closed to allow myself a moment to get a hold of my resolve before gently exploring her softness.
The scent of her arousal surrounds us as I press softly on her clit.
A gentle moan falls from between her lips, and I flick my gaze up to her face to make sure she’s still sleeping soundly.
I add a little more pressure and circle the sensitive bundle of nerves, needing to hear another of her moans, and I’m quickly rewarded with just that.
“Orion,” she breathes softly.
A smug smile tugs at my lips as I continue my assault on her clit while making quick work of freeing my cock.
It’s wrong. It’s depraved. But I’m so desperate for her I can barely see straight. The need to mark her, to cover her in my cum so no man will ever come near her again overwhelms me as I increase the speed of my ministrations and pump my cock roughly.
I don’t think I’ve ever been as close to losing control as I am right now, watching as my woman writhes beneath my hand as I bring her pleasure, my own release just out of a breath.
“Please,” she whimpers, and I up the pressure just enough to send her spiraling over the edge into oblivion.
I stand, never allowing my movements to pause as I draw out her release. I press one knee onto the mattress beside her as I pump my cock, all rational thought long gone as I chase my pleasure, needing it more than I’ve ever needed it before.
My orgasm slams into me so hard I barely catch myself as stars blur my vision and hot ropes of cum cover the tops of Ember’s silky thighs, marking her in the only way I can right now.
Soon she’ll be mine.
Soon she’ll be in my bed.
Soon I’ll never have to allow her out of my sight.
But for right now, this is enough.
For right now, seeing my cum spread across her body is enough to stop me from stealing her away in the dead of the night and throwing caution to the wind.
Once I trust myself not to stumble, I push myself to my feet and shove my still hard cock back into my pants. The release may have taken the edge off, but it’s nowhere near enough to satiate my need for the woman sprawled out before me.
I drag the sheet back over her body and bring the pillow she was wrapped around closer before ducking my head to press a kiss to her cheek.
“Sleep well, Little Flame.”