Page 36 of Awakened and Betrayed
I clutch my chest and feign innocence, “I did no such thing, and I resent the implication. I can't help that this information happened to spill out in the heat of aclosemoment. Maybe he just sucks at secret keeping." I shrug my shoulders and bat my eyes coquettishly at Knox. He’s not buying anything I’m selling, judging by the incredulous snorting noise he makes.
“Speaking of pillow talk, I want to know every detail of what happened with Sorik. He seriously had runes?" Knox exclaims, and his effort at changing the subject doesn’t go unnoticed.
“Knox, give me more credit than that, I can’t be so easily dissuaded.”
He laughs.
“It's cute that you guys are trying to surprise me with this whole house thing, but now that the cat is out of the bag, I'm dying to know every little detail. I'm too nosey not to know exactly what's going on.”
I turn so my back is against the car door, and I’m facing his profile, giving him the full effect of my pout. Since Bastien let the big secret slip, I've been picturing what our new place could look like. I’ve had to stop myself from getting too detailed in my daydream because what if what they chose doesn't live up to the picture I'm painting in my mind?
I should just be happy with whatever they bought because it means we all get to be together when we want to be. So what if it doesn’t have a diving board? Is that really something to swoon over, or get disappointed about if it’s not there? It will still be the place that I can eventually call home with my Chosen and really, that's all I need. Well, that, and a gym, and maybe we can get a pool and add a diving board—you know if it doesn't have that already, which it might.
“Just tell me one thing,” I try to negotiate.
Knox gives me the side-eye.
“Does it have a diving board and a gym?”
He laughs and shakes his head at me. “You never said you wanted a diving board before.”
“I know, I didn’t even know I wanted one until today.”
I throw my hand up in awhat can you domotion and roll my eyes at myself.
Knox tilts his head for a moment, and then he sneaks a look at me.
“Fuck. Now I know how you got to Bastien so fast. Stop being so fucking adorable.”
“I am not adorable. I am a vicious beast who can only be tamed by a diving board and a gym...and an occasional fight, maybe with a shifter, because as of right now I’ve had the most fun fighting them.”
Knox laughs even harder. “Killer, give me a shot at taming your beast, and we’ll see if you still need all the other stuff.”
His voice somehow grows thicker with sensual promise and the combination of his deep tone and his smooth words works a spell over me that has me drooling and ready to ask him to pull over. I sneak a glance out of the window and send a silent challenge out into the universe that if it really loves me the perfect pull off spot will be just up ahead. I know the others voiced their opinions about beds and first times, but I know I can convince Knox to abandon all that nonsense in an effort to tame the need coursing through me right now.
I throw an angry grandma style closed fist up at the universe when instead of the perfect pull off spot revealing itself just up ahead, I notice that we’re in a suburban neighborhood and surrounded by houses.Why does the universe want to keep me from getting laid?
Knox cracks up and leans forward, howling with laughter. “What are you talking about? How is the universe keeping you from getting laid?” he manages to get out, between bursts of laughter.
I narrow my eyes at him, not at all amused by the escaped thoughts that I apparently just voiced out loud.
“How close are we to your parents’ house?”
“About five minutes.”
“See, the powers that be are working against the needs of my libido. You can’t sexy voice me and say shit likelet me tame your beastand then not follow through. That’s fucking wrong on so many levels. And now I have to go meet your family after you’ve got me all riled and shit! I was already fucking nervous, but now I’m fucking nervous, and I get to add horny and twitterpated on top of it.”
“Fucking hell, don’t sayhorny,not when there’s nothing right now I can do to fix it,” he groans and shifts in his seat. I grin. “Don’t you smile about that, Killer, I can’t walk in to introduce you to my family with a hard-on.”
My smirk grows wider, and I try to bite down against the laugh that wants to come out. “Fine, no more horny talk.” I concede, and he groans again. "Tell me about your family then. What's going down tonight and how nervousshouldI be?” I take a deep breath and try to calm the swarm of angry bees in my stomach. “I've never met anyone’s family before, and our circumstances are not exactly usual. What do they know about me already? Do they hate me for marking you?" I press down against memories of Silva and his obvious disapproval over my marking any ofthe boys.
Knox reaches over and grabs my hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.
"We haven't exactly told anyone about the wholemarkedorChosenthing."
An adorably sheepish look takes over his masculine face, and the angry bees in my stomach soften into butterflies.
Then his words sink in.
