Marius (11 page)

She stared at the numbers and thought about every factor in the area. There was a lot of construction going on, which could play a role, but it still wasn’t what she had been expecting.

A knock at the door made her jump.

“Come in,” she said.

Marius stepped in, and she had to pause for a second as her brain processed just how fantastic he looked in the light. There was something about him as he made his way inside.

“Are you ready to go?” he asked and moved further into the room.

Rachel shook her head, mainly to clear out all the very naughty thoughts that kept popping in.

Marius frowned.

“It’s time to go,” he said.

She set the sheet on the desk and leaned back. “Well, sometimes shit happens, and it’s called a lab report.”

Marius moved around her chair to the back and peered over her shoulder. He bent over and looked at the paper.

“What does all this mean?” he asked and pointed to some of the numbers.

His arms brushed hers. She breathed in deeply and could smell his woodsy soap scent. The rich notes filled her nose, and when she turned her face to talk to him, her nose seemed to follow along the hot line of his neck.

“I
…
” She swallowed and brought her eyes to his. Oblivious to her problems, Marius waited for her answer, his amber eyes showing curiosity. She fumbled as he continued to stare, and the longer he waited, the more she wanted to just spit it out.

He took in a deep breath and stilled.

“What’s that smell?” he said quietly.

Rachel frowned and turned her head to the side. She sniffed. There was nothing but the slightly floral hints from her earlier shower.

“I don’t—”

Marius leaned forward and dropped to his knees. His eyes flashed a bright yellow before he spun her in her chair and buried his head in the crook of her neck.

“What are you doing?” she said and pushed him back.

Marius set his head up and moved his face just inches from her. She stared at his bright yellow eyes.

“Why is his smell on you?” He narrowed his eyes.

Rachel frowned. “What?”

Marius moved in closer, pressing her into the seat, his gaze intense and fixed on her own. “You smell like Rem.”

“I just
…
” she said and tried to back away, but there wasn’t anywhere to go. Marius only pressed in closer, with his body firmly wedged between her legs and arms on either side of her body. “We were working together.”

He sucked in some air.

“It was just work. I just sat on his bed today because it was more comfortable,” she said.

She could feel the chair shake as she spoke and wondered if maybe it would have been best if she had lied.

Marius's arms snaked up further on the chair, and he stopped when their lips touched. Afraid to breathe, she sat as still as she could. His breath came out hard, ragged. His hot breath fanned out across her face and cascaded down her neck. Chills broke out along her arms, and she wasn’t quite sure if she was scared or excited, but she was leaning more toward excited.

“Don’t go near him,” he growled softly. She could feel the rumble against her lips.

“We’re working together,” she whispered.

Marius huffed loudly and pulled his face to her neck. She jumped when his lips found the fevered skin there. Rachel leaned her head to the side and moaned loudly.

“He can’t have you,” he mumbled against her neck. He brushed the hair there aside, sliding his fingers deep into her dark brown roots.

His soft words stirred something in her. She hadn’t really known how she felt about Marius. It was clear that he was amazing to look at, but there was more. Something that maybe he wasn’t letting out and maybe even hid. The idea that she made him feel something he didn’t feel with others sparked something in her.

Rachel moved her hands and laid them on his strong arms. The muscles beneath his thin white shirt rippled as he shifted. Still exploring, she slipped her hands further up until she’d wound her arms around his neck and pulled him toward her again.

“He wants me?” she asked, curious why he’d even care about Rem.

“Fuck him,” Marius growled before his lips came crashing down on her own.

His arms fell from the chair to her back as he pulled her hard against him. She gasped when her hot center pressed firmly against his rigid length. She wrapped her legs around his back and held on. Marius growled against her lips, and she could feel her heart pick up in her chest.

He slanted his head over hers for a deeper kiss. Without question, she opened her mouth and let him in. Their tongues twined, and her body flushed at the erotic way he moved his mouth.

Rachel ground against him for some relief, but her pants were in the way. Never before had she wanted to rip off her clothes before until now. She pulled her head back and huffed in frustration.

Not stopping, Marius slid his mouth along her neck to the sensitive spot behind her ear. She slipped her hands into his hair as he sucked there.

“More,” she whispered.

He slid down slightly and frowned. Normally, she liked to wear button-up shirts, but today, she had picked out a thicker blue pullover shirt. In one, move he whipped the shirt over her head and flung it over her shoulder.

Marius stared at her now lace-covered breasts. She knew they weren’t as large as others and started to cover herself. His bright glowing eyes found hers and frowned. He pulled her hands away and reached for the front clasp.

“I want to see,” he said.

Her hands fell limply to her sides, and she watched as his large hands unsnapped the bra. The scraps of fabric slipped to the side, and her breasts sprang out, the pointed peaks begging to be touched.

Marius stared at them and then at her. He leaned forward with his eyes still fixed on her and brought his mouth to one rosy bud. Rachel bucked as he placed it in his mouth and swirled with his tongue. Her hands slipped into his hair, if anything, just to keep her in place.

She moaned loudly.

Marius pulled back with a loud pop and moved his mouth to the other side. His hand came up to massage the breast he had just left.

The ache began to build. It felt good, but she wanted more. She lifted her lower half and rubbed it against his now throbbing cock. She could feel him grow, and she wanted nothing more than to feel it deep inside her. Rachel slipped a hand between them and ran it along his length. Marius moaned so loudly she was nearly startled.

Suddenly, she was cold and half balancing herself on an empty chair, nearly naked.

“As soon as you know about those numbers, you should tell Titus,” Marius said, moving away. He busied himself across the room, looking anywhere but at her.

Rachel felt heat flame her face. She snapped her bra closed and stomped over to him.

“What the fuck?” she shouted.

He still looked elsewhere, and she had to take a deep breath to keep from smacking him.

“I think maybe I should—” He inched to the door, but she cut him off.

“Oh, I don’t think so, bub. You don’t get to suck my tits and then just race off.”

His gaze shot to the door and then to her face. Marius glared at her.

“Mind keeping your voice down?”

Rachel crossed her arms over her chest, only managing to push her breasts up further. Well good! He should have to look at the evidence.

“Yes, I would mind,” she said loudly. “I’m good enough to play with, but you don’t want the boys to know?”

Silence fell between them, and whatever she was feeling from before started to shatter around her.

“It’s not like—”

“Get out,” she said. If she had to listen to his excuses, she would likely start crying, and the last thing she wanted was to be weak around him.

He looked like he wanted to say more but stopped himself. Rachel watched as he turned and walked out the door.

This was stupid. This whole place was stupid. In the past week, she had cried more than she had in the past ten years. She was not going to cry over that asshat, even if it had felt good, and she wanted more.

Rachel sighed. Too bad she wasn’t a different sort of woman and couldn’t find relief with just anyone.

She picked up her shirt and slipped it over her head just as the door opened.

Marius stood in the door and despite herself, she couldn’t help but feel happy. She liked him. She wanted him. There was just something about the two of them that worked. When he hasn't being a jackass, at least.

“Something’s wrong,” he said.

The smile that had started to form fell, and the doctor in her rose for the occasion.

“What?” she said and grabbed her coat and stethoscope from the desk.

They passed through the door and into the hall.

“The men I sent to check for anything unusual a few days ago are now exhibiting the same types of symptoms as Lucius,” Marius said. They rounded the corner, and she could see the six hybrids filling the waiting area. “Most seem to be pretty moderate except for Rufus.” He turned and whispered quietly, “He’s somehow much further along.”

Rachel nodded and swallowed. Poor Rufus didn’t look well. His skin was pale, almost translucent, contrasting greatly with his red hair. She could see the veins under the skin, covered in a sheen of sweat. It was clear that he had not been able to take care of himself or moderate his fluid levels.

“We need to know the path he took, but no one can go that way,” she said. “As a matter of fact, we really need an essential-personnel-only quarantine.”

Marius raised his brow, and she didn’t really know what to say. It was extreme but so were these sorts of results. What if more people came in like this? They didn't exactly have the capacity to handle dozens of seriously ill people.

“Please,” she said. “Just talk with Titus. I’ll call him later to give an update once I’ve gotten the men settled, but I need to make sure everyone is safe.”

Marius watched Rachel direct the well hybrids to help those that needed it. She began her examination of Rufus. Guilt ate at him as he thought about what they had just been doing minutes before all this. The hybrids were in danger, and he couldn’t even control himself around a woman that wasn’t staying.

He shook his head. He didn’t have time to be thinking about this. It was going to take some real work to convince Titus to shut things down at Rachel's suggestion.

As he walked to the car, he thought about the general dislike most of the men seemed to have of her. There was a part of him that understood, but some of the reasons seemed to stem from something totally irrational. It was as if they had filtered all their fears of the Horatius Group into one person, which seemed totally unfounded and unrealistic. There hadn’t ever been any indication that she was working with anyone outside, and although her methods might be a bit outside the box, the men had certainly pushed her to use those methods.

Marius sighed and slipped into the car. It started up, and he drove along the smooth newly paved road. Despite his protests, he was glad they had spent the money on the roads. It was a sign of a town and in the end, that was what they were becoming. Not some compound of soldiers. Not just the fake Luna Lodge. But Luna Town.

He smiled at the thought. Maybe one day they would find more like themselves and build. The smile slipped a little despite himself. More men meant additional mouths to feed. It was hard enough now.

The building holding Titus's office was nearly dark except for his office. Everyone had already gone home for the evening. He smiled at Jenna’s truck in the lot. The woman was just as hard a worker as her boss.

Marius made his way inside and was surprised not to find Jenna at her desk. He swallowed. Never in his life would he suspect that Titus would mess around on Kate, but it did look a bit suspicious. Shaking himself, he went to the door and knocked. A few long moments later, the door opened. Jenna stared up at him. She was fully clothed, with no real rumpling, but her tight smile and wide eyes only kindled his suspicion.

Titus stood behind her. He opened the door a little wider.

“Marius?” Titus said. His voice was clear and firm. “What’s going on?”

Marius opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. He narrowed his eyes. Rem was sitting in a chair in front of the desk, arms behind the chair bound together with tight zip ties.

“What the fuck?” Marius said. He tried to step into the room but was stopped by a wall made of both Jenna and Titus.

“We’re just talking,” Titus said, holding up his hands.

Marius looked between the three of them. Rem looked over to him and gave a nod.

“Just talking,” he said with a smile.

Marius looked to Jenna. “Then what’s she doing here?”

“She’s my eye candy,” Rem popped off.

Jenna turned and gave him a dirty look. “I’m here to take notes and mediate.” She looked between Titus and Rem and then back to Marius. “They aren’t exactly the best at talking.”

Marius nodded and could see that their idea of talking could easily turn into talking with fists.