Marius (14 page)

He could already hear the mumbling of several of the men outside. It was exactly as he suspected. They wanted her gone, and they didn’t really care if it was accomplished via diplomatic means or not.

Marius opened the door and stepped onto the porch. Ten hybrids stood there. The group was diverse, though several were quite young, including some in their teens.

“What can I do for you?” he asked.

“I think you know what we want,” a young hybrid said.

He wasn’t surprised that one of the younger hybrids spoke first. They tended to be the most outspoken and also seemed to have the most trouble adjusting to things. He didn’t really know why that was, but he wasn’t ready to get bossed around by a kid.

Marius looked at the others in the group. Most had trouble even meeting his eyes.

“Maybe but, if you’re man enough to come here, you should be man enough to fucking say it to my face,” he said.

He stared down at the young hybrid, who gave up and looked to the side.

“She’s a danger to us,” someone said from the back.

Marius glared at them. “By treating our people? By making sure our women and children are well? Without her, Hannah wouldn’t even be alive. Twice over. You’re ready to toss her over the fence when you should be ready to give her a medal. Ingrates.”

A few men murmured in the crowd, and he knew they had forgotten about how she saved Hannah just a week ago. He could have laughed if it wasn’t so serious.

“You’d say that since she’s your woman.”

His hands clenched in rage. “I’d say that if I was lucky enough to have her as my woman.”

“That’s not what you were saying this morning.” Several men laughed, and he knew they were right.

Marius hung his head. “I did say that, thinking there was no way I’d ever be able to have her in my life.”

The young hybrid wrinkled his nose. “And that’s changed?”

Marius opened his mouth to respond but jumped when the door behind him opened instead.

“Yes,” Rachel said. “That’s changed.”

She threaded her fingers with his and faced down the angry men before her like no one else he’d ever seen.

“I’m not Doctor Fisher,” she said loudly for them all to hear. “I didn’t come here hoping to betray you. This is the job I wanted. Something different. Something challenging and unique. It’s far more than I could have ever guessed, but it’s amazing. I love the work I do. And when you aren’t being difficult, I even love the people.” She smiled at the way they shifted uncomfortably. “But most of all I want to be here with him. Whatever that means, I’m in.”

Marius stared down at her with awe, the most amazing woman ever.

The men stood defiantly for a moment.

Rachel stared them all down.

“Now get the hell out of here,” she said firmly. “I’ve got six hours before I’ve got to be back at the clinic to care for all of your people, unless one of you suddenly has a medical degree and can take on the care. If I can't get this figured out, people are going to die. If you want me gone, wait until I've saved everyone's asses, and then come back here.”

She scanned the crowd, and each hybrid averted his eyes.

A younger hybrid looked up at Marius. “Are you going to tell Titus?”

“Not unless you try and come back,” he said. He needed to give them an out. If they could be run off with just a stern talking to, perhaps they wouldn't have actually done anything. At least, he tried to convince himself of that.

Rachel flicked her wrist. “Well, then, out,” she said and pulled Marius inside.

He slipped his hand from hers and locked the doors. He listened for a moment and was surprised to find they were obeying her without any trouble. A few grumbles here and there, but they seemed to be retreating.

Marius turned to say something and found himself pinned against the door.

Rachel didn’t care what it looked like, he wanted her. He’d told a whole crowd that he’d be lucky to have her.

She pushed her hands up his shirt and forced it higher and higher. When she reached his head, he had to help pull it the rest of the way, chuckling all the while.

Arms still in the air, she marveled at the well-sculpted body before her. The muscles shifted as he worked the shirt overhead and then settled back into place. Marius reached out for her, but she moved his arms back. This time she was in charge. If he thought he was going to toy with her and leave her high and dry, he had another thing coming.

“Rachel,” he growled. His eyes glowed, and she knew her game was making him irritated, but it wasn’t done on purpose.

She stepped forward and could feel the warmth from his body. Rachel placed her hands at the ridges of his abs and let them follow the line up his expansive chest. Her fingers bumped his nipples and he hissed. She grinned at the response.

Leaning forward, she placed open-mouthed kisses along the hard muscles.

“If I don’t get to touch you soon, I’m going to lose my fucking mind,” he said.

Rachel looked up at him and knew that he was at his limit.

“Okay,” she whispered.

“Thank God,” he said.

Rachel squealed as she went flying through the air.

“What are you doing?” she cried.

Marius tossed her over his shoulder. She cried out when he slapped her ass.

“I’m just taking over,” he said. “Too much playing around.”

Rachel swayed as they made their way up the stairs and was surprised when he strode into his room. It was her first time seeing it from the inside. It wasn’t as if he was secretive, but there just wasn’t much reason for her to go in there.

Marius placed an arm at the back of her thighs for support as she slipped down his body.

Much like she would have expected, his room was clean. Nothing seemed to be out of place, and there weren’t any pictures on the wall or the dresser. She’d bet that everything with color in the room was from Hannah and her keen sense of style. When she’d lived there with Rachel, it had been her responsibility to make sure the rooms looked good, and Hannah had taken her job very seriously.

“What?” Marius said.

She shook her head as she turned to look back at him. “Just trying to find where you are here.”

He looked around the room. He seemed to be having as hard a time as she was finding where he was. When his eyes found her and started to glow slightly, she felt her heart beat a little faster.

“I think I’ve found it,” he said softly.

Heat rushed to her cheeks as his meaning took root in her head.

“I just,” she fumbled and took a deep breath to steady herself. “What changed?”

He stared at her, and she burned under his stare. Everything about him was so intense at times she just didn’t know what to do.

“We’ve spent all our lives being shown what trust will get us, and the only people we’ve been able to truly trust is each other,” he said and ran a tender hand along her cheek. It slipped into her hair, and she smiled at the move. “When your government came, we had to trust. There was no choice. And when Doctor Fisher was there to help us, we accepted it.”

He fell silent for a moment, and she knew that the sting of the doctor’s betrayal went deeper than any of them cared to admit.

“I don’t want to let him taint what I feel for you,” he said and leaned down to place a soft kiss against the side of her mouth. “I don’t want to push out the feelings I’m having.” He kissed the other side of her mouth, and her heart started to hammer in her chest. His words struck a chord that had been humming in her since the moment she had stepped into this place. She was his.

Marius pulled back to look at her. She trembled. Her knees shook as she struggled to stay standing.

“Don’t leave,” he said finally. Those were the words she had been waiting to hear all this time. “Don’t take another job. Don’t move. Don’t go.”

Tears clouded her eyes, and she tried to blink them away.

“But no one wants me here,” she said. “Those men we ran off were just willing to do something more direct.”

Marius pulled her hard against his chest and wrapped his warm arms around her.

“I want you here,” he said. “Don’t go.”

She nodded against his warm chest. Her hands wound around him, and she kissed the skin next to her face.

“Come to bed with me,” she said and leaned back to look up at him.

His brow creased with worry. She reached up and smoothed out the lines.

“Show me what you feel,” she whispered.

A rumble filled the room, and despite everything that was going on around them, she had decided she was going to just let it all go and have tonight.

Rachel turned off the light before moving over to flip on the little bedside lamp. Marius sat on the edge of the bed, watching her move around the room. When she turned on the bedside lamp, she could see his eyes flash yellow.

She moved in front of him, not quite sure where to go from there. Her experience with men was fairly limited, and the times before had been less about emotion and more about the act. It certainly hadn’t been with someone as large as Marius or as intense. She swallowed. It wasn’t often she felt intimidated.

Marius reached forward. She stepped forward in between his legs. His head came level with her breasts, and she shuddered as his hot breath fanned out across her neck.

She watched as he ran a finger down the front of her shirt.

“I keep missing your button-ups,” he said and grinned at her.

She gave him a small smile. When she’d gotten home she’d changed into something more comfortable, jeans and a pink t-shirt. He reached the edge of her pants. Marius watched her with open fascination.

The fingers there slipped under, and he slowly lifted her shirt off. She blushed at the revealed pale pink bra. She thought her love of pink was silly, but she couldn’t help it. Being tough was who she was supposed to be, but there was another part that just wanted to be a girl.

“Amazing,” he whispered.

She jumped when he went to the snap on her pants and pulled them down. Her jeans pooled around her feet, and she stepped out. Rachel pushed them to the side and moved in a little closer.

“Your turn,” she whispered in his ear.

Marius didn’t know how much longer he could hold off with all this. Having her here with him, half naked, was killing him.

Rachel stepped back as he stood. He kicked off his shoes and tossed off his pants.

“Hey,” she pouted. “Where’s my show?”

Marius grinned and walked slowly toward her. Her legs hit the back of the bed, and she fell back with a thud. The wild deer-in-the-headlights look she displayed as he crept forward was a good enough indication she knew what was coming.

Rachel scrambled to scoot herself away from him, but he was faster. His hand shot out as he landed next to her on the bed. The two rolled, struggling. She let out a shriek, and he pulled back suddenly.

“Are you okay?” he asked. Marius tried to examine her hand but was suddenly flipped onto his back.

Rachel grinned down at him. “Totally fine.”

Marius laughed at her playful way. Things had been so tense. It was nice to play, especially in this way. He slid his hands up her body and stopped at her creamy hips, just a little bit further.

He lifted her up slightly and moved her down his body. Her legs straddled his, and when she came back down, she rested firmly on his growing length. Rachel groaned and gripped his arms for support.

“Better,” he struggled to get out.

This time it was Rachel who looked down at him with the burning need. If her eyes could glow, he was certain that the green inside would have lit up.

Not bothering to wait for him, she unsnapped her bra and lifted his hands to her breasts. Marius groaned when she rocked forward and struggled to keep his concentration. Each movement she made was better than the last and made him ache to be in her.

Rachel leaned forward and kissed him hard. Her teeth bumped his as she continued to rock and grind against him. She pulled away, and he rolled on top.

Not caring about being careful, he ripped at the scrap of fabric between her legs and shoved his own underwear down fast. His cock sprang out hard and ready.

He heard her gasp and looked up. Rachel sat up on her elbows, watching in almost horror. He’d never really considered it, but this might be her first time.

“Have you,” he started, not quite sure where to go with this. “Is this your first…?”

He trailed off and couldn’t seem to find the right words.

She reached between her legs to touch him and shook her head.

“No,” she said firmly. “Just,” she nibbled her bottom lip and the act of it was driving him crazy, “just go slow.”

He nodded, not quite sure what that meant. Did she mean he should put it in slow? What about after?

Marius took a deep breath. His tendency to over-analyze things was working against him here. He was just going to have to follow her lead.

Rachel brought his mouth to hers and kissed him tenderly. She could feel his large cock slip between her folds, and when he bumped her clit, she shivered. Not stopping their kiss, Rachel reached between them and positioned his head at her opening. He slowly entered.