Neighbors (Twin Estates #1) (9 page)

Wulf had no similar such compulsion. He touched her often and frequently, and without any sort of hesitation. It was like it didn't even occur to him that he should ask permission – or he just didn't care. They sat side by side at the bar and he would reach out occasionally, tucking a stray hair behind her ear, touching her thigh below the hem of her dress, running his finger down the side of her arm. It made her think of the other night, when he'd kissed her without any ceremony, any hesitation.

It made her feel stupid with anticipation, wondering how far he'd go. She liked it, that he assumed such a familiarity. Took such charge. When his hand would leave her skin, she found herself holding her breath till it came back.

If this keeps up much longer, I'm going to pass out from lack of oxygen.

“So what else do you do?” he asked as their plates were taken away.

“Just baking,” she answered.

Wulf spun on his stool so he was facing her, one of his elbows propped on the bar, a glass of brandy in his hand. She had both her elbows on the bar, her hands clasped together and her cheek pressed against them so she could face him. His knee was jutting into the side of her leg and just that simple contact caused her temperature to sky rocket.

She glanced around, wondering if anyone was around to witness her spontaneous combustion. The place had cleared out. It was only them, the bartender, and a bus boy wiping down tables. The setting sun was filtering into the space, coating everything in a soft gold glow.

“That's it? Morning till night? From the moment of waking? Jesus christ, your life must be so bland,” he snorted. She actually laughed – she was getting used to his odd sense of humor.

“No, smart ass. I have a roommate, I spend a lot of time with her. I like going to museums –
love
the aquarium,” she told him. He nodded while she spoke, but his eyes were wandering around the bar. Like he was bored. She took a deep breath. “Though recently, I've kind of been going through a change.” His eyes cut back to her.

Ha, got him.

“Really? What kind of change?” he asked.

“Like I said, it's recent.
Very
recent. I'm not sure how long it'll last,” she warned him.

“I swear, if you try to convert me to Scientology, I will wring your neck.”

She burst out laughing again.

“No, no cults or anything. But … I guess I should tell you, I'm kinda sorta seeing someone else,” she said.

“Ah. Kinda sorta?” he asked.

“Yeah. He's a new friend, sorta.”

“You sound unsure.”

“We're not boyfriend and girlfriend or anything,” she assured him. “But I like spending time with him, and we have slept together. I just thought you should know.”

She'd never in her life had that kind of conversation with a man. She suddenly felt very grown up. She wanted to order a gin and tonic, and start discussing the Dow Jones Industrial, or something.

“Well then. Thank you for sharing. Do you plan on sleeping with him again any time soon?” he checked.

“I don't plan on it,” she was honest.

“But it's a possibility.”

“I guess so.”

“Are you always this unsure about people you may or may not be sleeping with?” he asked. She slapped him on the knee.

“Yes. I told you, this is new to me. Seeing you, seeing that guy. I just wanted to be honest with you, from the beginning,” she said.

Wulf reached out and grabbed her knee, his fingers curling into her skin, and he gently pulled her so she spun around on her stool top and faced him. Both his hands came to rest on the tops of her thighs and she bit into her bottom lip.

“Well thank you, Katya, for your honesty,” he said, sliding his hands up so his fingertips disappeared underneath her dress. “I have to say, though, I'm curious about these 'changes' you're going through. If they involve sleeping with two men at the same time, what else are you exploring?”

“Who said I was going to sleep with
you?
” she answered back quickly.

It was his turn to burst out laughing. He so rarely full on laughed, the sound of it and the site of his smile were a shock to the system. Her reaction was so visceral, it caught her off guard. She loved it when Liam laughed, wanted to laugh with him. But Wulfric's laughter … it made her feel like she could very easily lose her heart to this man. And that thought scared her.

You don't know him, so don't start thinking about something as absurd as your heart.

“Katya, please, let's be realistic – I'm betting that by this time next week, I'll know
exactly
what you sound like when you're coming.”

Holy shit.
Holy shit
. She wanted to hyperventilate. Wanted to jump on him and rip his clothes off. But thankfully, she'd been holding her breath while he spoke, and it actually calmed her down. She remembered how she was with Liam, how the new-Katya wasn't intimidated or flustered by sexy banter.

“A week, huh?” she said in a low voice. “That's a long time, Wulf. Thank god I have the other guy to keep me entertained.”

He didn't laugh that time, but she could see it in his eyes, in the way he watched her lips while she spoke. Could feel his delight in the way his fingers scratched at her skin, dragging their way down to her knees.

Creedance Clearwater was filtering through the speakers, singing about putting spells on people. Putting a spell on
her
. The sunset had gone from a soft glow to a full on blaze, glaring off every piece of gold and chrome, blinding her to everything but the man in front of her. It was like the room was going up in flames around them, and they didn't even care.

And on that thought, Katya excused herself. If she was going to melt into a puddle, she'd rather not do it at his feet. She had an image to uphold, apparently.

She locked herself in the bathroom and splashed cold water on her cheeks. Stared at her reflection, wondering who on earth the girl was looking back at her. Her eyes, a somewhat dull shade of blue, stared back at her, wide in their sockets. Her hair was in another boring bun, high on the back of her head. Her loose shift dress was sleeveless, with splashes of ivory and yellow on the body of it, ending in a heavy black border at the hem. Nothing exciting.

“
Stop shitting on yourself.
”

Liam's voice rang through her head. Holy shit, he was right – she was always putting herself down. Even when she was alone. Even when she had a guy as hot as Liam chasing after her, and a man as devastatingly handsome as Wulfric right in front of her. Why did she do that? She turned around and took several deep breaths, shaking the tension out of her hands. Then she went back to the mirror, gripping the edge of the sink and leaning in close.

Her eyes were wide and expressive, the blue so soft, they were almost a lapis color. Her hair was a deep auburn, a shade she'd often been complimented on and she knew many women tried to duplicate. She almost never wore it down, but it was thick and long and healthy. And her dress may have been simple enough and not form fitting at all, but it showed more leg than she usually ever dared, and hung off her chest in a way that called attention to her pert breasts. The light fabric contrasted well with her deep tan skin, and the overall look was … sexy, she had to admit. A sort of virginal sexy, sure, but sexy nonetheless.

What in the hell are you doing, Katya? That man is out there, ready to eat you alive. What's to stop you from being the main course? Some moral compass that's done nothing for you, except keep you from having fun? Liam is right – the only one stopping you from doing what you want,
is you
.

She glanced at the bathroom door and started breathing fast. She wanted Wulf. Since she was fourteen, she'd fantasized about him, but he'd always been just that – a fantasy. Untouchable, unreachable, and then just
gone
. A faded memory. Someone who had never wanted her, and would never want her. Then Liam had popped up in her life, flipping her entire notion of herself on its ass, and Wulf had walked through the door, and had seen that change in her. She had already become a sex kitten once, for Liam. She had the practice time under her belt. If she could put it into use against Wulf, who knew how far she could take things.

God, I want to see how far we can go.

Katya didn't want to wait a week. She didn't want to wait another second. What if he disappeared? What if old-Katya reared her ugly head? She didn't want to take the chance. She wanted to be that girl from the made-up-profile again, so she decided to go for it. She took a deep breath, then reached under her dress. Felt around for the edges of her underwear, then dragged them past her hips. Let them fall to the floor. She stepped out of them, then balled them up in her fist.

I can do this. I can really do this. What's the worst that can happen? He laughs at me? So what, then I take the train to Liam's house and work out this sexual tension with him.

When she came out of the bathroom, the first thing she noticed was that some shading had been pulled low over the windows. They were sheer, but they dulled the glare and made it almost impossible to see outside clearly.

Then she saw that Wulf wasn't sitting at the bar anymore. He'd moved to an old piano that was tucked against a wall, taking up a lot of space in the narrow bar. He was plunking out a tune, something she didn't recognize, though she was surprised he could play. He sounded decent and she stood behind his shoulder for a moment, watching his fingers move over the keys.

“I thought you were going to be in there all night,” he finally said, though he didn't bother looking back at her.

“It was two minutes, max,” she replied, though she still felt a little breathless. He must have heard, because the notes on the piano died down, slowing to a stop. He climbed to his feet, throwing back the last of his brandy, then he put the glass on top of the instrument before turning to face her.

“More like five. You sound nervous, Tocci,” he called her out. She nodded.

“I am.”

“Why? Scared of me?”

“Not scared.”

“Then what?”

She took a deep breath. A second one. Wouldn't let her eyes move away from his as she lifted her hand.

“I don't want to wait a week,” she said plainly, all while she tucked her hot pink panties into his chest pocket, crushing the pocket square he had there.

Wulf glanced down at the fabric poking out. It only took him a fraction of a second to figure out what she'd just done. Then his lips twitched, quirked up into a sly little smile, and he raised his arm, snapping his fingers.

“Tom,” he said, not looking away from her. The bartender cleared his throat. “Ten minutes, please. I need the room.”

Nothing else was said. The bus boy stopped clearing tables and made his way to the back of the bar, disappearing through a heavy wooden door. The bartender went and locked the entrance, then quickly went through the same door as the bus boy, and Katya could hear it get locked behind him. They were completely alone.

“Do you live close by?” she asked. Wulf pulled her underwear away from his blazer.

“Not close enough.”

She watched as her panties were folded up, then shoved into his pants pocket, and she halfway wondered if she'd ever see them again.

“When I said I didn't want to wait a week, I didn't mean I couldn't wait five more minutes,” she tried to joke, then her breath caught in her throat when his hands smoothed over her hips.

“Pity, because I can't.”

He forced her backwards, pressing his body against her. He wasn't overwhelmingly tall, maybe six foot, but his strong physique was intimidating, and his sheer presence filled the entire room. Made her feel small and helpless and overwhelmingly feminine. She braced her hands on his forearms, allowing him to move her so her back was pressed into the bar.

One of his hands ran down her leg, then gripped her thigh roughly, lifting her. Her hands flew behind her as she was sat on top of the bar. He spread her legs, moving into the space between them, and making her ridiculously aware of the fact that there was nothing between the front of his pants and her crotch.

He was slow and methodical in the way he handled her, as if they had all the time in the world for him to explore her body. As if she was a sculpture he'd bought and paid for, something that belonged to him, was his to touch as he pleased. Her teeth cut into her bottom lip while his hands moved over her dress, briefly cupping her breasts before moving back down to her thighs, spreading them wider still.

“In a million years,” he sighed when he leaned in to kiss her neck. “I would never have imagined Katya Tocci giving me her panties.” She laughed softly while she combed her fingers through his hair.

“Hey, I never said you could keep them.”

“Katya, the moment you showed up at the restaurant the other night,
all
your panties have belonged to me. You had better get used to that idea.”

Then his hands were on either side of her head, holding her in place while he kissed her, slowly and thoroughly. Stole every molecule out of her lungs. She wasn't sure what she'd expected from him – something a little wilder, a little more scary. But what he was doing was so much more. The anticipation, the expectation, he was driving her insane, building up something inside her. She didn't know how to deal with it, how to react to it. She wanted to whimper and cry, to strip herself bare and just hand herself over to him.