Total pages in book: 39
Estimated words: 35224 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 176(@200wpm)___ 141(@250wpm)___ 117(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 35224 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 176(@200wpm)___ 141(@250wpm)___ 117(@300wpm)
God, was she hearing him right, smelling correctly the emotions rolling off him, and knowing he truly wanted her in a possessive, territorial way?
Everything next happened so quickly that she couldn’t get her bearings. He downed the rest of his beer, took her hand, and stood. He was hauling her through the bar and only stopped when they reached her brother.
The energy that coursed from Ford and Luke was tangible, and for a moment, she feared all hell would break loose.
“What?” Luke looked between them, and what was going on finally clicked into place. He stood slowly, and a flicker of anger passed across his face. “Everything okay, Talia?” Luke asked her but kept his stare on Ford. “I’m about ready to head out, okay.” Her brother said it, but Talia knew it wasn’t phrased as a question or courtesy information on what his plans were. He was telling her what he was doing, and in the end what she would be doing as well.
“Everything is fine. I just wanted to let you know I’m leaving… with Ford.” Her heart thundered behind her ribs as she waited for her brother to respond.
Luke’s expression went thunderous as he looked between her and Ford. “I hope you don’t mean what the fuck I think you mean.” When she didn’t answer, his face started to turn red. “You don’t even know him, Talia.” He crossed his arms over his chest and stared down at her. “You’re not going anywhere with him.”
“She knows me well enough.” Ford took a step closer to her, and the way he positioned himself had him slightly in front of her.
She had to intervene before there was an all-out shifter brawl going on. She didn’t want to verify what her brother already knew, because hell, it was no one’s business. Talia wasn’t a child and wouldn’t be bullied by Luke. The fact that her brother would know anything that had to do with her sexual life had a major ick factor settling inside her.
Moving out from behind Ford, because really, that was ridiculous he felt the need to somehow shield her from her brother, she looked Luke in the eyes and said, “Luke, I understand your worry, but I am an adult and you aren’t Dad. Besides, we are just going somewhere quiet to talk.” It was a boldfaced lie, and she was actually pretty proud of herself for not flinching when she said it.
Talia had never been very good at twisting the truth, and even if Luke knew she was lying, which he did, going by the look he gave her, she wasn’t about to admit she was going home with Ford to do the opposite of talk.
Her brother clamped his jaw and ground his teeth. For several long moments, no one said anything. His two friends, William and Lincoln, squirmed behind him, obviously thinking a fight was about to break loose.
“Luke, I’m going to go whether you like it or not, but I’d like for you not to act like a lunatic.” He didn’t move, just continued to grind his teeth. “I told you I’m leaving as a courtesy, not for permission. Please understand I’m smart enough to make intelligent decisions when it concerns my safety.” Of course this was the first time Talia was going home with a man she didn’t fully know, but then again, she trusted her instincts, and they weren’t sending off warning bells.
After a prolonged moment, Luke sighed heavily in defeat. She looked at Ford, anxious to get out of this situation, but instead of leading her away, he was reaching into his wallet and handing Luke a business card. “Here is my business card. It has my full name, phone numbers, and address.” This whole situation was starting to go from sexually electrified to awkwardly professional. “You can ask anyone here about me. They know me and my brothers.”
Luke opened his mouth to say something, but Talia grabbed Ford’s hand, waved to Luke, and hauled ass out of the bar. That conversation had gone on far too long as it was. Once outside, she let go of his hand and looked up at him.
“What?” He smirked, and she had the urge to scowl at him, but instead she smiled back.
“What the hell was that about?”
He looked over his shoulder at the front door then back at her. “What do you mean, Talia?” From his smile, he knew damn well what she was talking about.
“Ford—”
He held up his hand, and she snapped her mouth shut, wondering what he was doing. He gripped her around the waist and spun her around until she felt the hard, cold brick of the building meet her back. Ford pressed his chest against hers and claimed her mouth with his.
At the first touch of his tongue sliding against hers in an almost brutal way, she instantly felt marked by him, claimed in the most elemental of ways by his dominance and severity. It was an act of possession, one of wild, uninhibited lust, and it was everything she wanted and needed.