Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 54968 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 183(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 54968 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 183(@300wpm)
“You’re supposed to sleep, Little Swan.”
“But not like forever!”
“As long as you need. Your phone will go in the box on the coffee table when we enter our apartment.”
“What if I want to call my parents?” she asked.
“Are you supposed to call your parents?”
She sighed deeply and shook her head. “Only in an emergency.”
“Then sleep is more important because you’ll be safe with me. If you would like, we could ask Magnus if there is a way to contact your parents without exposing your location.”
“That would be amazing. Can we go ask now?” She tugged at his arm, trying to pull him to the door.
“If he’s eating, let’s ask later. He deserves a break, too,” Kestrel reminded her.
“Oh. Of course. A few minutes won’t matter. I’m sure they know I’m here, but I know my mother is worrying.”
“We’ll see what we can do, but first, a kiss. Second, lunch.”
“Thank you, Daddy,” Zara whispered before rising onto her tiptoes to press her mouth against his.
His heart lurched in his chest at the feel of her lips. He didn’t deepen the kiss but allowed her to be in charge. To his delight, Zara whisked her tongue over the inner line of his sensitive bottom lip. Opening his mouth to invite her in, Kestrel pulled her closer. Her tongue darted into his mouth and danced with his.
Kestrel’s body responded to the kiss and her closeness. He trapped a groan in his throat when she wiggled against his pelvis. He didn’t want to interrupt or scare her away. She froze in place a second later, and he knew she felt his shaft thickening.
“Oh! I’m sorry,” she said, backing away.
He controlled her motion and met her skittish gaze, holding it. “Never be ashamed of how our bodies welcome each other.”
“I’ve never…”
“I know. Making love to the woman I know is my Little will be a first for me as well. I might be a bit nervous, too.”
“Really?”
“Yes. I want to be everything for you.”
She thought for a minute and then smiled. “That sounds nice.”
“Our lovemaking will be everything but something as simple as nice. My body responds to you. I would bet yours does as well. Are you wet, Little Swan?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“See? Much more than nice.”
To his surprise, she leaned forward to kiss him hard. The exchange was filled with heat and desire. They were both breathing hard when she lifted her lips. “You’re right. It will be so much more.”
Chapter Eight
Zara had to struggle to pull her attention away from thoughts of Kestrel. Daddy, she corrected herself mentally. Would she be able to call him Daddy around the others?
“I can hear you thinking all the way over here,” Celeste told her.
“Sorry. I thought I had a lot going on before I met Kestrel and all of you. Now…”
“I’m sorry. We were all there when the flash drive arrived from Mr. Kingsley,” Celeste shared.
“So, you all know that people are after me to sell for someone’s use. I don’t even want to think that the world is so cruel that people like that exist,” Zara said with tears gathering in her eyes.
“No crying on the test samples,” Celeste warned. “They can leak through the safety goggles. Don’t ask me how I know.”
Zara backed away from the work table, making sure she couldn’t mess anything up. “I’m so sorry. You need someone professional in here.”
“Are you kidding? If you try to walk out that door, I’m going to tackle you. Then I’ll get in trouble and get spanked. Daddy will make me apologize, and we’ll waste so much time.”
Bombarded by the rapid-fire speech, Zara stared at Celeste in amazement. “You know exactly what would happen?”
“At least one probability. So, no bailing, okay? I need your help, and I’m glad to have a new friend. Come over here and test the pH of these samples. Yes, use those,” Celeste confirmed as Zara pointed to the testing strips.
After stripping off her gloves, Zara wiped her eyes and resettled her goggles on her face. She tugged on new gloves and joined Celeste. “I’m glad to have a friend, too.”
The two worked together extremely well. Time passed quickly. Zara glanced at the door when she heard something slam into the concrete. Heart racing, she looked at Celeste to judge her reaction.
“That’s just Magnus working out. He’s a beast.”
“I saw the workout corner. They’re all in good shape,” Zara murmured.
“Prime eye candy.”
The two women burst into laughter, automatically moving to a safer area away from their work. They leaned against the door, giggling.
Secure in the basement, learning from an amazing scientist, and getting to experiment, Zara felt like she was finally living. It was an incredible feeling. When they wrapped up for the day, she realized all she wanted to do was tell Kestrel everything. He was her first thought, not her folks. Her mind felt totally unbalanced. How could he have become the most important person in her life so quickly?