Christine laughed at her dumbfounded expression. “Don’t worry, it won’t taste so badly.”
“That’s not what I meant,” she thought, frustration building up in her chest. “No, no, it’s not that,” she said out loud. “It’s just that… I was thinking something like contraceptive pills would work better.”
“Nonsense! Those can be really harmful for your body. They mess with your hormones and cause changes you can’t even begin to imagine. Haven’t you heard of women not being able to have children because they took contraceptives for too many years.”
“No…” It wasn’t like Alma Venus had ever taught them about these things. The shifter brides never had to worry that unprotected sex would lead to nasty things. The strong, healthy metabolism of a shifter was able to crush any human infection in seconds. The only thing unprotected sex with a shifter could lead to was pregnancy, and that was more than desired.
“Believe me, you don’t want those awful chemicals in your body. My herbal recipe is completely harmless, and very effective. You’ll see.” Christine gave her another bright, reassuring smile, and reached across the table to squeeze her wrist. Avelyn glanced at the old woman’s calloused fingers, noticing how much her skinny hand looked like a claw around her own white, smooth wrist. She had no other option but to trust her. She smiled back and allowed her whole body to relax on the sofa. Finally, she had solved this nagging problem and found a solution. She could breathe easier now.
***
Avelyn eyed the phone nervously. Max had warned her in the morning that he wouldn’t make it for lunch, but he hadn’t said anything about dinner. The uncertainty was killing her, making it impossible for her to focus on anything else. After her conversation with Christine, the only thing she could think of was that she was finally free to claim what she had wanted for so many painfully frustrating nights: everything her hot, fiery Alpha had to give. Christine had prepared her the herbal mixture, as she had promised, and Avelyn hurried to take her first three drops with her tea. Now, there was one last thing to be done: regain her freedom. She was almost sure Max would allow her to leave the room if she gave herself to him. The fact that she had pulled back every time in the past few days had made him suspicious.
“To call or not to call. That is the question,” she whispered to herself. “I know: I’ll message him.” Avelyn grabbed the smartphone and opened a new text. It was the first time she was contacting him. He would sometimes call to check on her, or for some small talk when he had five free minutes, but she had never returned the gesture. What would she have told him anyway?
“So far so good, but what do I write?” she asked herself. “Have to make it sound seductive…”
“Hey, sexy…”
“What? No, no, no. I don’t talk like that. It sounds fake.” She deleted “sexy”. “Gorgeous? Should I use gorgeous? No.” She looked at the silly, impersonal “hey” for a long minute, then tapped backspace. “I’ll just skip the hey-part.”
“Will you make it for dinner? I have dessert… *wink*”
“There, that should do it. It’s simple, yet suggestive.” She tapped “send” then waited nervously for his reply. After two minutes of squeezing her phone and staring at the black screen, waiting for it to light up, Avelyn sighed and set it on the bed. “Maybe he’s in one of those important meetings I’m not supposed to know about. Whatever.” She went to her laptop and turned it on, but before the system loaded, the phone buzzed and Avelyn jumped from the chair and ran to the bed.
“Yummy… I’ll be there.”
“Yes!” Her own scream of excitement took her by surprise, and she covered her mouth. She couldn’t believe her reaction. She stopped to think for a moment, trying to pin down the exact reasons for which her heart jumped like that and her enthusiasm seemed to peek its head only when Max was involved. For two days, she hadn’t been able to read, do origami, watch movies, or simply waste time online. She thought hard about everything that had happened in the last week, and bit her lip in fear that she wouldn’t like the answer to her introspection. She considered all the possibilities. Yes, Max had treated her like the most treasured person in his world since the night he had brought her here and she had yelled at him to leave the bedroom. He had been kind, loving, and attentive. But, did that mean he loved her? He had never said it in those exact three words. “I. Love. You.” Avelyn whispered them to herself, but they sounded strange to her ears. Did that mean she could love him? Maybe she was falling for him and she wasn’t even aware of it. The thought made her stomach tighten in panic. No, that couldn’t be it. It was impossible. She was only excited because she knew she was getting closer to regaining her freedom, because she couldn’t bear being locked in the bedroom for much longer, and the thought of getting out of there made her pulse rise with enthusiasm and impatience. She’d do anything to get out of the room. Anything.
“Yes, that’s it. I must get out.” Avelyn breathed in relief and headed right to the dressing room to choose an appropriate outfit. Later, she’d call Christine and tell her to ask Harold to prepare a delicious dinner for two. And bring candles. Yes, candles were in order.
***
Max couldn’t take his eyes off Avelyn. The red dress was hugging her body in all the right places, and the bra was pushing her breasts just enough to remind him how round and full they were. He wondered what color it was. She was sitting across from him and her skirt had ridden up, revealing the entire length of her leg, from her creamy thighs to her cute feet, secured with the thin straps of the red sandals. She had painted her fingernails and toenails burgundy, and the bloody red lipstick fit the whole image perfectly. Her wide curls covered her back and shoulders, bringing out her pale complexion and blue eyes. She looked like a goddess of love and sensuality, and Max could hardly wait for dinner to be over. Then, he’d be allowed to worship every inch of her spectacular body. His cock was already painfully hard, making it difficult for him to relax. It had been like that since he read her text, the first one she’d ever sent him, and started anticipating what she might have in store for him. Needless to say he had cleared his schedule and made sure he reached the Schloss before dinner.
“So, how was your day?” she asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. Avelyn was enjoying the way he was looking at her.
“Same as any other day. Frustrating and boring. It’s incredible how boredom can make you more tired than being active.”
“I’d be happy to give you a massage if you want,” she said, giving him a lascivious smile.
Max’s cock twitched. “That sounds… wonderful.” He wondered what had happened that caused this change in Avelyn, but the thought didn’t last long, as she raised her glass of wine to her lips, and he was entranced by the slight movement of her long neck as she swallowed the dark liquid.
Avelyn had had no idea that a game of seduction could be so fun. Suddenly, she wasn’t hungry anymore, and she noticed that Max had stopped eating minutes ago. The candle between them lit his handsome face in a gentle, subtle way, giving him an air of mystery. His black hair was slightly disheveled, and his green eyes sparked with desire. She stood up and went around the table. He was looking up at her, his eyebrow cocked in a silent question. She smiled and put a hand on his chest, gently pushing him away from the table. When his back touched the backrest, she
sat on his lap. His hands immediately went to her hips, and she leaned in for a hot, wet kiss.
“Mmm… the wine tastes even more delicious on your tongue.”
“Is that so?” Avelyn reached behind her, took his glass of wine, and raised it to her lips. She leaned in to slip the cold liquid between his lips. Max drank it greedily and sucked on her tongue. His hands were now exploring her generous ass, squeezing it gently here and there.
“You naughty, naughty girl,” he whispered huskily in her ear. “Let me take you to bed.”
“No.”
Her answer threw him off guard, but the slight pang of disappointment turned into anticipation and curiosity when she stood up with her back to him and leaned over to blow the candle and sweep everything off the table with both her hands. The dishes clattered loudly, and the glasses fell on the thick carpet, the wine spoiling it beyond repair. Max’s eyes grew wide with perplexity. He had no idea how he should react or what he should expect. This woman was the most unpredictable being he had ever seen. She turned back to face him, and straddled his hips, rubbing her pelvis against his painful erection. She attacked his mouth with her lips, tongue and teeth, her palms holding his face, her fingers massaging his scalp. All he could do was hold onto her.
“Take me here, on the table.”