“Thanks,” she said.
“Get some sleep, Ellie. I have a feeling you’ll need it.”
“The idea of uninterrupted sleep sounds like heaven on earth.”
“You deserve peace, Ellie. You’ll find it here. At least I hope you will. See you tomorrow.”
“Goodnight, Draegan.”
A door closed and another one opened. His brother’s footsteps soon faded and Allister crept along the wall, careful to stay out of camera view until he reached room one fifteen.
Then he turned the knob and entered her room whispering, “Ellie. It’s me, Allister.” He kept his voice low. There were other women on the hall and he didn’t want to make a racket. He didn’t want Ellie making a racket either.
Yeah. Right.
His body went rigid just thinking of Ellie making little whimpers, maybe even releasing outright screams.
As soon as he walked in her room, he noticed the light underneath the bathroom door. He could hear the beating water spraying from the shower head.
Damn.
The thought of her fingers roaming over her naked flesh drove him to grip the doorknob. He eased it to the right and back to the left, finding the unlocked latch allowing access.
All he had to do was take that first step and walk inside. Instead of following his instincts, he stilled. He stared at the floor, debating what to do.
He wanted to go to her. He needed her worse than he needed anything or any
one in his life. He ached to hold her and reassure her. She needed to believe she’d made the right decision.
It was his duty, his honor, to make everything all right for her again.
From the moment he’d laid eyes on her so many years ago, he had been like this. Even when he was far too young to know, far too young to even care, really. He’d always had a physical reaction to her. When they were kids, if he saw her crying, he wanted to wipe away her tears. As they’d age, it was more than tears that had stoked his interest.
Behind the door, the tremendous water pressure pounded her body. The thump thump thump never missed a beat as the power showerhead gave Ellie his money’s worth. He’d recently installed the upgraded bathroom amenities himself. The founding fathers had agreed they wanted the women living there to have the best of everything. The spa showers ranked up there with top of the line pampered treatments.
At the thought, he released the handle and backed away from temptation. Ellie had been through a lot. He didn’t want to alarm her.
Allister could almost hear Harley’s bellowing in his head. “You did what? You agreed to give her until morning. Why did you break the rules, Allister?”
Why wasn’t even a question worth asking when the answer seemed so practical. He had longed for her in a way that matched any great love story. He wanted and needed her, but more than anything else, he needed her to want and need him as well.
This wasn’t the way to go about it, he mused, walking around her room. He checked the thermostat and kicked up the heat a notch. While the days had been warm, the nights were cooler than usual for late September.
He glared at the pile of clothes on her bed. Her zipped suitcase told a likely tale.
Ellie would soon emerge from the bathroom in her birthday suit or maybe a towel. He chuckled to himself. Those towels were small. Unless she was a bag of bones now, she wouldn’t be completely covered.
He pushed the heel of his hand down on his cock. Damn it. He needed to start slow here or he would inevitably scare her off. Besides, after what she’d been through, she probably hated men.
Allister couldn’t blame her. Every man she’d ever trusted had disappointed her. He had disappointed her.
He paced her room. He’d never really paid attention before but the accommodations weren’t exactly posh. If anything, the room was typical dormitory style and nondescript. The living space provided evidence that a man had helped decorate the place.
Equipped with a pillow-top double bed, the room had a three-drawer dresser, nightstand, cheap desk, and dark chocolate-colored leather furniture. The sofa and love seat were comfortable, but not exactly extravagant. The furnishings belonged in a bachelor’s pad, not in a bedroom that should’ve been fit for a princess.
He went to the windows and reached behind the curtains to check the locks. He must’ve been out of his mind, crazy about a woman, to risk getting caught there. No one would reprimand him but it was the principal of the matter.
The founding fathers had sworn to abide by their own bylaws. They couldn’t expect others to respect them if they couldn’t follow their own rules.