“Well, cat’s outta the bag now, so let’s let the awkwardness be done with. Unless you’re one of my premium subscribers, then that’ll suck that my income’s about to take a dip.” Julian chuckles.
Jude growls.
“I’m not a subscriber!” I defend. “I only watched a couple because you look like him and I was looking for a substitute.”
Jude’s body goes even more rigid.
And I just put my foot in my mouth, obviously, because Julian’s eyes widen before he laughs nervously, scratching one of his sideburns. “Okay, well I’m outta here. I’ll leave you two to hash this out.”
He heads down the hatch and leaves me alone on the roof with Jude.
It might only be a few seconds, but it feels longer that I sit there in silence on his lap. Finally, I dare to make eye contact.
Jude is looking at me with absolute fire in his eyes. Angry fire.
“Please, please fucking tell me,” he says through gritted teeth, “that you did not watch videos of my brother while touching yourself.”
“I did not watch videos of your brother while touching myself.”
“Are you lying to me?” he demands.
“What’s the safest answer here?” I inquire.
He growls again.
And fuck me, but it’s hot. I feel bad. This isn’t a fun conversation, but Jude is being completely alpha-licious right now.
“I didn’t know who he was,” I defend.
“Up,” he orders.
“Huh?”
“Let’s go have family with my coffee and then I’ll deal with you later.”
“You mean coffee with your family?” I try.
He doesn’t smile. “That’s what I said.”
“Actually, you said it the other way around, you said, family with my – never mind.”
I walk ahead of him and down the hatch I go.
“Oh, that’s cool. A retractable screen for keeping the bugs out,” I observe on the way down. “I didn’t notice this before.”
Jude’s nostrils are flaring, so I pull my lips tight and hurry ahead down to the kitchen where it’s a little safer.
Yikes.
On the plus side, I don’t think I’ll feel so awkward anymore, now that everything is out in the open. I mean, definitely a little of course, but maybe less than five minutes ago.
On the minus side, Jude seems pretty steamed.
He’s quiet while his family chitchats over coffee, but Luka looks like he’s fighting a smirk every time our eyes meet so I try not to meet them. Julian has, gratefully, moved to the couch where he sits, talking to Prabaka who is now awake and drinking coffee that she dips her chocolate-dipped ladyfinger cookies into before nibbling at them. Her teeth are no longer in her mouth.
Jude sits at the head of the dining table, leaned back slightly, with his arms folded across his chest and animosity just rolling off him. Every time I look at him, he looks like he wants to take a bite out of me, so I try to avoid his stare, too.
At eight fifteen, he mutters something under his breath to his mother and she abruptly gets everyone moving, and they’re all gone by eight thirty instead of nine, leaving me alone with him.
Yikes.
I’ve given hugs to everyone, even Julian (swearing I could hear Jude make another growling sound behind me).
I wave as the three vehicles pull out. Ana, Baka, Prabaka, and Ivana in the maroon minivan; Luka, Abby, and Roman in the muscle car. Julian leaves in a pickup truck.
When the garage door closes, I turn around and head for the stairs.
“I’m gonna take a bath.”
He says nothing.
“I guess it’s just Ally soup tonight,” I muse, looking over my shoulder.
His nostrils flare.
“You need some alone time?” I ask, unable to stop a smirk.
His jaw flexes and still, he says nothing.
“Alrighty then,” I twirl away and head upstairs.
Georgie follows.
Passing through the living/dining level I spot the milk on the counter, so I go there to pop it into the now-stocked fridge.
As I turn around, I gasp because there’s a shoulder pressing into my belly and I’m going up in the air over his shoulder.
I squeal. “Hey!”
A slap rings on my ass and then he’s carrying me upstairs.
I giggle.
“You think it’s funny, Vixen?”
I giggle louder.
“It’s not fucking funny. Let me show you how not fucking funny it is.”
I’m dropped on the bed, and I bounce.
“It’s n-not my fault.” I fail at my attempt to be serious and a giggle escapes.
He’s baring his teeth, looking really, really angry while ripping his t-shirt over his head. He drops his jeans and then he’s stalking me up the bottom of the bed on his hands and knees. For a change, I do not retreat.
“I’m not scared,” I inform, “at all. This is hella hot. So hot in fact that I think I found a new piece of kryptonite that I might be tempted to make use of."
I lean forward and add, "Frequently."
His eyes glitter with barely contained fury.
I keep on going.
"The Tarzan thing turns me on, Mr. Private Dick, my private dick, so maybe I’ll do that again from time to time in order to-”