Bound By Blood Anthology

I must have fallen asleep because sometime later I startled awake. Stella stirred at my sudden move. She had turned around while we were both asleep and now faced my way. She blinked up at me, disoriented, her face so close to mine our lips were almost touching. I’d never woken beside a woman. It was too intimate and too risky for someone as distrustful as me.

“What’s wrong?” Stella mumbled, yawning before flashing me an embarrassed smile. She shifted and dug my morning erection into her lower belly, causing me to groan. Her eyes widened and her cheeks turned red. Even in the dim light of the gas lantern, her embarrassment was unmistakable.

I had no way of pulling back with the wall against my back. Gritting my teeth, I pushed up on my elbow. “Can you sit up? I need to check on the door. A noise woke me.”

It was a fucking lie. I wasn’t sure what had woken me from my dream—a dream with Stella in a leading role. Stella scrambled back and sat up, slanting me a quizzical look. I slipped out of the bunk and stood, glad to be rid of her tantalizing warmth. Her gaze darted to my sweatpants then jerked back up and she got even redder, which seemed hardly possible. I stifled a laugh. She pointedly avoided looking at me after that and I went over to the door, peering up. It was still safely locked. I didn’t hear a sound above our heads.

“You’re not thinking about opening it, right?”

Stella stood and came over to me, her arms wrapped around her chest.

“No,” I said. The silence above could be a trap. The attackers could be lying in wake. Even though I was a good shot, it would be near impossible to win against several opponents.

Stella yawned again.

“Why don’t you try to sleep again? It’s still early.”

“Won’t you join me?”

I shook my head. “I’m not tired.” In truth, I just needed some distance between us.

Nodding, she returned to the bed and closed her eyes.

I watched her for a few seconds. We’d have to spend at least two more nights down here. Two nights in which I needed to get a grip on myself.StellaWhen I asked Mauro the next evening if we could share a bunk again because I couldn’t fall asleep alone in my cold bed, he hesitated. Maybe he was embarrassed because of what had happened this morning? It surprised me. Mauro didn’t strike me as someone who was easily embarrassed. And a morning erection was pretty common from what I knew.

Still, a silly part of me hoped he’d been hard because of me and not a dream of another woman.

Eventually he nodded and lifted the blankets. With a smile, I slipped under them and settled with my back against his chest. I wasn’t tired. Locked in the panic room, we hadn’t done much all day, except to eat and talk about Mauro’s past missions or funny childhood memories. Mauro wasn’t asleep either. Sometimes I wondered how he’d react if I told him about my feelings. If he’d laugh at me, it would maybe end my crush, but I was too scared of it.

Mauro’s hand on my hip shifted, and I realized his thumb was lightly tracing my skin over my shirt. The touch sent a tingling straight to my core. I bet he didn’t even realize what he was doing, probably lost in thought.

I wanted him even closer. I shifted until our bodies were completely flush, and then something hard pressed into my butt.

I’d never been with a man, not even been allowed to be alone with anyone who wasn’t family or an elderly bodyguard, but I wasn’t oblivious or completely unworldly.

Did I… did I actually turn him on?

The thought was exhilarating and delusional at once. Mauro wasn’t into me. But the firm pressure against my lower back told a different story.

I should have ignored it, but I simply could not. Overwhelmed with curiosity, I rolled over until his bulge bumped into my lower belly. Mauro gritted his teeth and I let out a surprised gasp at the harsh look on his face. “Mauro?”

My voice shook with… nerves? Triumph? Excitement? Too much was happening in my body all at once to figure it out. His mouth was set in a tight line, his brows furrowed as he glared down at me. He looked angry, not aroused, but somehow that made him look even hotter.MauroStella sounded terrified, and what else would she be? She was stuck down here in this windowless prison with me and I was sporting the fucking king of all erections. Feeling Stella’s firm butt rubbing all over my dick had fired up all of my fantasies. First this morning and now.

Now she peered up at my face curiously, as if she was trying to figure me out. Fuck. I swallowed hard and shifted, trying to bring at least a bit of space between our bodies. “That wasn’t supposed to happen.”