Even though I can’t see Wolf outside now, I know he can see me, my body lit by the candles and the mood lighting of the kitchen. I straighten my shoulders and fling my hair over my shoulder, sucking in my stomach as I grab an extra bottle of wine. I’m a curvy girl but I don’t have too many hang-ups about my body because the men I’ve been with all seem to enjoy the hourglass figure with extra padding. In high school I had my insecurities about being bigger than a lot of the popular girls, especially my ass and bust, but once I graduated and met men who knew what they wanted, I learned my body is a powerful weapon.
But right now, in my underwear in the kitchen, feeling the heat from his gaze all the way from outside, I feel like he has the bigger weapon, and I don’t mean his dick. In all the fantasies I’ve had about Wolf, and I’ve had a lot, I forgot about that anxious, fluttery feeling that comes with baring your body to someone for the first time. I feel so vulnerable, while he isn’t. I’m not sure he ever is.
So, I put the wine down for a moment, slide a bottle of whisky toward me, pop the top, then proceed to take a large gulp. And then another, until I’m coughing and it burns like hell. There. That should help.
I grab the wine again, take a deep breath, then head out the door.
Outside it’s freezing, the wind whipping up from the ocean and messing up my hair. I let out a little squeal from the cold, and then scamper across the deck toward the hot tub, fully aware that Wolf is watching my every move, which includes my boobs bouncing all over the place. Should have worn a more supportive bra.
“You know, I never thought I’d be sharing a hot tub with a vampire,” I tell him as I step over the side of the hot tub and ease into the water. I try to look graceful doing so, but I nearly fall in. I yelp, water splashing around me, and Wolf grabs the bottle of wine from me at the last minute.
“Seems like you’ve never been in a hot tub before,” he says with a laugh as I try to right myself. The water is so unbelievably hot that it makes me shiver. I shove my hair back from my face, finding a spot close to Wolf but not so close that I’m all up in his face. “Must be the whisky,” he adds.
“You saw that?” I ask.
He gives me a quiet smile, his eyes glowing in the hot tub lights. “You know I was watching.”
A thrill runs from my head to my toes. He’s got me there. “And was I as you imagined?” I ask playfully.
His smile deepens as his eyes drift over my breasts, leaving licks of heat in their wake. “Even better.”
I’m blushing now. Or maybe it’s the hot water. “Well, you’re the one who suggested we get drunk. I was just getting a head start.”
“Actually, you are the one who suggested it,” he says, reaching behind him to the ledge along the tub. He hands me a wine glass, then takes the corkscrew and pops open a bottle of red. In the dim light outside, I can barely make out the label, then I realize it’s because the label is so old and faded. It must be at least fifty years old.
“Wow,” I comment. “I’ve never seen us serve this at Dark Eyes.”
“Must be from Solon’s private reserve. If you think the cellar back home is impressive, you should check out the one here.” He pours the wine into my glass, the liquid a deep shining ruby that makes my mouth water.
“So, how many times have you been here?” I ask as he pours himself some. “I don’t think I’ve seen you come up here since I started working for you.”
“You don’t work for me, Amethyst,” Wolf says, practically scolding. “With me. I’m not your boss.”
“You’re a centuries-old vampire. It’s hard not to think of you as my boss sometimes,” I admit, running the glass under my nose, smelling earth and cherries and violets.
“I don’t know about that. I’ve seen the way you look at Solon. With such reverence and respect.”
“He saved my life,” I say quietly.
“I know,” Wolf says. “Thank god for that.”
“I think I look at you the same way.”
He looks at me for a moment, thoughts turning behind his eyes. “No, you don’t.”
“Then how do I look at you?”
He rubs his lips together, still staring at me. “I used to think you looked at me like an older brother.”
I wince internally, because I definitely don’t see him as that, and never have. “But not anymore?”