"Good night everyone," she said.
"Sleep tight!" Rheia called.
"Don't let the bed bugs bite!" Amelia yelled laughing.
"But let Kendrick bite if he wants to!" Colton smirked.
Everyone was still laughing as they walked into the hallway. Kendrick was every inch the gentlemen until they stepped into the foyer.
"I will give you a ten-second head start." His eyes flashed with lust.
"Fuck!"
"Exactly."
Anne didn't waste another precious second; she ran.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Anne ran as fast as she could, but he still caught up with her before she even reached the top of the stairs. She laughed as he swung her up in his arms and headed to her bedroom.
"Not to ruin the mood, but I need to check on Keelan," she said as they passed his door.
Kendrick stopped and set her on her feet. "Thank you for putting his needs above your own."
Anne opened the door and approached Keelan's bed. "He may not be my mate, but he is my best friend." She checked his feeding tube and his IV port and replaced his drip bag. "Does he know about your parents?"
Kendrick shook his head. "No. I never wanted to put him in any danger, he was better off not knowing."
"What did you tell him about your parents?" Anne asked.
"That they died in a boating accident trying to cross the river; neither one of them knew water magic. It was the most plausible explanation I could come up with." Kendrick smiled down at his brother.
"He didn't even think to doubt you, did he?"
"No. Growing up, he must have believed I walked on water. He was always following me around, getting into my spell supplies." Kendrick laughed suddenly. "When he was two, he ate almost an entire bag of saltpeter while I was engrossed in translating a manuscript. When I realized what he was doing, I ran around like a madman trying to find someone to help. The widow down the road laughed at me and gave him a liquid that made him start throwing up. I felt like the worst brother in the entire universe as I watched my little buddy empty the contents of his stomach for five hours. That episode made me want to learn about healing. I never wanted to stand by helpless when he needed me again."
"I can't wait to ask him questions about you." Anne held out her hand.
Kendrick took it and dimmed the lights in the room with a wave of his hand.
Arriving at her guest suite felt almost anti-climatic. When the door shut behind them, she sighed. Kendrick went to the dresser and turned on the small lamp. Its low wattage gave off just enough light to see but was easy on the eyes.
Kendrick looked up. "Do you want me to chase you around the bedroom?"
She laughed and shook her head. "It feels so obligatory now."
"Obligatory?" Kendrick slowly unzipped his hoodie. "I'll give you obligatory."
Anne watched him as he casually began to strip out of his clothing. When he was shirtless and unbuttoning his jeans, she held up her hand. "Stop."
Kendrick blinked. "Everything?"
She walked over and reached out tentatively. Kendrick's personality hinged on his brilliant mind, so she often forgot that he was extremely well muscled. The short auburn chest hair gave him a warm glow in the low light.
She started by placing her hands side by side in the center of his chest then moved them upward, caressing his muscles. She ran her hands down his sides and then around the front, tracing the indention his hips made, which led downward. His body, under her hands, was very still. She looked up and saw a look of wonder on his face. She leaned in, placed her cheek against his chest, and listened to his heartbeat. "You're beautiful, you know. You have one of the most perfect bodies I have ever seen."
She eyed the brilliant red, black, and silvery white tattoos on his right forearm and looked up at him. "Very nice," she murmured.
He winked at her and took both of her hands in his, kissing them gently. He let them drop, grabbed the hem of her shirt, and pulled it up over her head. "Do I get to return the favor?"
She nodded as he slowly and deliberately removed each piece of clothing. He stopped when she stood before him in just her bra and panties. "I think I prefer to take you slowly rather than in the heat of the moment." He slid her bra straps down before he leaned down to kiss her collarbones. "I want you to know that I am thinking of you and only you, every second I am making love to you. I want you to know that each touch, each kiss, and each caress is deliberate. I don't want you to give in to mindless passion, because your mind is the thing I love the most about you." He undid the clasp and let the bra fall to the floor. "I want to explore every inch of you. I want to memorize every bump, freckle, and scar. I want to burn into my memory how your body feels against mine so that it never feels complete without you."
Kendrick pulled her close and the heat of his skin against her sensitive nipples caused her to shiver. He looked down and it was almost as if his amber eyes were glowing like molten gold. "Would you rather I throw you on the bed and pleasure you so much that you don't know your own name? Or would you rather I love you tortuously, drawing out every single wave of ecstasy until my name is the only thing you know?"
Anne wrapped her arms around his neck and looked up at him. "The second one, then the first one twice, then the second one again," she grinned up him.
Kendrick looked up at the ceiling before smiling down at her. "You will be the death of me."