Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 44411 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 222(@200wpm)___ 178(@250wpm)___ 148(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 44411 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 222(@200wpm)___ 178(@250wpm)___ 148(@300wpm)
“Okay,” she whispered. She understood because she felt the same way.
“Some of what I’m going to say will make your hackles rise. Know that we will take our time figuring out what works for us, but most of the traditions of Alpha Protectors are universal. Even if the customs may sound strange to you at first and make you want to run for the hills, I’m confident that in time our lives will not look very different from any other union among my people.”
Leah took shallow breaths, trying to control her reaction to his vague words. It was hard to focus with his scent surrounding her.
Elias had removed his jacket at some point, but he was still dressed in the suit he’d been wearing when she’d first met him. With his arms wrapped around her, he unbuttoned the cuff at his wrist and rolled back his sleeve before holding his inner wrist up for her to see.
She gasped. She’d known all her life that he would have a matching mark on his wrist—an exact duplicate of her own—but seeing it was eerie. She lifted a finger as if to stroke it, but he jerked his arm out of her reach.
“Don’t touch it yet, Baby girl,” he whispered against her ear.
She shivered as goosebumps rose all over her skin. “Why not?”
“That bond we feel that keeps growing will intensify out of the stratosphere when we set our marks upon each other. When we line them up and press them together, we will lose our minds.”
She squeezed her thighs together and squirmed on his lap. She knew what he meant, though it was hard to imagine ever feeling closer to him than she did right now. A strange desperation was creeping in on her.
Elias rolled his sleeve back down. “I will touch you with my mark before this day is over, Little one. I want to so badly I’m practically salivating, but I’m going to hold off for a while.” He set his huge palm on her thigh.
She stared at his arm, his hands, his fingers… They were so large. Everything about him was large and made her feel small. She liked the way he was holding her. Liked it too much.
She could still see the edge of his mark under his sleeve. It wasn’t touching her directly because the sleeve of her dress was preventing contact, but she felt the same pull he did to reach out and touch it.
“I’m going to tell you more, Leah. I want you to be informed.”
“Okay,” she whispered. She told herself to remain calm. Whatever he was going to say would be facts, information, details. He was no more in control of social norms than she was. She shouldn’t blame him for anything.
“Daddies have rules, Little one. Lots of them.”
“Rules?” She continued staring at his hand where he patted her absentmindedly, mesmerized by his every movement but also not wanting to make eye contact. Every time she looked him in the eyes, she melted.
He nodded. “Most of them are for your safety. I’ll tell you, as my brother and friends have claimed their mates, I have watched them often with a raised eyebrow. Some of their practices have seemed outrageous and unnecessary. Overboard. I’ve often wondered how it was that all three of them have instituted very similar rules in their homes. Rules they expect their mates to follow. It baffled me. But I get it now.”
Leah’s breath hitched as she glanced at him. Their faces were inches apart. It was difficult not to lean in closer and rub her cheek against his, and she kind of wished he would stop talking and kiss her. Curiosity about what it would be like to be kissed was making it difficult to focus on what he was saying.
“Why do you get it now?” she asked.
“Because I feel the same way about you as they do about their mates. I knew in a heartbeat before I even stepped into that ceremonial room that I would lay down my life for you.”
She bit her lip. Emotions overwhelmed her. He was so intense. “What are these rules?”
“I don’t want you to ever leave the house without me. You may not even open a door for any reason, not even to step outside onto this deck.”
She frowned, her heart beating faster. She searched his eyes. “You’re right. That’s over the top, Elias.”
He nodded. “I know, but I also know I will insist that you obey me on that. An intense fear creeps into me at the thought of you unprotected. So intense that I also understand why my brother and friends discipline their Little girls when they break the rules.”
Leah gasped. Her body went rigid. She sat stiff and confused on his thighs. The thought of him insisting that she obey such a ludicrous rule frustrated her, but at the same time, her private parts clenched.