His chuckle brings a smile to my lips. “Yes, ma’am.”
But something shifts in the room. Now that I know it’s Alaric touching me, his caresses feel more sensual than they did before. Nothing like the professional touch of a trained masseuse. He is trained in massages, though, I’ll give him that.
Fuck, he’s good at this…
I scarcely hear the moan escape me, too lost in how wonderful he’s making me feel.
“Good lass,” he whispers, his breath tickling my ear.
My body heats underneath him. It’s like I’m in a sauna. He brushes his fingers over the back of my neck and inner thigh, two of my erogenous zones. I grind into the bed and moan again, unable to restrain either sound or movement.
Goddess, he’s doing this deliberately.
And yet I don’t stop him.
I find myself wanting more.
However, just when it’s getting even better, Alaric pulls back and clears his throat. I prop onto my elbows and tilt my head to look at him, but he’s facing the other way.
“What’s wrong? Why did you stop?” I ask softly.
He keeps his back to me as he walks over to the sink and washes his hand. “We only had thirty minutes.”
“How long have we been in here?”
“Sixty.”
“Oh.” It didn’t feel that long at all. “What now?”
“I’ll leave you to get dressed, then pick you up in ten.”
When he marches past me to the door, I can’t help but notice his erection. It tents the fabric of his robe and explains why he was so insistent on not facing me. I bite my lower lip, tempted to offer my own services in exchange for his, but he leaves before I can utter the words.
It’s probably a good thing.
We have the whole night ahead of us, after all…
Chapter 18
Lilith Thornblood
Hot spring, here I come!
Alaric is already waist-deep in the water, his arms draped along the sides like an alpha claiming their territory. But his sapphire eyes are on me, watching my every movement as I slip out of the complimentary robe. The material falls around my bare feet, and Alaric takes me in slowly, his Adam’s apple jerking. My cheeks flare under his perusal, the lust in his gaze evident, but I approach the side of the pool and slide into the water.
“Thanks for the costume,” I say, submerging deeper until my shoulders touch the surface of the water. “I had no idea wearing my underwear in a Japanese onsen would be such bad etiquette.”
Alaric wets his lips and gestures dismissively with his hand. “It was nothing.”
Hardly.
He purchased this black bathing suit in reception, and I saw the price tag despite that he’d tried to hide it. The material is so featherlight against my skin, hugging every curve perfectly. A thin red strap runs across my collarbones and then splits around my cleavage, leaving little to the imagination. Hell, maybe that’s why he offered to buy me it. Although I haven’t caught him looking at my breasts yet. Mind you, I am chin-deep in the water, my hair floating around me like a cape.
“This feels amazing,” I say, rising. “Almost as good as your massage.”
He smiles at that. “The view is amazing, too.”
I glance at the beautiful trees filling up the view from the window, but Alaric keeps his gaze fixed on me. Something tells me he wasn’t referring to the nature outside.
My heart skips as I lean against the pool and face him. “Yeah, this Lyulf guy sure picked a great spot.”
His smile melts from his face like the snow captured by the sun. “How do you know that name?”
“The notice in reception. It said he was the owner.”
“Oh, yeah.” The tension in his shoulders visibly leaves, and he nods, his posture more relaxed again. “He’s a good guy, Lyulf. A bit misunderstood a lot of the time.”
“You know him?”
“My whole life,” Alaric says, tilting his head back. He stares at the ceiling while steam rises around us. “I know all the staff here. We’re from the same pack.”
“I figured that. Rivermare wolves always smell like when it rains in a forest.”
“Strong and earthy?”
I shake my head. “Refreshing.”
He looks back at me, his expression curious.
“I bet your pack’s surrounded by waterfalls,” I add, stretching my legs out underneath the water.
He rubs a hand over his jaw and smiles. “A little. You’d like it there, I reckon. Up high in the Scottish mountains.”
“I grew up in the Alaskan mountains. Are they really so different?”
“Oh, quite different.” He chuckles.
I tilt my head at him. “How about we go there next time?”
His smile broadens. “It’s a date.”
My pulse spikes at the words, and I stare down at my reflection on the water, recalling how wonderful his hands felt on my body. In all honesty, I’m a little frightened by how much I enjoyed it. I mean, this guy blackmailed me. I should be the one putting my hands on his body—preferably around his throat—not the other way around. But I liked him touching me, way more than I probably should have.
“Why are you so far away?” he whispers, cocking his head.
I glance up from the water. No words sound from my lips; none are needed. In once swift movement, Alaric grabs my hand and drags me through the water towards him. He sits me on his lap, and my breath hitches. The heat from the hot spring is nothing compared to the one searing through my body from Alaric’s caressing of my back.
He runs his fingers languidly up my spine. The moment they reach the top, he grabs my throat and pulls my mouth to his. Hard, demanding lips crush against my own, demanding entry with a firm, unyielding swipe of the tongue. I surrender to him, my mouth parting willingly, and straddle his hips, the water lapping around us from the movement. His erection pushes against me,
