He carried her to the corner that offered at least partial privacy from the windows that opened over the silent gym below. She applauded Larem’s clear thinking, because at the moment all of her own thoughts were focused on getting as close to him as possible.
Her back bumped up against the wall, momentarily jarring her out of her passion-induced fog. What were they doing? What a stupid thing to ask when the answer was so obvious. The real questions were why they’d ended up in each other’s arms again and how far was she willing to let this go.
Larem felt her hesitation and his hand froze, hovering at the elastic band of her panties. Once again he was offering her a last chance of refusal. They both knew this had to stop. This shouldn’t happen.
“Hurry!” she whispered, before she regained her sanity.
He set her back down on her feet, fumbled with the buttons on his fly, and then tore off her panties. Then she was right back against that same wall, with nowhere left to go but on the wild ride of hunger that drove them both.
When he slid into her, it was one of the most perfect moments in her life. And when she walked away from him a few minutes later, it was one of the worst.
Chapter 15
Three weeks passed, each day dragging by slower than the one before. After Larem’s last talk with Devlin, he’d avoided spending much time around headquarters. The leader was seriously pissed about Larem’s involvement with Sasha in defiance of his previous order to stay away from her. Well, at least Devlin was finally getting what he wanted.
Duke’s future with the organization was still up in the air. He was restricted to limited duty, and his activities were being closely monitored—not to mention his e-mails and phone calls. From all reports, he was abiding by the rules, but Larem suspected he was just waiting for the uproar to die down before trying something again.
Lonzo had promised to keep his ear to the ground for any rumors linking Sasha to Larem. So far, Duke and his two buddies were keeping their mouths shut on the subject. He was glad for her sake.
One good thing had come from that day, though. Craig had actually called, asking if Larem was still interested in giving him lessons. The young Paladin was on temporary assignment down near Mount St. Helens, but they were scheduled to start upon his return. Until then, Larem was back to trying to find some meaning in his life. Lonzo had gone on the same mission and was due back any day. While he’d been gone, Larem had spent the long nights walking the streets of Seattle between sessions of studying Kalith healing.
The only bright spots were the hours he spent in the undemanding company of his four-legged friends at the animal clinic. He’d had several successes healing both the physical and emotional wounds suffered by Dr. Isaac’s patients, but he knew his greatest victory was Chance.
The big dog was now trusted to wander free around the clinic for hours at a time, returning to his pen only to sleep or when there was another dog in the clinic who might go on the attack. His enthusiastic greeting every time Larem walked in the door helped hold the loneliness at bay.
On this particular morning Larem knelt down on one knee in front of Chance and gave the dog a good ear scratch. “Ready for your walk, boy?”
His happy whine and thumping tail were answer enough.
“Silly question, Larem. That dog has been watching the door for the past half hour.” The vet looked at Chance over the top of his glasses. “I hate to say it, but it’s time we start looking for a home for him.”
Larem’s stomach plummeted. He’d known the moment would come when Chance would move on and that it was a good thing. The big fellow deserved a whole lot of happiness in his life. That didn’t mean it would be easy to let him go.
“Have you had anyone interested?”
“One couple looked at him but then decided he was too big for their yard.” Dr. Isaac reached over to pet Chance’s head. “I know you’ll miss him, but some lucky person is going to offer him a home. We’ll make sure it’s an extra good one.”
“That’s what we’ve been working toward.” Which was true, but that didn’t mean Larem was happy about it. “Come on, boy, let’s get going before the rain starts.”
Outside, he let Chance choose their route. They’d spent so much time exploring together that the dog knew the streets around the clinic as well as Larem did. He even seemed to sense that it was important to cruise by a certain coffee shop on each trip. Sometimes Larem stopped to buy a cup of tea or coffee; sometimes he didn’t, but every time, the two males paused to look inside just in case Sasha happened to be there.
So far, they’d had no luck, but that could change. Larem needed to know how she was doing. Their last encounter had left too many things unspoken between them. After they’d found release in each other’s arms, she’d calmly walked away without looking back.
And fool that he was, he’d let her go.
In the days since, he’d kept telling himself it had been the right thing to do, even with his soul screaming out that he was making the mistake of a lifetime. He’d already let one possible mate slip away. But that hadn’t hurt nearly as badly as watching Sasha disappear down the hall and out of his life.
Later that night, after Hunter left and Lonzo turned in for the night, Larem had stood out on the patio and stared up at the stars, recalling each sensation as he’d taken Sasha up against that wall. Had he been too rough with her? He’d wanted to leave his mark on her soul, not on her creamy, soft skin.