Chapter 4

Cairo

Gasping,I stumbled into the alleyway that ran along the rear of all of the Main Street shops and braced my free hand against the bricks. I crushed the cupcake box to my side, not even caring that I was ruining my treat, just focusing on staying upright.

By all the gods of the ancestors!

My cock throbbed painfully against the inside of my jeans, and I felt dizzy. Dizzy and angry and desperate.

I felt my claws extending, digging into the brick's mortar, trying to hold myself upright. I worried I was going to collapse. I needed a drink.

No, that's the last thing you need. Right now, you need a good hand-fuck.

I needed something, that was for certain.

Breathing heavily, I straightened, wincing at the sensation of my cock's throbbing. I wanted to loose the damned thing from my jeans, but despite how goddamn primitive I was feeling right now, I still had enough sense to remember things like public decency and how I had no interest in seeing the inside of Eastshore's tiny jail cell.

Breathe, stupid. That should help.

I pressed my forehead against the brick and inhaled. Yes. Exhale. Yes.

This alley was where all the businesses left their trashcans. It wasn't dirty, not really, but in the high summer like now, the place took on a certain…musk.

And right then, I was glad for the smell.

Each breath I took cleared out my lungs, exhaling…her.

Because when I'd been standing there in her bake shop, I swear Meli's scent had changed. Usually the place smelled of whatever dessert she was making, but today, when she'd touched me…

I swallowed, focusing on my breathing, willing my erection to go down.

Today, above the sugary-sweet smells of her bakery, I'd scented her. And not her usual sweet-cream-and-confectioner's-sugar scent, either. Something deeper. Muskier. Primal.

Fuck, that scent…!

As soon as it had hit me, I'd known I would be kissing her, claiming her. Making her mine.

It was only a matter of time.

She introduced you to her family as her boyfriend.

I opened my eyes, the brick swimming in front of me. She had, hadn't she? I should've said no. I should've set the record straight. Obviously, she'd been lying for her family's benefit.

But what the shit?

When Meli had looked up at me, those big hazel eyes begging me to help her…

Please.

I'd seen the plea written in her gaze, on her lips, even if she hadn't spoken it aloud. She'd needed me.

And there was no way in all the hells I could back down from that. Meli needed me—she'd chosen me…and I wasn't going to walk away from that. Something had risen in my chest, a need to protect her, to save her. And if that meant pretending to be her boyfriend, well…

Fuck yeah, I kissed her.

And that kiss had wrecked me.

Those little noises she'd made, the whimpers. The way her breath had caught, then flittered against my skin. The way I hadn't had to bend to capture her mouth with mine, the way she'd leaned into my touch…you're goddamn right I kissed her.

And every bit of my body wanted to do it again.

It was the Kteer, I told myself. That's why my body had reacted so strongly to Meli's touch and her lips. Stupid biology.

I wondered if there was anything I should be worried about.

You could always ask Karnak.

He was married now; surely, he knew about biology and Kteers and shit.

He wasn't too much older than me, but he'd spent the last ten years living in the past, holding on to our orc heritage, while I'd done my best to forget it and learn about this amazing new world. Maybe I should've paid a bit more attention.

That kiss.

That kiss had wrecked me, and I didn't even know why.

Fucking stupid biology. Fucking stupid Kteer.

I needed to think about something else. Something not Meli O'Donnell.

Good luck, you dumb asshole.

I was screwed, wasn't I?

Somehow,I managed to finish cleaning up, shut down the bake shop, and listen to my mother's over-excited TED Talk on the subject of my dating life without melting completely into a pile of goo.

Which is what I wanted to do.

Well, no, what I actually wanted to do was wave goodbye to my sister and mom, climb the back stairs up to my cozy apartment, lock all the doors—you can never be too private when planning a heavy masturbation session, what if a traveling encyclopedia salesman suddenly decided you need educating?—and crawl into bed with my biggest vibrator.

The green one.

Which the specialty store—the one online that claimed to specialize in monster anatomy—claimed was shaped exactly like an orc cock.

I was already aching for it.

But no. No, I couldn't. I had to carry on a conversation like a functioning member of society, fielding my mom's mile-a-minute questions as best as I could, then climb into the backseat of Harper's car and give directions to the bed-and-breakfast over on Clownfish Court.

Luckily, unpacking all their stuff from the trunk helped distract me.

"Whoa, Mom, what's in here? Gold?" I teased.

She sniffed haughtily but was smiling when she took the handle from me. "That's my hair supplies. We don't all have natural curls, young lady."

I thought she didn't like my curls. Harper winked at me. "Very stylish these days," she whispered under her breath as she pulled out another suitcase. "Mom's jealous of you and Daddy."

I snorted, but my heart was feeling a little less battered as we climbed the steps up to the wraparound porch.

Once inside, though, was a different story.

"What do you mean, there's no availability?" Mom gasped. "We have a reservation!"

"Yes ma'am," said the poor clerk, one of the students from the high school. "But it doesn't start until next week. See?" Almost frantic in the face of my mother's ire, he tried to turn the monitor around to show her. "On the third. There's nothing in the system about this week."

"Mom," Harper's voice was cold, the way I imagined it would be in the courtroom. "I distinctly remember asking you in the car if you extended our reservation, and you said you'd taken care of it."

"Oh, don't worry, darling. This place is in the middle of nowhere, it's not like people are lining up to get in the door." My mother did that thing where she flopped her hand about as if her wrist had broken, telling the world whatever was being discussed had no consequence. "Since I have a reservation for next week, it should be a simple matter to extend that to this week." She smiled wolfishly at the clerk. "My husband is a very important person, you know. I'm certain it wouldn't be too difficult to find two extra rooms."

The poor clerk looked ready to implode. "I can call the owner—"

"Do that," Mom snapped, all traces of sweetness gone. "My daughter is one of the top lawyers in the state!"

"Mom," I began, trying to save the kid from a heart attack, but Harper stepped in.

"If you didn't call and tell them we'd be here early, then there's no reason for them to have a room for us." She sounded so calm, I had to admire her, although I could see her eyes flashing with irritation at the way our mother always assumed the world would rotate to suit her needs. "They can't read your mind."

"But my reservation—"

Before the kid could speak, Harper shook her head firmly. "Starts next week. We really came to Eastshore without reservations?" She sighed, then muttered, "I should've double-checked. Well…" She sent a bright smile to the young clerk. "Maybe we could stay in one of the other BBs on the island?"

The young man, who was now looking dazed at the way Harper had taken control, nodded gratefully. "I can help call!"

"Let's do it together."

Harper shot me a look, which I interpreted as Sit over there with Mom and distract her from making more of a mess of things, then pulled out her cell phone.

I dutifully steered my mother to a little sitting area, and when she began to complain about customer service and lack of respect, I launched into a detailed description of the island's Fourth of July celebration. When that topic was exhausted, I segued into news about Jess and her new husband Karnak and their kittens, four of whom they'd rehomed.

"But they kept the last one, he was all black, just like his mother." Jess had a soft spot for all-black cats. "He's so cute, Mom, and playful. They named him TeaBag, and he plays so well with Pickles and Muffin!"

My mother, who'd done a good job of listening, sniffed. "I'm glad you didn't take one of the kittens, darling. They're cute, yes, but they grow up to be cats. And cats shed."

Do they? I hadn't noticed, and I knew nothing about pets. We'd had a dog once, when I was really small—a golden retriever which had belonged to Dad when they'd married. But after she died, Mom had nixed any other attempts.

Honestly, I hadn't had much experience with pets, and I didn't want any. I couldn't keep my own shit together for very long, much less an animal's.

Besides, I was saving up to expand the business, remember?

"No luck," Harper announced gravely as she returned to our little nook. "There's not a single BB on the island with any availability tonight or tomorrow."

Despite how awkward this whole situation was, I felt a twinge of pride that Jess's efforts to grow Eastshore had been successful enough that there weren't any rooms available.

My sister was still talking. "—even called a few places on the mainland, but there's a big cheerleading competition and a bike week; who planned those at the same time? Anyhow, no availability there. I suppose if we went inland to the next town—"

"Nonsense!" Mom declared, leaning forward to pat my knee. "We'll just stay with Meli. You have two bedrooms, don't you, dear?"

Again with the gaping.

"Mom, I—I mean, yeah, I do have two bedrooms."

"Well, excellent! Your sister can bunk with you, and I'll stay in the spare room. It'll be just like a sleepover!"

I glanced at Harper, who had covered her eyes with her palm.

"But…" I mean, Mom had been in my apartment, hadn't she? "Don't you think it'll be a little cramped?"

Mom did the hand-flappy thing again. "As long as the guest bed is a queen or bigger—"

"It's a twin," I offered apologetically. My second bedroom was barely bigger than a closet.

"Oh." My mother pursed her lips as she considered this horrifying new development. Then, in typical Mom fashion, brushed it off. "Then I'll stay in your room!"

"And Meli and I will share the twin?" Harper groaned from beneath her hand.

I guess I could share my bed with my mother, but—

"Do you have a couch, darling?" Mom asked brightly.

In that moment, I knew she was going to announce I could sleep on my own couch.

And you know what? I would. She was my mother, for Pete's sake, so yes, I'd give up my bed for her. And I'd let Harper sleep on the other bed, since she was my guest—albeit uninvited.

But you know how when you're told to do something you would've volunteered to do on your own, your hackles go up? That's what happened here. I would sleep on the couch but being told to irritated me.

Who knows what I would've said had Harper not dropped her hand and said brightly, "Maybe you could stay with your boyfriend, Meli!"

My mouth dropped open, and I looked at her, expecting to see desperation in her gaze. After all, she didn't want to sleep on the couch either.

But to my surprise, she seemed genuinely proud of the idea, and I realized that kiss must've convinced her I hadn't been lying about the boyfriend thing. She not only really thought I was dating Cairo but she was also…trying to give me some alone time with him?

Yep, that was a wink. "You're probably over there all the time anyhow, right?"

All I managed was a "Uuurggh?"

"Right. So maybe he wouldn't mind if you crashed at his place tonight and tomorrow?" Harper prompted hopefully. "So we can stay in your apartment? Or just tonight, even, and we can head home tomorrow—"

"No, no, it's cool." I was shaking my head, trying to convince myself of my words. "Totally cool. Yeah, no, he'll be okay with it."

Yeah, no? Make up your mind, those are contradictions.

Mom patted my knee again with a sigh of relief. "Excellent. Let's pop back to the apartment, then I'll treat us all to dinner at that scrumptious little seafood place I fell in love with last time."

Harper was already gathering their bags. "And I'll make the reservations."

"Can I take a raincheck?" I murmured. "Work, and all that."

My mind was racing ahead, glad I'd already settled on a solution. Jess had an extra bedroom, and I'm sure she'd let me stay there for a few nights. Or heck, even Karnak's old house, although I know most of the furniture had been moved out to make space for his artwork.

I'd pack a bag when we got back to my place. Lugging it across the island didn't sound fun, and I couldn't ask Harper for a lift, because she thought I was going to Cairo's… But my car was still at Cairo's, so I couldn't drive myself. So walking it was.

Except.

I owed Cairo an apology.

And an explanation.

And likely some money, for all the work he'd done on Sweetcheeks.

I should visit with him first. Heck, maybe his work on Sweetcheeks was done, and I could pick her up and drive her to Jess's? Yeah, that was a good idea.

And it had nothing to do with the sudden desperate yearning to see him again.

To maybe touch him.

Yes.