Each word was punctuated with a slam of his hips. Accompanied by a shriek from her throat. Then he was hunching over her, gripping her rib cage so tightly, she thought he was going to break something. He hissed curse words as he came hard, his hips twitching against her ass.
Finally. I can breathe again.
When he eventually let go of her, it felt like he had to work his fingers out from between each individual rib bone. Katya groaned and slid down flat on the mattress, stretching her legs out behind her when he moved away.
She was in orbit. In a different galaxy. She folded her arms up at her side and just laid there, gasping for air, her hair a wild mess all around her. She was vaguely aware that he was moving around, but she couldn't lift her head to see what he was doing. He'd fucked her into a pool of orgasmic goo, stolen every single one of her bones.
Maybe stole a little more than your bones …
“Jesus,” she finally croaked out. From somewhere to her right, he chuckled.
“Close. You owe me a tie, Tocci.”
She frowned. She didn't care for his tone of voice, not one bit. Flippant and cold, almost snide. It reminded her of how he'd been on their first date, when he'd been so rude to her in that fancy restaurant.
She managed to pull herself into a sitting position, shoving her hair out of her face. She grabbed a large pillow and held it against her body, then she looked around for him.
He was by the door, and she was shocked to see that he was halfway dressed. He'd already gotten his shoes, socks, and pants on. His undershirt was draped over his forearm while he worked his belt back into the loops on his slacks.
“What are you doing?” she asked in a hoarse voice, then she rubbed at her throat.
“I came here for dinner,” he said, glancing at her once before shaking out his t-shirt. “I'm starving.”
“Oh,” she frowned. She was confused. What was going on? “I mean, I guess I could cook something -”
“I have reservations,” he interrupted her, pulling the shirt into place and tucking it into his pants.
“Reservations?”
“Yes. When I realized you weren't going to cook for me, I had decided to take us out for a meal. But you had other plans,” he replied, combing his fingers through his hair. Then he turned in a slow circle, staring at the floor around him. He finally spotted his dress shirt, laying in the hall, and he strode out to it.
“You're leaving!?” Katya exclaimed, climbing onto her knees and hugging the pillow tightly to her chest.
“Of course,” he said, slipping his arms into the sleeves.
“But … but ...” she stammered. While he buttoned up the shirt, he headed back into her room.
“But what? You told me to get out, remember? So I'm going,” he said in a calm voice. His dress shirt was finally tucked in, and to look at him, it was almost impossible to tell he'd just fucked the life and bones and soul out of someone.
What the fuck is going on!?
“Wulfric!” she snapped his name. “I think we've moved beyond our stupid fight!”
“We certainly have. We just worked out some very pent up aggression – thank you for that, by the way.”
“Are you serious right now?” she asked. He nodded and moved to kneel on the mattress in front of her.
“Yes – my reservations were half an hour ago. I would invite you, but you're a mess right now,” he teased her. She glared at him.
“Not funny.”
“It's hilarious. We'll have to do this again soon,” he informed her, smoothing his hands over her hair. She gaped at him.
“What we just did was -”
“Was something we could've been doing all along,” he suddenly whispered, leaning down close to her. She swallowed thickly and stared up at him. “How fun are your little games, now?”
“This isn't a game,” she whispered back. He smiled his shitty little smirk.
“Nice try,” he chuckled. “Cuddles with Liam? Sex with me? I hope you're keeping score somewhere, because I just hit a home run. But next time, please, spare my clothing? No more food fights.”
She was shocked. He thought it had all been a ploy. That having Liam over that afternoon had been part of her stupid challenge, and then sleeping with Wulf had just been upping the ante. Of course, why would he think otherwise? She'd never told him it was different.
Her mouth was still hanging open when he closed the gap between them and kissed her. She held completely still, her mind reeling, while his arms wrapped around her and his hands smoothed over her bare back. Then he slapped her on the ass and pulled away.
“See you soon, Tocci.”
Her mouth was still open, and she continued gaping as he walked out of her room. Strode down her hallway. Slammed the door shut behind him as he left.
Then she let out a shriek and fell forward, screaming into her mattress.
Such an idiot. I am such an idiot, thinking I could play in the same league with these guys. Shit, what do I do now!?
20
Katya rushed from the kitchen onto the bakery floor, carrying a tray full of desserts. A customer squealed in excitement, they both set about picking which one the woman liked best for fiftieth wedding anniversary party.
Then she had a very private meeting with a semi-famous reality star about his engagement party – an engagement the press knew nothing about, and he wanted to keep it that way. They were able to settle on two cake designs, one for him and one for his fiancée.
Immediately after that, she was whisked downtown to go over designs for a massive cake that was being commissioned by the mayor's office for his annual Christmas ball. Measurements even needed to be made, and at one point they asked her if she could use real gold in some of the decorations.
She loved every moment of it all. In the midst of her personal drama, it was easy to forget how much she enjoyed her job, and how good she was at it, how proud it made her feel.
Yet at the same time, every moment also drove home all the thoughts she'd been having lately. She had to work within the constrictions of her bakery, and the owners would still get a huge cut of the profits from the cake. Obviously, that was completely fair, but Katya wanted bigger. She wanted to set her own hours, take on her own commitments. Bigger projects and less of them – freeing up more time for herself, and allowing her to really challenge her talent.
She was going over her busy schedule with one of the intern bakers, assigning different details to the young man. She was only halfway through November when the door burst open, letting in a gust of air. Katya glanced up and was surprised to see Tori standing in the shop.
“Hey!” she said, smiling and handing off her clipboard to her coworker. “This is a nice surprise.”
“I wanted to see how your first day back was going,” Tori said, unwrapping a scarf from around her neck and glancing around the cases.
“Busy, good lord.”
“Too busy for a cup of coffee?”
“I'd love one – I worked through lunch.”
Katya leaned into the kitchen enough to holler that she'd be stepping out for fifteen minutes, then she grabbed her coat off a rack and followed Tori out the door. A small tempest was blowing through town, carrying moisture through the air and making her shiver.