“Tobias?” I asked, feeling a sudden tightness in my chest, which I couldn’t pinpoint if it had arisen from either surprise at seeing my love or the pain inflicted by my foreboding about being separated one day.
Too contradictory in what Tobias appeared to be feeling, which surely seemed anything but solicitude, he asked me in an unusually harsh tone, “Where have you been, Dimitra? Or, should I ask instead with whom?”
In order to acquaint my distressed boyfriend with the truth, I was required to make several revelations, from my aunt Gretchen’s mistreatment of me to his brother’s unethical interest in me. With both matters being grave, I needed some time to reflect on the necessity of maintaining their secrecy, and if I were to think of no harm being inflicted by sharing them, only then could I reveal them to him, which was why I stood before him without a reply.
Though the words which might cause inconveniences between the brothers or my own family could be checked and repressed for the time being, the same couldn’t be done to my unmanageable sentiments, which poured out of my dejected eyes in the form of tears, which I hoped could squelch his contentiousness.
Not realising the ardency of the heartbreak that my absence had caused him, I grabbed him by the waist and rested my head on his chest, hoping to receive a few words of compassion, but there was a growl, and that too an angry one. As soon as I raised my head to check up on my vexed lover, I was dragged away from the front of the bathroom and pushed harshly onto the bed.
“Where were you from tomorrow evening to this afternoon, Dimitra?” questioned Tobias, clenching his fists.
Due to the fall, my towel came undone, revealing all that shouldn’t have been seen by him. Perturbed by the betrayal of the knot I had tied to keep my towel together, I hurriedly brought my hands over my chest and demanded that I should be left alone. Not as obliging as the other times, Tobias got on top of me, grabbed my jaw with his sharp nails digging into my skin and asked once again about where I’d stayed after disappearing the other day.
“To your brother’s place,” I answered, drawing in sharp breaths from being consumed by fear.
Taking no notice of my naked, trembling body, Tobias got off of me and headed to the door, muttering his intentions to hurt the older Knight, something that I couldn’t allow to happen, for the man had helped me out of a sticky situation and shouldn’t be awarded punches for his kindness.
After covering myself with the towel, I chased Tobias to the stairs and then pulled him back to my bedroom with the assistance of several entreaties. Once we were back inside, I grabbed his face, kept it in a fixed position with the help of my palms and then revealed to him the reasons that necessitated my stay at his brother’s place.
“Why didn’t you tell me about it before? Do you not have any faith in me, darling?” questioned Tobias with the expression in his eyes getting softer.
“I never bore any intention of recounting my sad saga of abuse to anybody. Your brother happened to find out about it by being present at the wrong place at the wrong time, otherwise, he’d been just as clueless as you,” I revealed, taking refuge in Tobias’s arms, the comfort of which his unjust anger had deprived me of.
Having been eased of the convulsion caused within him ever since he hadn’t been able to reach me, he showed a striking resemblance to the lover I knew him to be and treated me as kindly as he'd done just yesterday. Securing me in his arms, he took me back to my bed and lay beside me to wish me a happy birthday, which instantly reminded me of my obligations. I was to turn up downstairs by 5 0’clock to head to Beauchamp, the Knight estate.
Quickly taking a peek at the wall clock, I was able to compute that I still had almost two hours to present myself to my father, which was why I didn’t hurry to escape my boyfriend’s gentle arms. Sharing the same desire to stay in the same position, Tobias also didn’t move a single limb.
“Tobias? Can you say for certain that you’ll marry me one day when you’ve become the alpha?”
“Yes, it depends entirely on the success of my becoming the next Alpha. If I were to achieve that, only then shall I seek your hand in marriage from your father.”
The uncertainty of the future of love without which I couldn’t fathom drawing another breath was bound to be taken away from me. Even if Tobias did become the Alpha of the pack, he wouldn’t be accepted by the pack if he went for someone as incompetent as me, the realisation of which cast a dark frown on my face.
Unwilling to see me grow despondent, Tobias swore he wouldn’t allow anything to come our way, especially his defeat, while demanding me to put my faith in him, ensuring me that the lack of it could only negatively impact our relationship. Recognising how words might fail to express what actions had the capability to produce, I took hold of his face and kissed him.
With my towel being the only thing keeping us from making love to one another, he looked at it very deliberately after breaking the kiss. Discerning the possibility of separating in the future, I placed my hand over his chest to imply how we needed to stop going any further ahead.
“If that’s what you really want, we will not go any further,” assured Tobias, offering me a gentle smile, the one I had been habitual of observing on his face.
Even when it was something I wanted, my heart grieved to have him say that. Though he might never take me to be his bride, there was this rebellious desire that resisted propriety demanded by the grimness of the situation and induced me to touch him. Conquered by the same lust for his caresses, I asked Tobias if he thought I was beautiful, something I believed would supply me with the necessary confidence to make a move on him.
“You’re one of the prettiest girls in the school,” said Tobias, getting himself to sit on the bed by supporting his back with the help of the headboard.
Displeased with the response, I too got up and straddled him before mumbling crossly, “One of the beautiful girls.”
“But, you’re the only one who has my heart,” added Tobias, offering me a kiss on my collarbone.
Somewhat satisfied with what he’d said, I failed to conquer the affection that demanded his touch, and hence I unbuttoned the very first button of his shirt and demanded him to make love to me, “I don’t need any more verbal confirmations. I want you to show me that you deem me beautiful.”
His hazel eyes contained an excitement too palpable to ignore as he questioned me, “Are you sure you will not regret it?”
Shaking my head, I offered him my assurance that he would not be held accountable for what I was demanding from my free will, the sound of which didn’t appease him even a little, which was why he said, “If anything were to happen because of what we’re about to do, there is nothing that you can do to stop me from taking responsibility for it.”
Though the assurance provided by my very benevolent lover was everything that I needed to go forward, I hesitated a little to rid myself of the towel, still worrying if I was making the right decision, but all the doubts melted away as soon as our lips met and his hands rested on my thighs.
Feeling a weird projection from his pants, poking me where I was the most sensitive, I broke the kiss and asked him, “Are you turned on, Tobias?”
Turning crimson, he nodded. Knowing how there was no turning back now, I relieved myself of my towel and allowed his hands to feel my burning skin. From my neck and my breasts to the middle of my thighs, adorning them with kisses and bites. To return the favour, I brought my lips closer to his neck and bit the fold of his ear.
A little shaken, he asked me, “Where did you learn this from, you tease?”
Grinning, I removed myself from him, bent a little to unzip his pants and reached for his excited little friend, protruding out of his pants. I could swear I heard him gasp as soon as I kissed the tip of his staff. Giggling to hear him get so excited, I couldn’t conceal my excitement over what I was going to do next.