Mate for a King

Chapter Four

A few seconds passed before Lexi could understand what Raed had just said. He had to be kidding? Right? "You want to go back to your place? Now?"

He nodded. "Yes."

She glanced down at the large bulge in the front of his jeans. From the looks of him, Raed was more than up to continuing what they had started. He may have given her the best oral sex she had ever had, but she wanted his cock where his tongue had been. The sight of his bared, muscular chest made her want to run her hands and lips all over him. His washboard abs practically made her drool. Even the black tattoo which covered the entire cap of his left shoulder added to his yum factor. Lexi couldn't make out the details, but she still thought the mark made Raed look even hotter.

Realizing she was still naked on the couch with her legs spread open, Lexi took a deep breath to calm her nerves then stood. Unable to resist, she ran her hand across Raed's hard chest. "I thought we were doing quite well here."

Raed brought his hand up and covered hers. "Yes, but isn't there a saying about it being so much better for those who wait?"

"But what if I'm not the patient type?"

"I can make it worth your while to try to be."

From the determined look on Raed's face, Lexi knew there would be no changing his mind. She sighed with disappointment as he picked up his shirt and pulled it on.

She gathered her discarded clothes and dressed. She still didn't understand why Raed had abruptly decided to take her back to his place, but she wasn't about to say no.

Once she got her purse, Raed ushered her outside. He helped her into his Mercedes and then they were off. Lexi watched some of the scenery go by before she turned to look at Raed. "So are you going to tell me why we have to suddenly go back to your place? Or are you going to leave me in the dark?"

He gave her a quick smile before he returned his attention to the road. "I just thought I would be better able to make things up to you for last night there instead of at your flat."

"Okay, but I still think we were doing fine at my flat."

He glanced over at her with a heated stare. "I intend to finish what I started. This brief encounter only whetted my appetite. I'm going to put the rest of the afternoon, and part of the evening, to good use. That being the case, I should at least cook you supper. I’ll feel more comfortable doing that at my place."

The temperature inside the car seemed to suddenly spike. The thought of spending hours in bed with Raed made her feel boneless. If the oral sex had been any indication, she was in for a wild ride. She suddenly wished Raed would drive faster.

She cleared her throat. "You're going to cook for me?"

"Don't worry, I can cook."

"To be honest, your ability to cook or not doesn't worry me in the slightest. I've just never had a guy make a meal for me before."

"I'm glad I can be your first."

Lexi looked out the window to see Raed had pulled onto the graveled surface of a long driveway leading to a large manor house. The lawns and flowerbeds appeared to be professionally landscaped; in fact everything about the property screamed extremely well-to-do. She had known Raed had money, but she hadn't realized he was this rich.

No wonder he wanted to come here instead of staying at her place. Her entire flat would probably fit inside one room of the manor.

Raed parked the Mercedes in front of a large, detached garage. After he turned off the ignition he shifted in his seat until he faced her. "I guess I should probably warn you I don't live alone."

"You still live with your parents?" There went her fantasy of having hot, wild monkey sex with Raed.

He shook his head and chuckled. "No, I don't live with my parents. I guess you could sort of call them roommates, but my men are more than that. They're more like family. The only ones I have left."

"Your men?" Lexi asked slowly. Was Raed so rich he required bodyguards?

Raed took hold of her chin and gave her a hard kiss. As if he had known what she had been thinking, he said, "I call them my men, but they really more like part of my family."

Lexi swallowed. "Oh."

He released her chin and stroked the back of his hand down her cheek. "Let's go inside."

Raed took Lexi's hand as he led her up to the entrance to the manor. He pushed open the door and stepped aside for her to enter first. Lexi looked around the large, open-concept foyer. The floor had been done in light-blonde hardwood. The walls had been painted just a shade darker than the floor. A heavy oak banister wound all the way up the curved flight of stairs to the second floor. A crystal chandelier hung from the center of the high ceiling. This was definitely a rich person's house.

Lexi turned to face Raed. "You have a nice place."

"Thanks. I'm glad you like it. Come on, I'll introduce you to my men. Just a word of warning, Garrick gets a kick out of making people feel uncomfortable. Ignore him if he starts in on you. Not that I expect him to, but just in case."

"Okay. I've been forewarned."

Raed placed his hand on the small of her back as he walked her across the foyer and down the hall. Lexi heard the sound of a blaring television before they came to the entrance of the large living room. A huge, wide-screen HD television hung on the back wall, broadcasting a game of soccer. Two large couches were placed not too far from the television, one directly opposite the TV, the other against the wall, kitty-corner to it.

Seated on the couches were five of the largest men Lexi had ever seen.

Leaning in, Raed whispered in her ear, "Don't worry, they don't bite."

Lexi doubted his words, especially when a couple of them started to yell at the TV, cursing up a storm. Another one chucked popcorn at the screen. "Are you sure?"

"Positive. When they watch football, they tend to really get into the game."

It took Lexi a few seconds to remember the British called soccer 'football'. "So I see."

Raed started across the room. Lexi let her gaze run over his men. All five of them had the same large, muscular build as Raed. Each had a face that would drive women wild. Lexi figured there was enough testosterone in the room to choke a horse.

Raed's men didn't take too long to notice them.

"Well, well what do we have here?" One of the men flashed Lexi a sexy grin as he stood. He shook his shaggy, light brown hair out of his eyes as he looked her up and down. He stood about an inch taller than Raed, meaning she had to crane her neck to look him in the face as well.

Raed put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her up against his side. "Lexi, this is Garrick."

Lexi stuck out her hand. "Nice to meet you, Garrick." If Raed hadn't already told her to watch out for the man, she would have known he was a bit of a trouble maker anyway. He had a glint in his brown eyes that said he found this a perfect opportunity to stir up things.

Before Garrick could take her hand, Raed made a low rumbling sound in his chest. Garrick gave her a cocky smile and nodded once in her direction.

The football game forgotten, the rest of Raed's men stood and gathered around them. If Lexi didn't know better, she would think this was the first time Raed had brought a woman home. Most of them seemed eager to meet her.

"Are you going to introduce the rest of us, Raed?" asked the man standing next to Garrick. He was a couple of inches shorter than Garrick, had collar-length brown hair and friendly looking hazel eyes. He gave her a genuine smile.

"I guess I don't have much choice in the matter with all of you crowded around us. Lexi, meet Algar. Beside him is Wulfric, then Brand and lastly, Dolf."

Lexi smiled at each man. Wulfric, the tallest of the men, had to be at least six foot seven. He had straight, light blond hair that reached the top of his shoulders and emerald green eyes. He also gave the impression you wouldn't want to be trapped in a dark alley somewhere alone with him. Then he smiled and his face lit up, chasing his frightening demeanor away. "Lexi."

She looked over at Brand next. He'd be about six foot five, she estimated. His straight, black hair fell past his shoulders and his dark blue eyes gave the impression he was bored. Brand may not have been the tallest, but he appeared to be the biggest, muscle-wise. He didn't smile as he grunted a hello. Obviously a man of very few words.

Lexi moved on to Dolf. Just as tall as Brand, he had short, wavy, reddish-brown hair and brown eyes so dark they almost appeared black. He gave her a lopsided grin.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance, Lexi."

"Nice to meet you all," she said.

"The introductions are over," Raed said. "Algar, I need to talk to you for a minute." Algar nodded. Raed turned to look at Lexi. "Do you mind if I leave you here with the others while Algar and I confer about something?"

She shook her head. "No, I'll be fine."

Garrick offered his elbow to Lexi. "Of course she'll be fine with us, Raed. We'll take care of her." He gave her a wink. "Do you watch football?"

"Sadly, no." Raed's gaze flicked between her and Garrick before he let Lexi go.

She gave him a reassuring smile then placed her arm through Garrick's. He led her over to one of the couches. As she sat, she watched Raed and Algar step out of the room.

Once they were out in the hallway, Algar asked, "What's up? I can tell by the look on your face something serious is going on."

Raed ran a hand through his hair. "Something happened when I was with Lexi at her flat."

"Like what?"

"Something kind of personal, but I need you to give me an honest answer. When you're intimate with a woman, does your wolf come out?"

Algar gave him a hard stare. "No. Never. Is that what happened to you?"

"Yes. My eyes went wolf and my claws nearly came out."

"Obviously Lexi didn't see or she wouldn't be here with you now."

"No, she didn't. But my sudden need to come here instead of continuing what I had started at her flat . . . confused her a bit."

Algar couldn't quite hide his smile. "Yes, I can see she would find the situation strange. Having the person you're with get all hot and heavy then have them suddenly decide they need to leave in the middle could make a person second guess themselves."

Raed yanked at his hair. "I'm glad you can see the humor in all this, because I can't. There's something about Lexi that draws me to her, that draw my wolf to her. That part of me wants to claim her as my own as much as my human half does."

Algar grew serious. "What are you going to do?"

"I haven't a clue. I thought I would ask the rest of you if you had this problem before, but I have a feeling none of you have."

"As far as I know, you're the only one. Garrick for sure would have said something. You know how much he thinks of himself as a lady's man. He's pretty vocal when it comes to his conquests. I doubt he would keep something like that from us."

Raed peeked into the living room. Garrick was sitting beside Lexi, talking animatedly. Raed scowled. "Speaking of Garrick, I had better get back in there soon before he tries something with Lexi."

"He knows better," Algar said with a chuckle. "Not hard to miss the possessive hold you had on her when you introduced us."

"When it comes to Lexi, I find myself to be a jealous man."

"Which is out of character for you."

"I know. I haven't even slept with her yet and I can't get her out of my head. I even dream about her at night."

Algar gave a low whistle. "What are you going to do when she goes back to the States?"

"I'm hoping when her four weeks are up I'll have worked her out of my system."

"And if you haven't?"

"I have no bloody idea."

Deciding he'd left Lexi in Garrick's clutches long enough, Raed headed back into the living room. He had no idea what he would do about his inability to control his wolf while with Lexi, but he did know one thing—he wouldn't let his reactions stop him from making love to her. Somehow he would have to find a way to hide what she engendered in him. His need to have her seemed to increase the longer he denied himself. Given the way she had melted in his arms at her flat, he knew she wanted him as much as he wanted her. The time had come to put them both out of their misery.