Born Mine
Chapter 64

We sat in the tub pressed against each other until the water got cold and my skin

began to prune. I would have preferred to sit there and forget about the obligations of the world but Darius was not like me. He got out first and lifted me like I was an infant. He dried me off and pulled a shirt over my head. It took one sniff to realize it was his shirt.

I allowed myself to lean on him for one night as he lay me in bed. I expected him to get in after me but he refused to. He gestured for me to start eating while he retreated into the bathroom to get dressed. I didn't understand what the sudden need for privacy was for but I didn't ask. I focused on my meal and although the burritos were cold I still enjoyed that.

I had just finished the first one when Darius came out in just his jeans. He walked over to me and I held my breath as I waited to see what he would do. He leaned down and for a second, I thought he was going to kiss me but he settled for pressing a soft kiss to my forehead. I melted under the action and he lingered there longer than he needed to.

"Sleep," he instructed me. "If you need me, call."

Before I could say another word, he walked out of the room leaving me in silence. I felt like my emotions had gone through whiplash and I didn't know how to handle it. Darius said he wanted ME. I couldn't bring myself to believe that I was wanted for being me and not because of the curse but he sounded so sincere. I was tempted to believe him but I was scared of getting hurt.

I was barely able to sleep at night. By the time morning came around, my eyes were heavy and I was cranky from the lack of sleep. I dragged my feet out of the room because I feared I would suffocate myself if I spent any more time in there.

I found myself in the living room and I was shocked to see Ian there. He was standing over the counter mixing something that looked suspiciously like pancake mix. I raised a brow because I never expected him to know how to cook.

"Don't look so surprised, Leindra." I didn't know he heard me walk in. I thought I was very quiet. "You could come help me instead of just standing around. There are a lot of mouths to feed this morning."

I slowly made my way over to him. "I didn't know you spent the night. How many rooms are in this house?"

"Too many.to.count". he finally turned to me and a small smile, plaved at the edge of his lips. "To say I spent the night is to assume I slept. I was with Darius trying to figure out who was behind the attack on you. Unfortunately, there are no leads so far."

"How is that possible?"

"The car was ditched a few miles from the house. We scoured the surrounding areas but we didn't replace any traces of them."

"Why are you being honest with me about this? I thought the whole point was for me not to know what was happening. You never bothered to tell me anything before."

"You never asked," he said as if it were the simplest thing in the world. "Besides, considering you came down the stairs in nothing but Darius' shirt, I didn't have a choice."

I flushed pink as I realized. I had completely forgotten that I wasn't properly dressed. My legs were on display and I wasn't wearing panties. "I should go change." "No need, we've seen worse."

He said it so casually but I couldn't help the ugly feeling that clawed up my chest. Did he mean that Darius had other women dressed this way? I couldn't ask without risking sounding jealous but I wanted to know. I didn't realize how pissed I was until I heard a crack and realized I had broken the egg in my hands.

I saw Ian trying and failing to hide a smile. "Now I see the appeal of a jealous woman."

I wiped the raw egg on his shirt and he let out a shriek so loud that I feared he would wake everyone in the house. He slapped a hand over his mouth when he realized the sound he just made and his eyes narrowed in my direction.

"If you ever tell anyone about that," he began but he was cut off by a drawl from the hallway.

"She doesn't need to, we heard it for ourselves."

Darius walked into the small space and just like that, my cheeks heated. He ran his eyes over my body and I saw a sense of pride flash in his eyes. I quickly turned away from him because the heat in his eyes had me throbbing in places I shouldn't. I busied myself with washing the mess off my hands but even then, his eyes never left me. I felt their heat.

When I finished, I turned only to see him standing directly behind me. I didn't realize how he moved so quietly or how he was able to stand behind me without me realizing. I tried to step away from him but he pinned me to the sink with his arms on either side of me. I glanced over his shoulder to see that Ian was nowhere to be found- traitor.

"You look good in my shirt," Darius mused and his eyes took a languid stroll down my figure once more. "As much as I love seeing you in it, this is something that only I should have access to."

"I didn't go out with it," I tried to defend. "It is almost at my knees and I'm just in the kitchen."

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He leaned forward and brushed his lips against my ears before dropping his voice to a whisper.

"You're in my house, in my shirt and without panties. It makes me want to bend you over the nearest counter and fuck you until you cannot breathe. Unless you want me to do that with Ian right here then I suggest you put some pants on."

He bit my earlobe softly before pulling away. No sooner than he had pulled away, Ian walked back into the room. Darius had moved far enough that no one would have suspected anything but one look at my flaming cheeks and you would know.

I practically rushed out of the kitchen. I never pegged myself as someone who would listen when a man tells me to change but here I was, rushing up the stairs to put on pants. When I got to my room, I settled for biker shorts. They were completely hidden by the shirt but I didn't care. He asked me to put on pants so I did. He didn't specify what kind.

I didn't go back down for another hour. By that time, everyone else was dressed and ready and Ian was setting the table.

"Traitor," he muttered when he saw me. "I thought breakfast was going to be our thing. You left me alone with Darius."

"What's wrong with Darius?"

"He constitutes grunts as a full conversation," he complained as he stood straighter. The corner of his lips quirked up as he fully took me in. "Forget the whole traitor conversation. It seems you've been sent to be Darius' bane and I am living for it."

"I'm dressed, I don't know what you're talking about."

He laughed and walked over to me. He slung an arm around my shoulder and dropped

his voice so only I would hear. "For future reference, werewolves are extremely possessive and you are in a house with maybe ten men right now and it looks like you're naked under that shirt."

"I'm not," I was quick to defend raising the hem of the shirt so he could see the shorts.

"I never said you were. I just said that was how it looked. Don't get me wrong, I love it and I am living for Darius losing his mind slowly during breakfast especially after he asked you to change already."

If you're loving the book, nel5s.com is where the adventure continues. Join us for the complete experience all for free. The next chapter is eagerly waiting for you! "You heard that?" I asked and he nodded.

"He asked me to leave but you didn't really think I was going to leave and not eavesdrop, did you?"

While he was speaking, Serena and Amy walked into the room. They took one look at me and burst out laughing. Amy had her hand against her forehead as if muttering a silent prayer. Serena walked over to me and placed a hand on my shoulder before speaking in the most serious tone I had ever heard.

"Good luck, you will need it."

I rolled my eyes and swatted her hands away.

Our laughter must have drawn everyone out because the dining room started to fill up.

I saw Jared come out next followed by Darius. Darius saw me and his eyes heated up. Ian quickly stepped away from me as if trying to pull himself out of the firing line. I narrowed my eyes at him but he raised his hands as if to say he wanted no part in it. The table quickly filled up leaving the seat next to Darius as the only empty one. I slowly made my way over there while keeping my eyes fixated on the ground to appear innocent.

"When I said pants," Darius started in a whisper as soon as I sat down, "I meant pants, not shorts that are barely visible."

"Did you?" I feigned innocence. "Well, you weren't exactly very specific so I had to improvise."

"I'll show you improvisation-"

"Darius," our mini conversation was cut off by Ian.

We were so lost in our world that we didn't even realize someone was calling out for

us. Immediately, a mask snapped back in place and Darius became his usual stoic self.

"What is it?"

"There's a minor problem in town."