Dark Desire

Chapter Ten

WOLFF

"You should just tell her, Kurt." Axel muttered to me, well, grunted as I was currently spotting him at the gym. "I think she'll understand."

"She'll think I'm a monster. They all do."

He let go of the weights and sat up. He reached for a towel and draped it over his shoulder. "She told me she knows it will hurt."

I paled. "What?"

"She said she's a virgin, not an idiot." Axel—to my utter surprise—laughed. Amusement danced in his eyes and for some reason, my chest tightened. The thought of Mariana and Axel getting to know each other while I was sulking in my room made me want to kick off the dumbbells on my feet.

As if sensing the shift in my mood, Axel patted a hand on my shoulder. "Relax. She's not my type." I threw a quizzical look at him which only made him chuckle. "Too hot. I'd rather be with someone who wouldn't make me look like her butler while standing next to her."

My eyes narrowed and suddenly I was wondering what I'd look like next to her. Would I be like a lion next to a deer? A demon next to a pretty angel? A—

"Chill, Kurt. You'd look good together." He winked and left me on the bench press with unfamiliar heat on my face and a much, much familiar tingle in my groin.

•••

We got to the house by evening. The table was set and two wine bottles were out. Expectedly, Mariana was on the kitchen cutting up cheese for her charcuterie board.

"What's the occasion?" Axel questioned as he rounded the table. He went straight for the whiskey bottle on the cupboard. I tried not to roll my eyes.

Mariana peered over her shoulder, our eyes meeting for only a few seconds before she turned back to her board. I may have imagined it because for a few heartbeats there I thought I saw her blush.

"Someone called the telephone this morning and notified me that my visa was extended. I want to thank both of you." She took a swing of her wine and sighed. "For everything, actually. For letting me stay and the clothes and...you know what, let's just eat before I start crying."

I stood like an idiot at the corner of the table while Mariana laid out a bowl of pasta, salad, and her board on the table. Axel helped her by grabbing the utensils while I just watched. With Axel in his threadbare shirt and sweats next to Mariana, they looked too casual they could pass for a couple. My fists curled. Would she prefer Axel than me? Of course, she would. Axel wouldn't hurt her. He wouldn't lose control around her. He'd be gentle when she asked him to be.

"Wolff."

I froze, my fists uncurled as my shoulders tensed. It was extremely pathetic how affected I was every time she'd speak my name.

When I met her gaze, I wasn't prepared for its intensity. I shifted on my feet.

"Sit, please." Her voice was soft and careful, like she was suddenly afraid I'd flinch or run away.

I didn't know what made Mariana this way. I still remembered the way she looked at me that first morning in my office. That person was gone now. This Mariana didn't look at me like I'm a monster. Could it simply just be because she's thankful? Or was it because she saw me in my most vulnerable that night on my bathroom floor? Or was it because of the money I transferred to her bank account three days ago as payment for the one thing I could take from her?