Dark Desire

Chapter Fourteen

WOLFF

"It went fine."

There was nothing fine in forcing Mariana to get any sort of birth control. It was beating me up on the inside, picturing her going to that clinic and pushing through the procedure like three of the women I've been with in the past.

Though those women had gone willingly, I couldn't believe Mariana did it so happily like they had. She wouldn't. I'd bet my money her hatred for me grew as they were putting that device in her arm. The other women had wanted it, they were even excited to get it done if it meant we'd be able to have sex as much as we pleased but Mariana...she wouldn't want that. She—

"Kurt."

The weight of the hands that clasped my shoulders jolted me back to the present, to where we were so casually lounging at the edge of my indoor pool as if we were two unproblematic bachelors without a care in the world.

"The procedure went fine. Mariana's just resting now. It made her a little dizzy afterwards but the doctor said it was a normal side-effect. Stop worrying," Axel sighed and pushed off the ledge, dropping into the water with a splash. When he came back to the surface, he continued, "And stop feeling guilty. I already told you, Mariana went willingly. She was okay with it."

I grimaced. "It still doesn't change the fact that it's wrong—"

"Stop. I'm not letting you beat yourself up." He sighed. "Just talk to her, Kurt. You're free to do so, to say and do anything. She already signed the NDA."

The breath was knocked out of me. "She did? When? Did you force her to?"

"Again, Kurt. She did it willingly. Talk to her and you'd know how willing she is. Perhaps, more than you expect."

•••

That night, I wrote again. I was restless and I couldn't, for one second, look at my bed and not see her there. I couldn't lay there and not touch myself at the memory; the brief feel of her ass against my palm, the sight of her breasts, and the soft whimpers from her parted lips.

I wrote and wrote the fantasies that invaded my head until the sun cracked open and bright light peaked through my opened blinds. My head throbbed and my eyes were bloodshot from no sleep but it felt good, like I deserved it. The pain felt right. It always did.

I planned to skip breakfast, perhaps just take a nap if the urge to do so came to me. But the simple plan for my morning slipped away the moment a soft knock sounded in my door, followed by Mariana's voice. "Can I come in?"

I closed my eyes and forced myself to breathe normally. Detaching my hands from the keyboard, I pushed off my desk and headed for the door.

Mariana, to both my ease and disappointment, was wearing the most conservative set I've ever bought for her. A loose black sweatpants and an oversized sweater that reached her mid-thigh concealed all her perfect curves yet there was still no denying how incredibly beautiful she was. Her dark hair appeared lighter from all the morning light shining from my room and her brown eyes as well, they looked more like honey than chocolate. She looked even younger and fresher than she'd been when she first got here.

"Will you...let me in, please?" She bit her lip, realized her mistake, and quickly relaxed her mouth.

With immense hesitation, I opened the door wide enough for her to slip inside. From the far left corner of the hall, Axel stood with a coffee in hand, watching the interaction. When he met my gaze, he simply offered me a nod—a quiet form of reassurance—before I closed my door.