Reluctant Mate

Chapter 13

  I woke up with a jolt the next morning. It wasn’t from the sound of my alarm screaming, which it was, but rather from the warm feeling of a gentle finger skimming along my jawline. Skilled and had been on the verge of trailing south. 

  It left me breathless, stunned, and dreading seeing him at work. I checked the time after turning off the alarm and cursed myself for sleeping through the loud siren for over twenty minutes.

  Frazzled by the dream and lacking time to do so, I didn’t bother with a shower but rushed to dress and head off for breakfast. I snagged an orange juice and banana, then headed for the administrative building to check in with Latasha.

  It was when the time came to enter the command center that my mind surprisingly seemed to slow down. I knew he was in there and waiting, but there was something strangely calming about it. Maybe because in reality I could control what he did to me, while in my dreams it was more wild? 

  Maybe the calmness was my body finally coming down from the high?

  Whatever it was, I pleaded that Alex couldn’t sense any part of it.

  “Good morning,” he offered, settling back in his chair.

  I returned his polite smile. “Hey.” I took a seat in the extra chair beside him.

  “You should be sitting here for extra practice,” he insisted.

I nodded, then watched him push back in his chair with the smooth movement of his foot. He wheeled himself over to my previous spot while I took his old one. 

  I didn’t like it. He was at an angle that was mostly at my side rather than behind me. It gave him the advantage of seeing my face more than I could see his. And oh, how I felt his eyes burning into the side of my face!

  “How has the morning been?” I asked to distract myself.

  “Mostly quiet. Go ahead and check your note sheet,” he ordered.

  I turned to the computer and clicked on the tab.

  “Alpha has a meeting this morning at nine,” I read out loud. “Three guests are expected to arrive in one vehicle. A green Lexus RC. And the electric man is scheduled to check the meteor at eleven,” I finished.

  “Make sure you get in the habit of checking the notes first thing when you come in.”

  I nodded. “Where is the electric meter located?”

  “Right inside the walls. But he won’t drive through the gate. He’ll park on the side, then hit the buzzer, and one of the guards will escort him to it, then back out the gate.”

  Everything had a routine. 

  “Did you sleep well?” he asked after a moment of silence.

  I side-eyed him. I knew it! He was already going to start?

  “What?” he asked innocently.

  “Don’t start,” I warned him.

  “What do you mean? I can’t ask a simple question?” His voice was grave, but that damn smirk told another story.

  “I slept fine,” I replied, without giving him any ammunition.

  He waited a second before speaking. “Did you think about me?”

  A sharp exhale passed through my lips. “See? You just couldn’t resist, could you?” 

  Reading him was becoming easier and easier.