The Crystal Warrior

The Crystal Warrior (Chapter 13)

The Crystal Warrior

By Maree Anderson

Chapter Thirteen

It had been no surprise to Chalcey when Francesca voluntarily took up residence at the Four Seasons, a fancy hotel not far from Sam's apartment. Her mother had finally accepted it was too late, that Chalcey couldn't leave Wulf now. It would hurt too much. It would tear her apart.

Her relief at the prospect of her mother leaving couldn't have gone unnoticed, for Francesca hadn't deigned to so much as check in via phone. Chalcey couldn't find it in her to worry about her mother's state of mind. She had enough on her plate without having to pussyfoot 'round Francesca and constantly justify her choices. Like fretting over Sam and Marcus, running a business, and worrying about her students. And angsting over this upcoming Testing crap.

It wasn't like she could study for it. There was no Cliff's Notes version on how to pass a test set by a devious old Crystal Guardian with a big-ass grudge and a heap of magical woo-woo at his command. Or how to cope with the knowledge that failure would cost a man's life.

Businesswise, at least, everything was falling into place. Student numbers were still on the up and up, forcing Chalcey to schedule more and more classes until she was stretched so thin that Jai put his foot down. "Quit being a chicken, and just commit already!" were the exact words he'd used. By that, he meant taking on Paulo and Leah as teachers once they'd worked out the required notice at their current studio.

Jai was right, of course. So she'd done it—committed to taking on more staff. And immediately after making the call, she'd felt so ill she had to rush off to the ladies' bathroom. Wulf had been there for her, as he'd been there for her ever since he'd moved in. He'd held her hair back from her face as she retched over the toilet bowl, and he'd rubbed the aching muscles in her back. When she'd finished rinsing her mouth and brushing her teeth, he scooped her up and took her to bed, where he held her until she stopped shaking. No sexual overtures, just the comfort of his solidly muscled body enveloping hers, keeping her warm and safe until she was in charge of her emotions again.

In truth, with an über-sexy alpha male like Wulf around, Chalcey was kidding herself if she believed she was in charge of anything. Like the side of the bed she preferred, for example. Her favorite side was now his side.

And speaking of beds—specifically the things men and women tended to do in them—he was beyond amazing. When they made love, he savored every inch of her body, playing her until she was taut as a bowstring, whimpering with need. Only then would he give her what she wanted and enter her, filling the cold, empty place where her fear of losing him lurked.

He'd also repeated the shower incident with more than interest. And he'd seduced her atop her small kitchen table, which now had a distinct wobble and would never be the same again. Not to mention the stairwell, and a few other places she would never have thought of trying.

Chalcey had morphed from a woman more than capable of justifying her lack of opportunities to have sex—and happy to ignore the lack—to insatiable. She couldn't get enough of him. Didn't matter what time he got home from his bouncer gig, she would awake the instant he stepped foot in her bedroom. And damned if she wouldn't be ready for him. In the deepest darkest recesses of her soul, she knew it wasn't real, it wasn't her. She wasn't a rampant sex fiend. She was terrified of failing him, losing him, and the sex was her way of indelibly etching him onto her heart. She knew all this and she didn't care.

As Wulf had done with her body, he even made the name "Chalcey" his own. No one else said it quite like him. No one else could imbue that particular combination of letters with such incredible intimacy and lush promises of bare skin, entwined limbs and drawn-out pleasure. There was definitely something to be said for a guy with an accent. Not to mention a guy who insisted that her full name, Chalcedony, fitted her perfectly in every way.