Coffee & Criminals

40. Nice Bathrooms

He was trembling. The fingers that clutched my hips were unsure of where they should travel to next, the brush of his mouth against my neck stopped, and his body became as stiff as cardboard. There was something else of his that was also stiff, but never mind that. He stared at me with a piercing glare, the breaths that left his parted lips coming out heavy and tremorous. My words had stunned him, and it stunned me to see that the man so notoriously worshipped for the ice shield around his heart was breaking before my very eyes.

So he wasn't invincible. Who knew.

"You have no idea what you're playing with." Wolfe whispered. He still stayed hovering above me, hands wrapping around my wrists to prevent me from moving. He knew that if I moved, I'd make one that completely destroyed him. The words that left his lips so close to mine were unfiltered with the rage storming behind a calm tone. The same warning was also clear in his eyes, holding mine in a furious stare. He was angry that I would suggest something like that. It was amusing to make him tick, but so very reckless. Wolfe pushed my hands harder into the soft mattress beneath us, like he wanted to hurt me but couldn't. "Don't tempt me, Florence. You're too precious for me to be the one to ruin you like that. Say what you said again, and I promise you, you will regret it."

"You're leaving." I stated softly. I couldn't inflict any emotion into my voice because I knew if I did, he would know how much I was hurting. "What difference does it make?"

"Would I be your first?"

"Yes."

"Absolutely not."

"What happened to the big, bad wolf?" I teased, my heart in flutters. It was admirable, to see Wolfe hold back when sex came to him as easy as it did breathing to the rest of us. Either he had too much respect for me or he simply didn't want me. I tried to slip one of my hands out of his and the grip around my wrist tightened. "You're not the type of person who cares about the wellbeings of others. Why start now? Take what you want and give nothing back. Take me, I'm all yours."

"Careful, Florence."

"I'll find someone else."

"No, you won't." Wolfe growled. He carefully shifted himself so that I felt every part of his body against mine but none of the weight. The heat coming from his body was comforting against the cold sheets of the bed, but everything about Wolfe was comforting until it was too late. Everything about him was a trap. "You can't be with anyone else because you're mine, Florence."

The way he said the last sentence made me want to kiss him, but I resisted. "So you just want me to lock myself up and wait for you to come back? How long will that take? A year, two years, five? Sure, I'll just sit here and bat off all the potential innocent  future husbands with a stick until you come back for me. Taking the very unlikely chance that someday I might end up as your girlfriend is obviously the better choice than to move on with my life with the very likely chance that you'll never come back. Sure, I'll do just that." I replied in a dead tone, the sarcasm making the edges razor-sharp.

"Florence, don't do this to me." Wolfe whispered. "We've hurt each other enough. I don't understand why you want me to bring you more pain. I'm saying goodbye because I don't want to make you suffer anymore. Don't. I can't control myself. How can you ask something me to do such a thing like that, Florence? In what universe would fucking   you make anything better?"

"My universe."

A groan left his lips. Wolfe pulled himself up to his knees, but kept his hands around my wrists. "Will you please behave?" He asked angrily. "I'm not going to ruin your innocence."