One Night

Chapter 255

Audrey

“I’m home…”

I stumbled back in through the door, my footsteps still heavy and aching after a night of drinking and walking around town. The apartment was mostly dark, save for the lamp in the living room and the dim kitchen light.

It always felt good to be home, especially after a later night out. With a contented sigh, I hung my jacket on the hook by the door, then kicked off my shoes and turned around in search of Edwin.

But my mate wasn’t lounging in the armchair like I expected, reading a book and sipping whiskey. Nor was he in bed when I poked my head into the bedroom.

Frowning slightly, I crept further into the apartment and looked for him. Eventually, I saw a sliver of yellow light seeping out from under the sewing room door and quietly knocked on the wood. “Edwin?”

No answer.

I opened the door, and there he was–fast asleep at the worktable–turned–temporary–desk in the middle of the room, slumped over, head resting on his arms. He was so dead asleep that he was even snoring a little, his mouth slightly open.

I couldn’t help the tiny smile that crossed my lips as I stood there for a few moments with my hands on my hips, just watching him sleep. His dark hair was slightly mussed and falling into his shut eyes, his shoulders gently rising and falling with each deep breath.

He looked… peaceful like this. More peaceful than he’d had the chance to be as of late, what with everything else going on. hated the thought of waking him, but I also knew that if he spent too much longer sleeping on the desk like this, he would suffer for it in the morning.

Quietly so as not to wake him just yet, I stepped forward and peered at the papers scattered around him.

Since we had both been living in the small apartment lately, the sewing room had been turned into somewhat of an office when he wasn’t using his usual office on campus–hence the piles of documents and boxes of orphanage evidence all over the place.

Upon closer inspection, I saw that he was indeed working on the case with Sophia and my old orphanage. Old tax forms, receipts, and photographs were strewn across the worktable, and Edwin’s fingers were stained with ink from taking notes. He’d been elbow–deep in it, from the looks of things.

I bit my lip to keep my sigh in. I didn’t have to look at his notes for long to know that he hadn’t found much.

As Peter had said, Sophia had covered her tracks well. Very well. There were still no leads on where exactly she was sending these kids, and the scouts we’d sent to Coldclaw territory had come up with nothing as well.

Our one link right now seemed to be Joseph. The little boy who was too traumatized to utter a word.

I reached my hand out to wake Edwin, but then thought better of it. I pulled back and instead turned on my heel, reaching for a nearby blanket. I’d let him sleep for a few more minutes, at least, while I changed and got ready for bed.

But just as I was draping the blanket over his shoulders, Edwin’s arm shot out like an arrow and looped around tugging me close.

“What’re you doing?” he slurred, lifting his head and wiping his bleary gray eyes.

I stifled a tiny chuckle. “I could ask you the same question. You said you were going to relax tonight.”

my

waist,

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He shook his head, blinking to clear his eyes. “Couldn’t.” He yawned and tugged me a little closer, his body impossibly warm against mine. “I kept thinking about it.”

Sighing, I ran my fingers through any mate’s dark hair. He leaned his forehead against me for a few long moments, letting me soothe him with the gesture.

“You have a good night?” he asked with another yawn, his voice thick with sleep.

I paused, then nodded and told him about Avis’s flyers. When I was finished, Edwin sat up a little straighter and blinked up at me. “That damn company–I’ll look into it again as soon as I get the chance.”

Shaking my head, I leaned down and pressed a wari kiss to his lips. “It’s alright. These things happen,” I murmured against his mouth. “Besides, you have enough on your plate right now. We both do.”

Edwin didn’t answer–not out loud, at least, although his actions said plenty. Turning to face me fully now, he wrapped his other arm around me and pulled me into his lap with ease. He was so warm and inviting, and I was still buzzed from my night at the bar, so I collapsed easily against him.

“I miss you when you go out,” he murmured, peppering tender kisses against my neck and exposed collar bone. “More than I probably should.”

I huffed a laugh at that. Instinctively, I twisted my hips a little against him, already feeling a subtle swell in his pajama pants. “I can see that,” I teased, sitting down a little harder. The movement elicited a soft groan from Edwin.

“Goddess,” he slurred, shutting his eyes against the sudden wave of desire that was washing over both of us. “As soon as we get the chance, I need a vacation with you. A long one.”

“Can’t wait until Italy?” I teased.

Edwin shook his head, and as he did, his fingers trailed up the back of my shirt and pressed into the soft flesh across my lower spine, just above the waistband of my skirt. “Too far away. And too many people,” he breathed, grabbing the hem of my shirt and lifting it up over my head. “I want to do something with you. Just you.”

“Hmm…” I tilted my head, allowing him access to the side of my throat. He responded in kind, gently nipping at the spot where his marking bite still lingered–would always linger–on my pale skin. “You know, we’ve been so busy lately that a little staycation wouldn’t be unwelcome. Once we’re able, of course. I don’t need anything fancy.”

Edwin’s breath was hot against my neck as he moaned, “How about a week holed up at the estate? We’ll order all the takeout food you want. I’ll send Hadley off on a vacation of his own so it’s just you and me there.”

I bit my lip, feeling his hardness press a little harder between my legs. Slowly, sensually, I slipped up my skirt to reveal my thigh–high socks, which made my mate groan immediately.

“That sounds nice,” I whispered, feeling his hand move beneath my skirt, his knuckles rubbing slow circles across my panties. “What else?”

“Mm… If it’s just us there, then clothes are optional,” Edwin huffed into my breasts as he slipped my panties aside. He fumbled with his own pants for a moment, and then I felt something smooth and warm and familiar slide against me.

“What if it’s cold?” I whined impishly. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pushed my lower lip out at him.

Edwin let out a low growl at the sight. I felt him push a little into me, and I arched my back to allow him better access. “I’ll keep you warm.”

“How very original,” I teased, smacking him lightly on the arm. “Let me guess…. friction?”

In answer, my mate just pushed further into me, inch by inch, until he was fully inside. I blew out another sultry chuckle in response to his lazy yearning, but in reality, I didn’t mind one bit.

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Chapter 255

It was nights like these that cherished the most, anyway–unplanned, sloppy and warm, wrapped up in each other wherever we could get our hands on one another. Just us and nothing and no one else in the entire world.

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And as Edwin gently thrust himself into me up against that worktable, jostling the lamp and the cold cup of coffee on the surface, I dug my nails into his shoulder and held onto him like my life depended on it.

A vacation together, a week of just this… that was a