Rescuing Their Virgin Mate(28)
A knock sounded at the door a second later and the tension released. Dirk was here.
He opened the door, and the hole in Dirk’s shirt, along with the blood told him the observation had gone terribly wrong.
“Tell me.”
“I need to take a shower.”
“Use mine.” He wasn’t ready to tell Dirk, he and Elena had just shared his.
“Grab some clothes for me, will ya?”
“Sure. Does Elena know you’re here?”
“No. I want to clean up first. I don’t want her to worry.”
Unlike himself who foolishly desired her sympathy by pretending to be wounded. Maybe he should move in with Brandon and Sam, two other pack members, for a while.
Clay went in search of clean clothes for Dirk, happy to note Elena was still in her room. The urge to check if she was all right nearly made him give in, but he stayed strong and remained focused on his task. He expected to think about her when she was near. Would he succumb to daydreaming when he was hunting Colters? If so, the distraction could prove deadly.
He gathered the clean clothes for Dirk and returned. His friend was already in the shower. Not wanting to barge in, he set the clothes on the bed.
With his back to the closed door, he telepathed his question to Dirk. You ready to tell me what happened?
It took a second for Dirk to respond. After I found the warehouse, the Russian guard took my photo and was about to send it. I made sure he never made another call.
The situation was already out of control. The Feds must be close. No one could keep a human trafficking scheme quiet for long. You see anything inside the warehouse? Could they get lucky a second time?
Yeah. That made taking the knife in the gut worthwhile. Found two girls.
Satisfaction and elation spiked his blood. Was one Elena’s friend, Cheryl?
No.
The water in the bathroom stopped, and he decided to wait until Dirk came out to finish the conversation face-to-face. The man wasn’t always forthcoming with information and facial clues helped.
The door opened. Dirk strode over to the pile of clothes Clay left on the bed and pulled them on. The skin around the knife wound was red, but the swelling would be gone within an hour.
“You tell the general?” Clay asked.
Dirk threw on his T-shirt. “Yes. In fact, he had me drop the girls off at his house.”
“Good.” The general’s wife would know how to deal with them. She’d been the one to buy Elena’s new clothes.
Once dressed, Dirk sat on the bed, looking tired. “So, now what?”
Clay wasn’t sure if he was referring to their handling of Elena or Hood’s operation. “Damned if I know.”
Before Dirk spoke with Elena, Clay wanted to clear the air. “By the way, Elena showered with me right before you arrived.”
His friend stared at him. “And you’re not nestled in her pussy? Why?”
“Jesus. She needs to rest.” He lowered his voice. “She had sex with you yesterday.”
“Tell me how you two ended up showering. If I recall, shoe shopping was never a turn on.”
He explained about the fight with the two wolves in the mall parking lot. “Since I needed to wash off the blood, I thought I’d take advantage of the situation.”
“You conveniently suggested Elena help?”
“Yes, and she did. Then she stated she didn’t want to have sex with me, so I didn’t push it.”
Dirk held up his index finger. “When did you become such a woos?”
“A woos?” That hurt.
“Let me see.” Dirk scratched his chin. “Between the two of us, who is the dominant one in the bedroom?”
“I’ll play along. Me.”
“And which one likes to tie a woman up and spank her ass?”
He didn’t like the way this conversation was headed. “Under normal circumstances if I see something I want, I take it. But, Elena is different. She’s our mate.”
Dirk stood and moved close. Too close. “If you believe that then why did you reject her?”
Dirk was close to crossing the line of friendship. “I never rejected her.”
He stepped back. “Did you touch her tits?”
“No.”
Waving a hand, Dirk dropped back on the bed, crossed his ankles, and folded his hands behind his head. “What do you think she’s telling herself right now?” He held up a palm. “You were in the shower with a hot woman, make that a hot naked woman, and you did nothing.”
“She said no sex.”
Dirk shook his head. “I don’t know who you are. I agree it was too soon to actually have sex with her, but you could have shown her you liked her.”
“You’re right. I fucked up.”
“You can say that again.”