Sorry for the long delay again! I kind of lost track of this one due to having pages all over the place (and forgetting what was previously written!) I'm tracking it now on Scrivener, highly recommend this app if you write a lot of longer pieces.
Feedback is love!
Chapter 10 - The Manipulator
Marie
I did it because I had no other choice. I could make him believe that I wanted him.
But along the way, I got sidetracked. Overcome with feeling so intense I couldn't ever have imagined. Even the thought of his mouth against my own made me breathless. The remembered trails of awareness lingering over my skin. I hadn't even dared to think it could feel like that!
And I'd never been so furious with myself! That night I'd dreamed of the way he made me feel. All achey and hot. And in the moment, I'd have given anything for him not to have stopped.
His beautiful greeny-brown eyes had looked almost golden, the flash unsettling, like I was under the glare of a predator, so singly focused on me. The rest of the world just fell away, until there was nothing apart from that wonderful feeling, and him witnessing it.
I'd never felt so much like a whore; not when the other kids whispered it in the corridors, not even when my mother had yelled the word as she threw me out onto the lawn.
He could have my body. And If that's all I had to barter my freedom, then so be it. I'd do whatever it took.
…
The delicious aroma of freshly baked deep-pan pizza preceded him into the room. My mouth watered unconsciously in response. Damn that smelt good!
He placed he box down in front of me.
"You need to eat."
"Huh?" I asked, tearing my eyes away from the box.
"It's been forty-eight hours, they're going to intervene if you don't eat."
Oh crap, had it really been that long?
"What do you mean intervene?"
He shrugged, "Shove a tube down your throat? I dunno, kid. Just do yourself a favour, alright." He flipped open the lid, "Half meat lovers, half veggie delight, I didn't know what your preferences were."
"Um, thanks." I mumbled, reaching out for a steaming slice of pizza.
We sat in awkward silence for a few minutes, the sound of my chewing loud in my own ears. I swallowed the last bite of that slice before selecting another. I could feel Logan intent on me and I turned to him, suddenly self-conscious. He wore a kind of half-satisfied smile as he surveyed me.
"Sorry, did you want some?" I pushed the box over to him with my free hand.
"No. It's just… I thought you smelled like a vegetarian."
"I…Err, what?" And after a few seconds, it registered. The advanced healing. The claws. "It's part of your mutation, isn't it?"
He said nothing, only held my fixed gaze.
"What else can you smell?"
"Lots'a things." His tone made it clear the topic wasn't up for discussion.
"Like?" I pressed.
He huffed, "Everything. Stuff you wouldn't even think."
I raised an eyebrow at him and took another bite of pizza.
"You really wanna know?"
I nodded, almost enjoying myself.
"Well… for starters, everyone has their own body chemistry, their base layer; some people smell natural and fresh, like you. Others smell… more chemically, depends if they take medications, or dye their hair. Then there are pheromones, giving signals off about their feelings…"
I could practically feel myself gaping. That was the most I'd ever heard him speak in one go! Misinterpreting my silence, he continued, "It's not all bad; scent doesn't lie. For instance, I know how much you liked what happened when I…" he tailed off as my cheeks flamed.
He smirked, "It's not just smell either; all my senses are enhanced. I can hear hushed conversations in the next room. Catch a flicker of movement almost a mile away. My reactions are better, I can recover faster. It's the feral instincts. I'm like… an animal." The smile fell from his face then and he slid back into his sullen mood.
I dropped a crust back into the box, wiping my fingers on the pants of my scrubs.
"I don't think you're an animal."
He let out a small, disbelieving snort.
"Okay, yeah. You kidnapped me, detained me against my will, and are trying to impregnate me to breed a genetically perfect super-solider… but I don't believe you'd ever intentionally hurt me." The sarcasm was evident even to my own ears.
"You don't know me at all." He growled.
"Maybe not. But you saved me from that man."
"Victor?"
"Right. And since I've been here, you've been nothing but considerate of my feelings, and you go out of your way to make sure I'm comfortable and fed."
"Because I have a job to do."
I leaned in closer to him, so close I could feel his raged breath on my parted lips.
"Why don't you get on with doing it then?"
"Christ Marie!" He pulled away, "What are you playing at?"
Truth be told, I didn't even know. Antagonizing the beast was not a smart plan, especially confined in such close quarters. The only justifiable reason was this; I didn't want it to feel real. I knew then I'd do anything to make the situation feel more like a game, so I couldn't confuse my feeling with reality. Because all this was, was an exchange. And nothing more.
So when he leaned back in close to scrutinize me, close enough again to see specs of golden light dancing in his iris, I raised a hand slowly, cautiously to his check - and then slapped him.
Almost instantly, I was up against the wall with the animal snarling into my face. Then his hungry mouth was on my neck, a deep sigh falling from my lips.
I couldn't say what I was trying to achieve, only that I didn't want to admit that maybe I was starting to enjoy it; the way he touched me as if he needed me. Like I was special.
Just as I was preparing myself from him to force his way in-between my legs or push me onto the bed, or the floor, I felt his fingers twist up into my hair, tilting my head in an unspoken invitation to meet his eyes. Slowly, carefully, I let my gaze drift up to his, feeling my heartbeat quicken at the intensity reflected in them.
Then his mouth was on mine, intense, possessive, but somehow also tender. He silently urged me to open up to him, and I tased the inside of his mouth, swallowing the little grunts he made. My own breathing grew more erratic as his hardened body moved against mine at just the right angle and drove all other lucid thoughts from my mind.
His hands brushed against my waist, then wandered lightly over my body, skimming my cheekbones, cupping a breast. He tweaked a nipple between his thumb and forefinger and I gasped into his mouth. A satisfied rumble came from deep within him.
"Baby, you taste so fuckin' good."
I gasped again as his hand run under my shirt.
"Don't call me that," I breathed. But whatever I said was unheard, as his arms tightened, lifting me against him as he carried me towards the bed.
He licked a stripe down my unexpectedly naked chest, stubble abrading the now exposed skin, sucking a nipple into the dark heat of his mouth. Instinctively, I surged up into him, muffling my cries into the pillow that was now by my head.
He reached down between my legs and it was like touching a live wire. I bucked away from his touch, the pressure all of a sudden too intense, my senses overwhelmed. It was then I realized he had my both wrists pinned down in one of his massive hands, boxed in under his heavy body.
"Hush. I ain't gonna hurt ya." He crooned. Rubbed a soothing hand over my quivering belly.
"Let go- of my- hands." It came out barely more than a whimper.
Instantly, he released me but didn't make to move.
"Just let me make ya feel good." He came up to cup my check, "Trust me."
He reached up to pull off his own shirt, uncovering the broad plains of his chest. Then leaned down to press soft kisses on the inside of my covered thighs. This time, when his fingers reached my waistband, I let him gently tug them down, trusting him. When his hot, wet tongue touched me, I gasped and let my legs relax, allowing him. Unintelligible sounds of need on my lips. His hands reached down to unbuckle his kakis, then he was back down kissing me and I could feel the silken weight of him pushing against me, into me. A single grunt escaped him, jaw clenched tight, forcing slow, even breaths through gritted teeth.
"Relax, sweetheart," he whispered, and the pain wasn't so bad this time. Then he leaned back down over me, but this time giving space, doing nothing but kissing me. And when he felt me beginning to kiss him back, he gently wrapped my legs around him and started to move.
It was followed by another low break of his voice, and the vibration of it sent sensation tingling through me from where we were connected. I started to focus of that unknown warmth firing in my lower belly that I was starting to identify with Logan and feeling good.
When I began to move with him, his heavy-lidded eyes closed as that guttural sound came again from his throat, his breathing suddenly harsh. He leaned back, lifting my rear so he could penetrate me deeper.
The change in angle was enough to push me over the edge, and I came apart, nothing as intense as the first time, just clenching of muscles and a slow release of pleasure that had me shudder with every lulling movement of his hips.
Then he let out a long, anguished groan - and came, grunting into my shoulder with each wet pulse.
A few moments passed in complete, deafening silence. He caught my face, made me look at him.
"You okay?" He looked exhausted, but still concerned.
I nodded, unable to speak. Overcome by what he'd given me. Not just release but healing too, from what had happened before.
And the corner of his mouth turned up in a sad smile, like he understood.
