Chapter 147
Julian's POV
For a moment, I just held her, listening to her breathing, feeling her warmth.
But reality quickly interrupted the moment. She smelled like fruit wine.
"Nora," I said gently. "You need to take a shower."
She wrinkled her nose like a child. "Why?"
"Because you smell like a bar."
She lifted her head, blinking at me as if I'd suggested something absurd. "I don't want to shower. I'm too tired."
"I can call a maid to help you—"
"No." She suddenly sat up straight, her expression stubborn.
My jaw tightened. "Nora."
She tilted her head, studying me with a focus that cut through the alcohol haze. Her hands came up to cup my face. "I want you to help me."
My breathing stopped. "Nora, I can't—"
Her eyes instantly welled up, her lips trembling. "You think I'm disgusting..."
"I don't think you're disgusting, Nora." I took a deep breath, struggling to maintain reason. "But—"
"Then why won't you help me wash?" She interrupted, her voice taking on a whimpering quality. "You must think I smell bad..."
"I don't think you smell bad." I was caught between laughter and exasperation.
She nuzzled against my face like a kitten, starting to act coquettish. "I drank fruit wine tonight... sweet and fragrant..." She leaned close to my ear, her breath hitting my earlobe, "sweet everywhere... if you don't believe me, taste..."
All my blood rushed in one direction. Damn. She had no idea what she was saying, but these words were absolutely lethal to me.
I struggled to maintain the last shred of rationality. "Nora, you're drunk. You don't know what you're saying—"
She didn't let me finish. She suddenly leaned in and kissed my lips.
The kiss carried the sweetness of fruit wine and a hint of alcohol. Her lips were soft and warm, pressing against mine, light as a feather, yet it made my entire body rigid.
My hands gripped the sofa armrest tightly, knuckles turning white. My instincts were screaming—respond to her, press her into the sofa, mark her. But my reason forcibly suppressed that impulse.
She's drunk. She doesn't know what she's doing. You can't take advantage of her.
I went completely rigid, every muscle in my body locking as Nora's lips pressed against mine. I stayed motionless, feeling her clumsy exploration and slightly trembling breath. Her scent—amplified by alcohol—wrapped around me like a drug, driving me insane, and I had to fight every instinct screaming at me to respond, to claim, to mark.
When she finally pulled back, her gray-blue eyes were hazy and unfocused, pupils dilated. A slow smile spread across her flushed face.
"Sweet?" she asked, her voice dropping to something soft and teasing.
My throat worked as I swallowed hard. "Sweet."
Her smile widened, pleased with herself. She leaned in again, lips brushing my ear as she whispered, "Then taste again."
Before I could process the words, she kissed me once more. This time she tried to coax a response from me. Her fingers came up to frame my face, holding me in place as she explored.
My control was fraying at the edges. The Alpha in me roared to flip her onto her back, to show her exactly what her teasing was doing to me. But I kept my hands locked on the armrest, knuckles white, breathing shallow.
A soft sneeze broke through the haze.
I turned my head just enough to see Lily sitting at the other end of the sofa, watching us with her head cocked, tail sweeping slowly across the floor.
Thank God for the interruption.
"Lily," I said, voice coming out rougher than I intended. "Out."
Nora's arms loosened around my neck. "You're kicking me out?"
"Not you." I forced myself to meet her eyes, tried to gentle my tone. "The dog."
She blinked, then giggled. "Oh. That's mean. She walked me all the way home, you know."
Despite everything, my mouth twitched. I pointed at Lily. "Take Pepper. Both of you, out. Now."
Lily huffed—actually huffed at me—but obeyed. She trotted over to where Pepper was curled on the rug, gently picked up the kitten by her scruff, and carried her out.
I turned back to Nora.
Big mistake.
Her eyes had gone soft and dreamy, her lips still parted and kiss-swollen. She was looking at me like I'd hung the moon, and it was doing absolutely nothing for my rapidly dissolving self-control.
"Now where were we?" she murmured, leaning in again.
I caught her shoulders, holding her at arm's length. "Nora. You need to take a shower."
Her face fell. "Why?"
"Because you smell like you bathed in wine."
"But you said I was sweet."
"The wine is sweet. You need to wash it off."
Her voice turned stubborn. "I want you to help me wash."
Every drop of blood in my body rushed south. I gritted my teeth. "Nora—"
"Please?" She looked up at me through her lashes, and I realized with growing horror that drunk Nora had zero concept of what she was asking.
I stood up, scooping her into my arms before I could talk myself out of it. "Fine. But you're going to regret this in the morning."
"I won't," she said confidently, curling into my chest.
I carried her upstairs, acutely aware of every place our bodies touched. She kept squirming, fingers trailing along my jaw, my neck, tracing the line of my collarbone through my shirt. Each touch felt deliberate, calculated to drive me insane.
"Has anyone ever told you you're handsome?" she asked as I nudged open the bathroom door.
"Once or twice."
"They were right." She tapped my nose. "Very handsome. Like a statue."
I set her on the marble countertop. "A statue?"
"Mhmm. Cold and perfect and untouchable."
I wasn't cold. My entire body was on fire. "That's not cold, sweetheart. That's self-control."
She slid off the counter, stumbling slightly. I caught her by the waist, steadying her. She looked up at me, eyes serious despite the alcohol haze.
"I don't want you to have self-control," she said quietly.
I closed my eyes. Took a breath. Counted to ten in three different languages.
Then I turned to the bathtub and started filling it, testing the water temperature to give myself something to do other than pin her against the wall.
"Warm enough?" I asked without turning around.
Silence.
I looked back. She was staring at me with glassy, unfocused eyes.
"Still with me?"
She nodded slowly.
I tested the bathwater one more time to confirm the temperature was right, then my phone buzzed in my pocket.