FULL NOVELXO Chapter 21
Chapter 21
I know this was Ethan’s doing. Only he would be cruel enough to take something so simple from me. Begrudgingly, I get dressed, my eyes water as I force the black slacks up my leg, the bite mark red and angry, the skin puckered and weeping. When I’m dressed, I grab the wicker hamper from the bathroom and leave the safety of my room.
The hardwood floor is cold beneath my feet as I head down the hallway. I open the door, going into Max’s room. The bed is made with a black and dark gray comforter with throw pillows that match. A nightstand sits beside it with medical journals neatly stacked on top of it. There is a matching dresser off to the side and a small desk.
The windows are open and sunshine streams into the room. The place smells like Max, vanilla with hints of sandalwood and hints of musk. Once, I would have taken comfort in being in his space. With the scent of him heavy around me, but right now it just makes my body hum in a dangerous way.
I need those suppressants. I close my eyes, swallowing hard before making my way over to the hamper in the bathroom. There is a towel hanging on the towel rack in the bathroom, and I grab it. Tossing it into the hamper which I sit on the floor. I pull out Max’s dirty clothes.
Colt’s clothing is tangled with his and I feel like a weak omega when their combined scents hit me, making me want to soak up their scents. It makes me feel all floaty and I know that I shouldn’t feel like this. Max doesn’t want me. He doesn’t care about me, none of them do.
When I’m done, I walk down the hallway to Ethan’s room. It’s much like he kept it when we were younger. The room is spartan with just a bed and a dresser off to the side. The bed is made with black sheets and a duvet that’s tucked in with an almost meticulous attention to detail. Like Max’s room, it smells like him and if I thought I was weak before, the whimper that slips past my lips tells me that I wasn’ t as bad off as I could be.
His smell is heavy in the air, rich and warm and tempting me to crawl into his bed. To coat myself in that scent until I smell of black currants and dark tea.
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Chapter 21
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G ods, when was the last time I smelled something so good? I closed my eyes, sucking in a breath while fighting the urge to climb in his bed just so I can soak up his scent and smother my own with his. I’m alone, so no one would catch me if I did. that. But what if the descenter wears off more than it already has?
There is no telling what Ethan would do if he found out I had been in his bed. So I take the hamper and move into the bathroom as quickly as I can. I don’t touch his clothing; I don’t trust myself to do it. Instead, I pick up his hamper and dump it in with Max and Colt’s dirty clothes.
I hold my breath when I’m done, picking up the hamper and leaving Ethan’s room. There are plenty of other rooms on the floor, but after checking them all, I realize that Colt doesn’t have a room.
Still, I make sure that the other rooms aren’t occupied. I head downstairs with my hamper, clutching the darkly stained cherry wood railing with one hand, the basket tucked under my other arm. I hobble down the steps, gritting my teeth when a flash of black rushes past me, knocking me off balance.
A shriek tears from my lips as the basket goes flying while I go sprawling on to the floor. With a soft thud, I grunt at the impact. Only to freeze when a wet nose presses against my cheek.
I’m not being attacked, and I realize it’s just Dog. Opening up my eyes, I see nothing but sharp gleaming teeth and a huge tongue lolling out the side of Dog’s mouth. He pants, looking down at me like he is wondering why I am on the floor.
While I worry about him biting me again, I realize he’s not going to when he sniffs my cheek, then licks me. He is the reason, after all for my leg, but maybe it was because he didn’t know me. I reach up, running my fingers through his fur, and he bumps his nose against me. Like he’s telling me it’s time to get up.
Gripping his fur, I pull myself up to a sitting position and peer around at the sc ttered clothes. I start sn atching them up, trying not to breathe in the scent of the clothing as I toss them back into the hamper. Dog walks off to the side and sits down, watching me as I awkwardly stand.
I head out of the foyer, searching for the washer. Determined to put the load of washing on before having breakfast, if I am allowed. Hopefully, with me helping with chores, they’ll go easy on me until I can find a job. If they allow me one, it’s not like I can run off with this h onkus contraption on my ankle.
However, I am surprised they don’t have a maid with how huge this house is. Then
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Chapter 21
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again, there are three of them, or maybe they have someone that comes in every once in a while to take care of the place. I make my way past the kitchen, finding the basement door.
Frowning, I push open the door and hit the light switch beside the door. The stairs. are illuminated, and just looking at them makes my leg throb painfully. But I know. it’s down there. I can smell the lingering scent of detergent and fabric softener.