5. VANYA: SEXUAL ATTRACTION
Vanya
The hair at the nape of my neck prickled in awareness. I could feel eyes burning into my back, but whenever I turned around, there was no one watching me. It was still early, which meant that it was mostly the shop owners who were up and about, unlocking the shops and getting ready for the day.
A few turned and nodded a greeting which I'd return. Even though I knew some of them were dying to ask questions, they thankfully didn't.
I stopped at the stop sign and turned slightly so I could glance over my shoulder from beneath my lashes. Everything seemed completely normal—no strangers or anybody staring at me.
So why was I feeling eyes burning into my back?
"What are you doing here, Vannie?" Betsy asked as I walked up to the counter. "You're supposed to be at home."
I smiled at her as I rounded the counter and dropped my bag onto the chair at my desk. "I'm fine. Totally cleared for duty," I lied.
Her beady eyes narrowed on me. I held my breath and kept my face as emotionless as I possibly could. I wasn't a good liar.
In truth, I felt like shit. After Obsidian had stormed out of my apartment, I had taken a shower and then crawled into bed. But falling asleep was impossible. Thought of him and the pain had kept me awake for most of the night.
"Since you claim to be fit for duty"—she pointed to the boxes near my desk—"you can start unpacking the new books."
I nodded, even though I knew it was going to be hell.
"Was everything delivered?"
Betsy turned and searched through the papers on her desk until she found what she was looking for. "All but two boxes. I called them, and apparently, someone forgot to load them. They'll deliver it when the next plane comes in."
"Great," I muttered, taking the clipboard from her.
We'd have to wait another three weeks for it to be delivered. It was one thing I hated about living on the island. We had all the essentials—the island wasn't that small—but everything extra needed to be ordered, and that made the cost double.
"Do you mind if I leave early, dear?"
"Of course not! Is everything okay?" My eyes darted over to Betsy in concern.
"I told you that my granddaughter's having some trouble with her health. I want to go and check up on her."
"Do you need anything?"
She shook her head. "I need for you to sort those books. They called and will be here to pick them up by nine."
They being the customers who ordered their books through the library. We got a big discount if we ordered a large number of books at once.
"Right." I turned towards the boxes. "It'll be a walk in the park."
"There you go." I handed the stack of books over to the woman with a smile. "Let me know if they're any good."
"I will thank you."
I followed her towards the door and closed it behind her when she left the building. Lunch hour had started an hour ago, but there were too many people inside the library to close it. Betsy had left at ten after receiving a distressed call from her granddaughter. I had told her to let me know if she needed anything, to which she told me that she was going to take a few days off.
With a small sigh, I flipped the sign against the door over and made my way back towards the counter where two stacks of returned books stood.
I placed them on the trolley and started walking towards the back shelves of books.
The feeling of being watched from this morning hadn't left me. I couldn't understand how somebody could be watching me in the library when I knew I was all alone.
Shaking my head, I stopped to slip the book back in place before I moved forward again.
I froze when I heard a sound from behind me. Clutching the trolley handle a little tighter, I started walking again. There were no more sounds, which made me think that I might have imagined it in the first place, but the feeling of being watched never faded. It made the paranoia in my increase.
I slowly reached forward and grabbed the nearest book. Counting to five, I quickly spun around and threw the book.
"Stupid," I muttered to myself as I stared at the spot where the book had landed a few feet away.
Licking my lips, I walked over to pick the book back up again and check it for damage. Just as I turned around, I caught movement from the corner of my eyes. I instantly froze.
Was it the man who stabbed me?
My hand unconsciously dropped to press against my stitches. Had he come to finish the job? Swallowing, I tried to think of something to do—some kind of plan.
The library was big enough to get lost in—there were a lot of hiding places—but there was only one phone, and the man could kill me before I reached it. I should really start keeping my phone on me.
There was another sound close to my left; something dropped to the floor, followed by a softly muttered curse. My heartbeat increased, and icy shivers raced down my spine. I wouldn't easily forget the sound of the man's voice, but the muttered oath was too low to make out if it sounded like the man or not.
I could get lost in the library. I could use the tall shelves to my advantage and make my way toward the exit. He wouldn't try anything in public, would he?
My eyes darted towards the trolley. It squeaked whenever it moved. A smile spread onto my face as an idea hit. Hurrying back towards it, I threw the book onto it and gripped the handle tightly. I sucked in a deep breath and slowly blew it out as I counted to five.
*Hope this works.
I gave the trolley a push and then spun around and hurried back in the direction I came from. However, things didn't go according to plan, because just as I was about to round the corner, a hand clamped down over my mouth, and an arm wrapped around my waist before I was pulled back against a hard body.
"Silence."
I held my breath as my feet left the floor. The voice was instantly recognizable, but only because I knew nobody else who had such a raspy voice. Obsidian stopped and turned me around in his arms. He kept his hand covering my mouth as he pushed me back against the bookshelf.
My eyes darted up to his and widened.
Golden eyes stared down at me. What happened to his blue eyes? With the scars covering one side of his face and his eyes the colour they were, he looked like a monster out of a horror movie. Obsidian looked fucking scary.
My heartbeat increased, and my stomach churned. I was starting to feel sick, and I feared that I might puke on him. All the questions I wanted to hiss at him were completely forgotten when his lips parted to reveal sharp teeth.
Obsidian suddenly leaned forward, making a whimper fall from my lips. He froze for a few seconds and then moved again. Lips brushed my skin, and a breath later his sharp teeth.
Was he going to kill me for what happened last night?
Goosebumps broke out across my skin, and a shiver raced down my spine. My hands shot up to grab hold of his shirt at his waist when my legs gave way beneath me. A raspy tongue licked a spot beneath my ear.
Obsidian's big hand gripped my hip in a bruising hold—probably to keep me from sliding to the floor in a damn puddle. I gasped again when his chest started vibrating against mine.
It was just like the night with Ezra when he rescued me. Obsidian was purring!
The big scared cat who looked like he wanted to kill everybody was actually fucking purring. Why was he purring?
His hand that covered my mouth suddenly slid down to grip my neck. I held my breath as I waited for him to snap it, but he merely tilted my head backward and then to the side.
Pain shot through me when he nipped my skin with his sharp teeth.
"Ouch!"
He growled and bit down a little harder, but instantly soothed the pain with his tongue. My breathing sped up, and my body started to react to his mouth on my skin. I could feel my nipples hardening and press against my bra.
Obsidian suddenly pulled his face away from my neck. My eyes shot open and locked with his. His had changed again—they looked dark, almost black—and had taken the oval shape of a cat's eye.
The man looked scary and sexy at the same time.
He blinked at me before his eyes dropped to my lips. I licked them and watched as his eyes narrowed. Obsidian swallowed loudly and sucked in a breath as a strange sound fell from his lips, making his chest rumble against mine.
"W-what are you doing to me?" he questioned.
Whatever bubble had wrapped itself around us popped when someone called my name. It sounded close by and oddly familiar.
I blinked rapidly and tried to clear the lust-filled haze that his touch had provoked. It was hard, but when Obsidian stepped away, I could breathe a little easier.
My eyes dropped, and without another word, I stepped around him and made my way toward the voice calling me. The danger and fear from earlier were forgotten.
What the hell just happened?