Burning Hearts

Chapter Six

Tana

The smell of crisp forest tickled my nose. I wanted to bury my face deeper into it. Your face is buried in him. Memories flooded in. I could feel Casen’s chest under the palm of my hand and against my cheek. His arm is holding me possessively to his body.

I don’t want to wake up. Let me stay trapped here in this short section of time. You can’t, you have to get up and get back to the estate. If I could grumble out loud I would. His body is warm, and my body responded to him. Can’t I have him just one more time?

No, now stop delaying.

My brain is not being fair. It’s right though. After inhaling him deeply, I carefully maneuvered myself from under him. The clock read four in the morning. I hadn’t slept long, but it felt like time slowed down and doubled in these last few hours. Maybe it is because I was sleeping with Casen.

I gathered my clothes and dressed with the dim light coming from a gap in the curtain of the window as my only light source. I pulled my phone out of my clutch purse and used the light to see if I had left anything. My eyes roamed over Casen’s sleeping form. He is magnificent. My hand raised and before I could stop myself, I snapped a picture of him. My selfish side just wanted something to say goodnight to in the future.

We can’t do this again. It risks us being found out and I can’t afford to lose my job. It may prevent me from finding another position if I’m terminated. I put my shoes on and quietly left the room. The side exit was close to the room. I walked to it and slipped out. It is cold. My arms embraced my body as I walked back towards the club and where my car was parked.

My car had to warm up before I could drive back. All that kept running through my mind was how good it felt to be with him again. Do other girls feel the same way after he sleeps with them? They must because he is clearly gifted between the sheets. The thought occurred to me of how many of his conquests had woken up in bed with him. My doubts about my worthiness crept into my mind on the drive back.

My bed was inviting. I set my alarm and plugged my phone in to charge. I stripped my clothes off and climbed into my bed in my panties only. I want to get a little more sleep. It is not the same without him next to me though. I imagined I was still in bed with him, and sleep claimed me.

~~~

My body told the story of what happened last night. I had marks all over. Thankfully, my uniform covered them all. They will fade all too soon, but my desire for him only seems to be escalating.

My senses are dulled a little because of my broken sleep as I let myself into Casen’s quarters to clean them. I went to the bedroom first to start cleaning there. My body froze in place as Casen was still sleeping in his bed. Get a grip and leave. Please just let me stay. You will lose your job and place to live if you don’t focus.

My brain is right. I was able to will my feet to move closing his door behind me. I collected up the cleaning supplies and left his quarters. I hid around the corner of his room where I could keep an eye on it and wait until he got up and left. If someone comes by, they will question why I’m not cleaning Casen’s rooms.

I noticed the room near to me. It is used for guests. I decided to do a quick cleaning of it if needed to waste time. I kept the door cracked so I could listen for Casen to leave his rooms. Now, if anything is said, I have made myself busy while I waited to clean his rooms.

It didn’t take too long and gave me the opportunity to freshen up this room. His rooms didn’t take long to clean. I wanted to stay longer. My brain overrode my temptation to want to stay. To crawl into his freshly made bed and never leave.

I heard music coming from the ballroom. I pushed the staff door open a crack and saw Casen dancing. I slipped into the shadows nearby and watched him with fascination. He’s even better than what we had accomplished dancing together at the club. My body called out to him and wanted to join him on the floor, finally getting the chance to test it out myself. He seemed a little upset though.

I slipped back out of the door and went to my room to change. I want to take the time to practice my dance for school after lunch. It was soup and sandwiches for lunch which I made quick work of. The cool air filled my lungs and white puffs of air surrounded me as I danced around the wooded area. I have claimed for my dance space.

My dance changed as I thought about him dancing with me. My body had a mind of its own. I let the music playing in my earbuds take me away. I don’t know how long I got lost for when I should have been practicing my dance instead.

I moved to collect my jacket from the lower branch because I was getting cold. I stared into his face and his expression turned from curiosity to recognition. Sh*t! Run! I didn’t question my brain and I ran into the wooded area deeper. I could hear his pounding footsteps as he chased me, even over the music still playing in my ears.

I was yanked back, and his hands steadied me as he turned me to face him. “What happened to your eyes?” I heard muffled from him. I took my earbuds out and stuffed them in my pocket. “Let me go.” “No, not until you tell me what you’re doing here and why your eyes are different.” His emerald eyes assessed me as he continued to grasp my shoulders in a firm grip.

“Contacts.” I answered him. To emphasize, I pushed my contact slightly to dislodge it before letting it settle back into place. His expression told me he accepted that answer. “Did you follow him?” “No.” “Then why are you here?” “I don’t have to answer you.” “No, would you like to answer to him and explain why you have been stalking him.”

“I’m not stalking him. I would have to be near him or peering in his window or stalking his social media. Being in the woods doesn’t associate with your stalking theory.” “You will answer me.” He reached in his pocket and pulled his phone out. “Don’t do that.” I raised my voice and tried to knock his phone out of his hand. He glared at me and gave me a look that said I had better answer, or he would alert Casen.

I cleared my throat. “I work here. I live here. Please don’t tell him. Don’t tell Master Corbin either what happened between Master Casen and me. I promise it will never happen again. I’ll stay away from him. I can’t lose my job. I have nowhere else to go right now and I’m almost done school.”

Orien loosened his grip on me. “What are you doing out here in the woods?” “I was trying to work on practicing for my final dance exam. My room is too small to practice in, so I come out here to practice.” “Why not use the ballroom?” “I can’t use it. I will get in trouble.” He pondered my answer and gave a small nod.

“Why do you wear contacts?” “Jealous workers in my old position accused me of being inappropriate towards the master of the house. It couldn’t be proven because I wasn’t being inappropriate. I was told to wear contacts while working to stop further accusations. I only get to take them out when I’m in my room or leave the property.”

“You have such beautiful eyes. It is a shame you have to hide them.” I shrugged. “Can I go back to practicing please?” He nodded. I started to walk back to the spot I used to practice. I turned back to him. “Please don’t tell him I’m here. I’ll do anything you ask. Just don’t tell him. He can’t know.”

“Why shouldn’t he know? He likes you a lot. He wants to be with you. He can’t stop thinking about you.” “I know, but I’ll get fired and I shouldn’t have stepped over the line with him. I knew better. I knew who he was. I know that our two stations will never be appropriate either. I will keep my head down and out of the way. I won’t go to the club anymore. I just need to graduate. I’ll leave after that and never bother him or anyone else again. Just let me graduate.”

“He’s going to be upset about not having anyone anymore.” “But he has you.” “No, I’m leaving with my family soon. He needs someone who makes him happy. You should reconsider telling him who you are. Who are you?” “I’m Tana. Tana McCoy.” “It’s nice to meet you, Tana. I’m Orien Lynx.” He extended his hand to shake, and I took it.

I was nervous when I moved back to dance. Orien watched me as he made his way back towards the main house. I hope he keeps the knowledge of me a secret. I will do as I promised and keep my distance. I need to anyway.