Listen, Obey

45. Forty-Fifth Lesson

Marc tried to keep me calm during the evening, telling me that time wouldn't run faster just because I was pacing the living room. He was right, of course, but sitting down seemed impossible. Whenever I tried, I kept fidgeting until I rose again, anxious to receive the promised phone call.

Tilia kept me preoccupied a couple of hours, but she had turned in for the night. Her eyelids drooping long before she finally gave in.

Marc placed his hands on my shoulders. "You're not helping anyone with this stress you're building up."

"I know. But I can't sit down, and I'm definitely not calm."

He leaned in, his lips touching the shell of my ear. "If I knew you were ready, I would restrain you and lure all that stress out of you." It was a promise, and a very sexy one at that. I muffled a moan, shocked that a few simple words from him could shift my thoughts from a phone call to the two of us lying naked on the rug beneath our feet.

"You want that, don't you," he continued, his warm breath still breezing past my ear.

"Yes...yes."

"But not yet." He didn't pose it as a question, but I wished it was. When he stirred me like this, I wanted nothing more than to give in and let him have his way with me.

"Perhaps I'm ready," I whispered back.

Marc stiffened in my arms. "You keep testing me, Ethan. Not healthy."

I pressed into him, feeling the tell-tale sign of his growing arousal. I was smug as a cat as I flicked my tongue against his lower lip. "I like testing you."

Our teasing abruptly ceased as the phone rang. Marc's gaze grew serious before he stepped away from my arms and snatched the phone from the table.

"Matthews," he said into the phone.

I couldn't hear what the other person answered, but from the look on Marc's face, it had to be Drew.

"Tomorrow. Are you sure?" Marc continued.

He nodded while Drew, or whoever it was, spoke.

"Ethan wants to be there, maybe it might calm him down if you do get him out of the building."

Hope and gratitude bloomed in my chest at Marc's words. He understood my need to be there even if he didn't like the thought of me being in danger. I wasn't planning on placing myself right in the middle of it all, but at least I wanted to be there and see Jace with my own eyes.

"I'll tell him. I'll see if I can get a babysitter."

They exchanged a couple of more sentences until Marc closed the call and placed the phone back on the table. "That was Drew."

"What did he say?"

"They're aiming to get him out of there tomorrow. They've done some reconnaisance today, and he's still in that hotel room."

"How do they know?"

"One of them went there as a customer."

A chill swept through my system. "And...met Jace?" I hoped Marc would understand what the question was about.

"He didn't get into specifics. We'll have to trust that Drew trusts his men." Marc took my hand, running his thumb over my cold skin. "He did say that Jace seems ready to get out of there, but that he's skittish and appears afraid. Hopefully your presence might help calm him down when they get him to the car."

"If you mean. If they get him to the car." Dread held me in its firm grip which meant that I didn't want to take anything for granted. And, even if we got him out of there, it didn't mean he would get his shit together and get off the drugs.