Chapter 282: Chapter 282: Pheromones Ignite the Fire of Lust
As if worried Zoe Pierce was genuinely angry, Aaron Xavier had already opened the door after he finished speaking. Meeting her gaze, he added one last thing, "Zoe, good night."
Without looking at her face, he closed the door behind him.
Nearly a minute passed before Zoe, as if waking from a dream, finally realized what Aaron had meant.
A scarlet blush crept up from her chest, spreading across her face like a climbing vine.
By the time it reached her hairline, Zoe knew her face was completely flushed, no mirror needed.
Aaron had made a quick escape; otherwise, she would have given him a sharp slap.
Biting her lip, she struggled to cool her burning cheeks.
She put away all the gold Aaron had given her. ’I can’t believe I’m this materialistic,’ she thought.
Just as she placed the gift box into her Space Button, she heard another knock.
She rose and walked to the door. For a fleeting moment, she thought it might be Aaron, but she quickly realized the knock was different.
She opened the door and looked up, slightly dazed.
"Nathan Lockwood?" Zoe’s eyes swept over the dark corridor.
Nathan hummed in acknowledgment and walked right in with a gentle push of the door.
He acted as if he were entering his own bedroom, casually shutting the door behind him.
"Miles Sherman has come and gone. Aaron Xavier has come and gone. Now, I’m here..." he said, standing by the door.
Zoe immediately understood.
He meant that Chase Shaw would be coming over soon, too.
It was her birthday, and she had already met with two of them privately. To be fair, the others certainly weren’t going to forget their own "perks."
Zoe licked her lower lip nervously. "You’ve... been watching the whole time?"
Nathan moved closer, his arm loosely circling Zoe’s waist. "We’ve been watching ever since Aaron came in."
"He stayed for quite a while."
"Chase is probably waiting for me to leave right now, staring at his Intelligent Brain," he said with a laugh.
Zoe clutched his T-shirt. "Did you use your spiritual power?"
Nathan kissed her forehead. "No."
"We were just watching your door."
Sensing her relax a bit, he added, "It looks like you two got into some trouble."
Zoe pulled back slightly. "We didn’t. We just looked at his gift."
Nathan didn’t believe her, his arms tightening around her waist. "You should have seen the look on Aaron’s face when he left."
He looked like the cat that got the cream, grinning from ear to ear.
’It must have been because of that suggestion of his.’
Zoe was at a loss for words.
It wasn’t hard to imagine the look on his face.
She opened her mouth to speak, but a ticklish sensation spread across her lower back. Nathan was tracing his fingers over a sensitive, ticklish spot.
Her body trembled, and she immediately tried to push Nathan away.
But he pulled her in abruptly, causing her to bump her face hard against his cheek.
She then heard a low chuckle rumble from his chest.
"Zoe, I don’t want to talk about him." Mentioning Aaron a couple of times was already his limit.
"Have you seen my gift yet?" He stopped his teasing, his hand leaving her lower back.
There was a clear difference between someone she had been intimate with and someone she hadn’t.
At the very least, hugging Nathan’s waist felt far more natural to Zoe than being with Aaron.
Her body was more familiar with Nathan.
"I have."
Nathan had clearly showered before coming over; he smelled of fresh steam and a faint, pleasant fragrance.
It was a white tea fragrance, very similar to his pheromones.
It wasn’t overpowering—much subtler than his actual pheromones—but she could still smell it at this proximity.
Compared to the scent of raw pheromones, this was much easier for Zoe to handle, especially since she was still under the effects of Chase Shaw’s temporary mark.
It didn’t cause any discomfort at all.
’It’s like he planned this on purpose.’
"Thank you," Zoe said softly.
Nathan also knew his gift wasn’t particularly creative. Holding Zoe, he didn’t feel the impulse to lead her to the bed.
Right now, he was simply enjoying the atmosphere between them.
It was a tender, intimate moment.
With one hand, he opened his Intelligent Brain and put on a jazz song.
He continued to hold Zoe’s waist. No words were needed. Just the soft, slow music and two people holding each other close.
They began to sway gently to the music.
Even though they were both just in simple T-shirts, not fine attire.
Zoe felt Nathan press several kisses to her forehead.
Then, slowly, his kisses trailed down to the tip of her nose.
Zoe tilted her head back. As the beat of the music filled her ears, Nathan lowered his face and finally met her lips.
It wasn’t a tempestuous storm, just a delicate, lingering kiss.
There was no tongue involved.
Just a gentle, teasing brush of their lips, advancing and retreating.
Their steps were improvised. Both had learned formal dancing, but it wasn’t necessary now.
All that mattered was enjoying the atmosphere.
"Happy birthday, Zoe." As his lips left hers again, he pressed a kiss to the cartilage of her ear.
Zoe hummed softly in response.
The song ended all too quickly.
Neither of them moved to stop the music.
The kisses grew more frequent. Nathan was no longer satisfied with just this.
The pressure turned Zoe’s lips a deeper shade of crimson.
"It’s so damn hard to hold back with you," Nathan sighed.
Zoe whispered back, "And you think I have any self-control?"
’One after another, you all throw yourselves at me. If I just ignore all sense of morality, it’s impossible to say no.’
Nathan laughed.
It was rare to hear such a compliment for them from Zoe.
Even if she had said similar things before, he could never get tired of hearing it.
Three songs came to an end.
Nathan turned off the music and released Zoe’s waist.
One last, long kiss lingered between them.
Nathan smoothed Zoe’s slightly messy hair, his voice a little hoarse. "I should go."
He paused. "You should spray some freshener, or take a shower."
Inevitably, some of his pheromone scent had clung to her.
It wasn’t strong, but having two different scents lingering on her would likely drive Chase to his wit’s end.
He casually switched on the air purifier. "Actually, a shower would be better."
Zoe looked at him.
"Otherwise, Chase will torment you to no end when he gets here."
Of course, this was a rather transparent attempt to hide his own possessiveness.
A freshly showered Zoe would probably just make Chase even more determined to cover her in his scent.
Zoe replied, "I know."
She never underestimated an Alpha’s possessiveness when it came to things like this.
It was just a quick rinse, not even ten minutes in total.
That included the time it took to dry her hair.
After changing into a nightdress, she opened the bathroom door, unsurprised to find a tall man already sitting on the edge of her bed.
He was sitting ramrod straight, facing the bathroom, his gaze locked on her.
The door to her room was shut tight.
The air was already saturated with the scent of his pheromones.
The moment she stepped out of the steamy bathroom, a thick wave of pheromones washed over her.
Even with her suppression patch on, she felt her knees go weak.
’He’s cheating.’
’Using his pheromones to ignite her desire in an instant.’
