Marius by Madison Stevens

worried that at any moment, things could tip toward a fatal path. For now, she’d take stable. It was better than nothing and certainly better than death.
    By the end of the day, she’d only had just enough time to check in on her patients before making a quick mail and email check. It wasn’t until she’d sat down to wait for Marius and opened up her laptop that the lab reports from the food, inside and outside water stared her in the face. The tox screening wasn’t what she had expected. Everything inside was fine, but some of the outside numbers were a little off.
    She stared at the numbers and thought about every factor in the area. There was a lot of construction going on, which could play a role, but it still wasn’t what she had been expecting.
    A knock at the door made her jump.
    “Come in,” she said.
    Marius stepped in, and she had to pause for a second as her brain processed just how fantastic he looked in the light. There was something about him as he made his way inside.
    “Are you ready to go?” he asked and moved further into the room.
    Rachel shook her head, mainly to clear out all the very naughty thoughts that kept popping in.
    Marius frowned.
    “It’s time to go,” he said.
    She set the sheet on the desk and leaned back. “Well, sometimes shit happens, and it’s called a lab report.”
    Marius moved around her chair to the back and peered over her shoulder. He bent over and looked at the paper.
    “What does all this mean?” he asked and pointed to some of the numbers.
    His arms brushed hers. She breathed in deeply and could smell his woodsy soap scent. The rich notes filled her nose, and when she turned her face to talk to him, her nose seemed to follow along the hot line of his neck.
    “I … ” She swallowed and brought her eyes to his. Oblivious to her problems, Marius waited for her answer, his amber eyes showing curiosity. She fumbled as he continued to stare, and the longer he waited, the more she wanted to just spit it out.
    He took in a deep breath and stilled.
    “What’s that smell?” he said quietly.
    Rachel frowned and turned her head to the side. She sniffed. There was nothing but the slightly floral hints from her earlier shower.
    “I don’t—”
    Marius leaned forward and dropped to his knees. His eyes flashed a bright yellow before he spun her in her chair and buried his head in the crook of her neck.
    “What are you doing?” she said and pushed him back.
    Marius set his head up and moved his face just inches from her. She stared at his bright yellow eyes.
    “Why is his smell on you?” He narrowed his eyes.
    Rachel frowned. “What?”
    Marius moved in closer, pressing her into the seat, his gaze intense and fixed on her own. “You smell like Rem.”
    “I just … ” she said and tried to back away, but there wasn’t anywhere to go. Marius only pressed in closer, with his body firmly wedged between her legs and arms on either side of her body. “We were working together.”
    He sucked in some air.
    “It was just work. I just sat on his bed today because it was more comfortable,” she said.
    She could feel the chair shake as she spoke and wondered if maybe it would have been best if she had lied.
    Marius's arms snaked up further on the chair, and he stopped when their lips touched. Afraid to breathe, she sat as still as she could. His breath came out hard, ragged. His hot breath fanned out across her face and cascaded down her neck. Chills broke out along her arms, and she wasn’t quite sure if she was scared or excited, but she was leaning more toward excited.
    “Don’t go near him,” he growled softly. She could feel the rumble against her lips.
    “We’re working together,” she whispered.
    Marius huffed loudly and pulled his face to her neck. She jumped when his lips found the fevered skin there. Rachel leaned her head to the side and moaned loudly.
    “He can’t have you,” he mumbled against her neck. He brushed the hair there aside, sliding his