by Chloe Walsh
Straightening in her seat she turned to look at me. Her eyes were full of unshed tears and I didn’t realize until that moment that I’d broken the one bond I needed to protect more than any other bond. “Why won’t you talk to me, Kyle?” she cried, wiping her eyes with the back of her hands. “Why won’t you confide in me?”
“I’m sorry,” I choked out.
“But you won’t tell me what’s going on?” she said sadly.
When I didn’t answer, she wiped her cheeks and turned her face towards the window. “Just take me home, Kyle.”
I was at a loss. A complete and total loss. I couldn’t look at her. It hurt too much. I’d done it again. I’d fucking broken her again.
Keying in the password into the small handset on the wall, I started the engine and waited for the gates to swing inwards before driving up our narrow wooded driveway.
The car crunched to a stop on the gravel in front of our house and I killed the engine. “We’re home.”
She didn’t reply.
“Lee,” I said a little louder. “I said we’re home.”
Nothing.
Turning to face her, my heart squeezed when I saw she was asleep. “I’m sorry, baby,” I whispered as I stroked her cheek.
I took a few moments to just sit there and look at her. She looked exhausted. She had the darkest of circles under her eyes and her face was set in a worried frown. Jesus, even in sleep she was sad . . .
Had I fucked up that much?
Had she finally taken enough of my bullshit?
Had I pushed her too far?
The bruising on her face made my stomach lurch violently. I was missing something. Something had happened to her . . . My whole body broke out in a cold sweat. My hands trembled. Every inch of my body was fucking shaking. “Lee?” I choked out in a desperate tone. “Wake up, baby. I need you to tell me what happened to you.”
She muttered something incoherent before twisting sideways in her seat. “I’m tired, Kyle,” she mumbled, not opening her eyes. “The day keeps the dark away . . .”
The day keeps the dark away?
Unfastening my seatbelt, I climbed out of the car and ran up the steps to unlock the door before rushing back to the car. Opening Lee’s door I removed her belt before lifting her into my arms. She curled into me as I carried her into the house. There was no sign of Derek or Hope as I climbed the staircase with Lee in my arms.
Heading straight to our room. I drew back the covers and placed her gently on the bed. “Please don’t leave me,” I heard her mumble and I flinched. I wasn’t leaving her. She never needed to say those words. She never needed to even think those words. There wasn’t a damn place I was going besides into that bed and laying right next to her. You did leave her, asshole . . .
“Shh,” I whispered as I drew the curtains and shrugged off my shirt and jeans. “I’m here.”
Climbing into bed, I pulled her back into my front before covering our bodies with the duvet. “Sleep. We can talk later.”
“It’s never going to be over . . .” she whispered drowsily.
“What isn’t, princess?” I asked as I buried my face in the curve of her neck.
She didn’t answer and I wasn’t sure if I was relieved to not know or terrified to think of what she meant.
I woke in our bed, to a very warm Kyle draped around me. Wiggling my body, I tried to free myself from the weight of him pressing down on me before stopping. I liked the feeling. I took a deep breath and soaked in the safeness I hadn’t felt in weeks.
My hand was resting on the pillow next to my head and was grasped tightly in Kyle’s larger one. His leg was thrown over both of mine and his cheek was pressed against my chest. I didn’t have a clue of how we’d ended up in bed, but right now it wasn’t important. I’d slept better than I had in weeks and, for the first time in months, without a nightmare.
“Oh my god,” I shouted suddenly as I shoved Kyle off my chest. “How long have we been asleep?” We’d left the house early in the morning. “Oh god, Hope . . .”
“Is fine,” Kyle husked as he pulled me back down on the bed and resumed his snuggling. “She’s sleeping, baby.”
“Sleeping?” I squealed. “How long have we been asleep?”
Kyle chuckled softly as he nuzzled his cheek against my chest. “You have been asleep with the past fourteen hours. It’s after midnight,” he muttered before pulling himself off me and adjusting himself to rest his back against the headboard. “We need to talk, Lee.” He took my hand and knotted his fingers through mine. “I need to explain some things to you . . . but not here.”
Throwing the covers off the both of us, Kyle climbed out of bed and slipped on his jeans. “Come outside with me,” he asked quietly as he held out his hand for mine, his eyes pleading with me.
And I was a glutton for punishment because I climbed out of bed and took his hand without question.
The view from my perch on the slope of our garden was amazing. The glow from the moon illuminated the mountains. Each star in the blackened sky seemed to shine with more brilliance than the next.
I watched as Kyle strolled over to where I was sitting on my blanket. He carried a blanket of his own in one hand, his phone in the other. I wanted to toss that stupid phone as far from him as I could. He was too young to carry the burden his eyes told me he carried. “Are you okay?”
Lowering himself to the ground, he settled himself behind me and pulled me into his chest. “I am now,” he whispered kissing my bare shoulder as he covered our bodies with the blanket. The little hairs on the back of my neck shot up in anticipation.
He wrapped his arms around my middle, swallowing me up with his strength as he pressed feather light kisses to my neck. His nose nuzzled my hair. “Your skin feels like silk baby.”
“Are you going to tell me what’s going on with you?” I asked gently as my body practically purred in pleasure from his touch.
I felt his big body tremble around me. “I never want to lose you, Lee.” His hold on my waist tightened. “I know my actions lately say otherwise, but you’re so fucking crucial to me.” His face ducked to the curve of my neck. “I fucking hate myself for the way I’ve treated you.”
“So why did you do it?” I asked with my heart in my mouth, bracing myself for the worst.
“Because I’m a fucking idiot, that’s why,” he choked out. “I lost myself for a while, Lee, and I could have lost you . . . I don’t understand why you’re still here,” he admitted gruffly. “I mean I’m thankful you are, Jesus, I’m thankful, but I’ve fucked up more than enough for you to run.”
“Yeah, you have, Kyle,” I said softly, twisting my neck so I could see his face. “But unfortunately, I’m kind of in love with you.” Sighing heavily, I added, “It sucks because no matter what you say or do to me, I can’t seem to walk away . . .”
“Linda’s dying,” he blurted out, shattering my thought process, blowing my mind to pieces.
“What?” Twisting my body around, I knelt between his legs, shook my head, and tried to form a coherent sentence, but the only word that came out of my mouth was, “What?”
“She has cancer, Lee,” Kyle hissed through clenched teeth, dropping his head to rest his forehead on my shoulder. “She’s had it for months and never told me. Cindy,” he muttered. “The girl you met yesterday, well, she’s Linda’s niece. She’s the one who told me.”
“Where is it?” I whispered.
“Everywhere,” he croaked. “She’s been battling this fucking disease for months and never said a word. She went through her radiotherapy alone and her chemo. That’s where I’ve been going.” His arms clutched my waist as he buried his face in my chest. I felt wetness seeping through my clothes, dampening my breasts and my heart ripped open for him. “She doesn’t have long left,” he sobbed. “I wanted to tell you, but she made us promise not to tell anyone. She says she’s not scared, but she’s got fucking cancer . . .”
“Oh baby,” I murmured, wrapping my arms around him, stroking his hair with my hand in my poor attempt to console him when I knew full well there was no consoling him. Linda was as good as his mother. His heart was clearly breaking. Linda’s words came back to me and suddenly it all made sense . . .
Protect him, Lee, and stand by him. He’s going to need you . . .
“I don’t want her to die, Lee,” he confessed. “She’s gonna die any day now, and I’ve never felt so fucking angry in my life.”
I wrapped my arms around my wounded man, holding him to my body, pouring every ounce of love and comfort into my touch. “Kyle, I don’t have the words to fix this for you,” I admitted, stroking his hair. “But I’m here for you. Whatever Linda needs, whatever you need, I will help you.”
“Stay alive.” He lifted his face to mine. “Just keep yourself safe and healthy. No more risks. No more strain on that beautiful body. I’m gonna need you to stay safe.”
Before I had a chance to reply, Kyle’s mouth descended on mine. The soft pressure of his lips roused every nerve in my body to life. His kisses were soft, a slow leisured onslaught on my lips that turned my legs to jelly and my heart to mush. His hand cradled my jaw as he took his fill. My body melted, pliant under his touch.
He moved us slowly until I was lying on my back with this beautiful man hovering above me, sliding between my legs. My nightshirt rose to my hips as every hard-edged angle of his body slotted perfectly into each soft curve of mine. He was all man, all thick, hard muscle, all mine.
I didn’t move or allow the frantic hunger burning through my veins to spoil this moment.
Instead, I wrapped my arms around his neck and allowed Kyle to set the pace. He needed this and if the only way I could comfort him was with my body, then I would gladly give it to him.
Kyle took his time, slowly grinding his erection against the throbbing ache of my core, his lips never leaving mine.
Our bodies fused together. The sheer, dominating strength of his body was a contradiction to the gentleness of his lovemaking. His biceps bulged with strain as he held the brunt of his weight off the upper half of my body, angling his weight to press against my core. I gasped against his mouth, bit back a moan, when I felt his body shift as he slid a hand down my waist.
Curling his fingers around the lace of my thong, he slid the fabric aside, stroking my folds once before moving to his hand to his sweatpants.
And then he was inside me, filling me with aching slowness.
I felt every hard inch of his erection stretching me. I lost myself to the pleasure. Tearing my mouth from his, a scream ripped from my throat when he ground his hips upwards, rubbing the ache of my clit with the exact amount of pressure I needed. “Oh god . . .”
His lips captured mine, cutting me off, as his tongue stroked me with the same rhythm that his cock fucked me. My fingers were everywhere, fisting his hair, scrawling his back, digging into the tight cheeks of his ass. I rocked my pelvis up to meet his thrusts, silently begging him to go faster, but nothing I did seemed to faze Kyle, as he kept the same frustratingly slow tempo. Grind. Kiss. Lick. Grind. Kiss. Lick . . .
My clit throbbed like a pulse as every delicious nerve in my core knitted together, unifying in an urgent race for release. He used only his tongue and his erection and that was enough. Every thrust of his erection sent small shockwaves rippling through me, each plunge of his tongue intensified those shocks until I was clinging to him and arching away all at once. “Let go, princess,” he whispered. “Give it up to me.” Those words were all it took for me to fall over the edge. I came hard, a shuddering mess as Kyle followed, pressing inside me so deep, the veins in his neck straining from his orgasm.
Well, I’d broken a dying woman’s wish. I should have felt disgust, but all I felt was relief. Relief and sheer amazement at the forgiving nature of the woman in my arms. I didn’t deserve to hold her in my arms. I didn’t deserve her loving touches. Goddammit, I was such an asshole . . .
“I am sorry, Lee,” I whispered, pulling her closer to my body as we snuggled on the couch. We’d come inside and lit the fire to warm up when I’d realized the ground was cold as fuck and I could have cause the girl to catch pneumonia. “I know I promised Linda, but I should have said something sooner . . . given you some sort of explanation.”
“Don’t,” she whispered as she lifted my hand to her lips. “I understand why you did what you did.” Nuzzling her cheek against my chest, she sighed heavily. “I’ve missed you so much these past few weeks,” she confessed. “Being without you feels like I’ve lost a crucial limb.”
Catching her hand with mine, I lifted it to mouth, but my heart sank into my ass when I noticed she wasn’t wearing her ring. “Where’s your ring, Lee?” I croaked out. She snatched her hand away quickly. Too fucking quickly. “What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Don’t get mad,” she begged as she twisted her body around and knelt beside me.
“I’m not mad,” I told her calmly. But my heart is beating at a hundred miles an hour . . .
“Yeah, but don’t get mad,” she said nervously.
I stiffened, my eyes locked on her wide gray eyes. “Tell me.”
“Daddy took it.” Lee bit down on her lip and stared at me as if she’d done something terrible. “I’m sorry, Kyle. I said no. I did try to stop him, but . . . he was drunk.”
“What?” I sat up and grabbed her hips. “When the hell did this happen?”
“The day I left the hotel,” she said quietly. “I tried to tell you, but you . . . so I just . . .” Exhaling a ragged breath, she attempted to smile at me, obviously trying to appease me. “I’m fine though.”
Biting down on her lip, she clasped her hands together and let the words spill from her lips in burst.
“He’s in jail now?” I asked when Lee finished explaining what had happened. I couldn’t get my head around this. She’d been attacked, beaten up, and I’d told her I didn’t want to know. Jesus Christ. David had saved her. He’d been there for my family when I hadn’t and if he hadn’t arrived Jimmy could have hurt Hope.
“Yes,” Lee mumbled. “It’s over.”
She looked upset.
“There’s more?” I asked slowly. “What else did he do to you?” Besides kick you in your goddamn kidneys and smash your face with his boot . . .
“He cut me,” she muttered and thrust her hand into my face. My eyes locked on the W marked into her skin.
“W,” I said, much calmer than I thought possible, as I stared at her, stroking my thumb over the scar. “Is that code for something?”
“You know what its code for, Kyle,” she blushed.
I shook my head. “No Lee, actually I don’t.”
“It means whore, Kyle,” she muttered. “It means I am a whore and he wants you to know it.”
“You were a virgin,” I snarled. “A fucking virgin. I took your goddamn virginity.” I raked my hand through my hair in frustration. Frustration because Jimmy was locked up and I couldn’t get my hands on him and fucking hatred towards myself for breaking every promise I’d ever made her. “Christ, Lee, I’m fairly certain I was your first kiss?”
She nodded and I groaned in shame.
“It’s because of Hope,” she informed me—as if having a baby with me automatically made her a whore.
Goddammit to hell . . .”I’m marrying you. You are mine,” I hissed. “Mine. How the hell does that make you a whore? You are pure. Fucking pure.”
Jerking off the couch I grabbed my pants and searched the pockets for my keys. “I’m gonna kill him, Lee.” Pulling on my jeans, I reached for my shirt on the coffee table. “He won’t get away with this.”
“Don’t you dare leave this house,” she warned me, as she jumped off the couch and grabbed the waistband of my jeans.
Jerking me towards her, she stepped around me and shoved me down on the couch before straddling my lap.
“I handled it,” she said calmly. “It
is over, Kyle.”
“He put his hands on you,” I spat, my fingers knotting in her shirt.
“And he’ll never be able to do it again,” Lee replied firmly. “So calm down . . .”
The buzzer for the front gate sounded and Lee automatically flinched and ducked, tucking her face into my neck. “Relax,” I coaxed. “It’s just the intercom. Someone’s at the gate.”
With my hands on her back, I stood up and strolled into the hall with Lee wrapped around me like ivy “Yeah?” I said, holding my finger to the buzzer.
“Mr. Carter,” a familiar female voice said and Lee stiffened in my arms. “I’m sorry to disturb you at this time of night, but could you buzz me in. I have something important to discuss with you. It’s about Jimmy Bennett.”
“It’s open, come on up,” I told Kelsie while I kept my eyes locked on Lee’s.
“What do you think’s happened?” she whispered. “Oh, Kyle, what if it’s bad . . .”
“It can’t be bad,” I told her as I walked us into the kitchen. Hoisting Lee on top of the counter, I rested my hands on her hips. “Just relax. We’ll know soon enough.”
The doorbell sounded and we both stared at each other nervously. “Do we want to know?” Lee asked anxiously.
“We do,” I assured her before kissing the tip of her nose. “You need to let me go, princess. I have to get the door.”
“Oh yeah.” Lee blushed as she unlocked her ankles and released me. “Sorry.” Jesus, she was sitting with her legs spread open chewing on her damn lip . . .
Shaking my head, I adjusted the tent in my jeans before going and opening the door. “Is it . . . ?”
“Good news?” Kelsie finished for me before nodding. “It’s very good news,” she purred. “It’s fantastic news.”
“I don’t understand,” Lee said as she placed two mugs of coffee on the dining table. “He was only arrested a few weeks ago.”
“Your father had a list of convictions as long as his arm,” Kelsie replied and she lifted one of the mugs to her mouth. “And your father has friends in high places,” she said as she glanced at me.