I wasn’t really sure how a concussion would make a man come faster than usual, but I was going with it.
His eyes flicked to the bandage, his expression becoming stoic once more. “You should get to bed. You need rest.”
Expecting him to put me down, I started to pull my legs from around his waist. He gave one of those indistinct grunts and started down the hall with me still in his arms. The sensation of being carried was new but comforting, and I swayed toward him until my chin rested on his shoulder. Around me, his arms flexed, and the mere indication of his strength had my lashes fluttering down with a deep exhale.
This is nice.
Nice wasn’t something I was familiar with, and I jolted, body springing away from his with enough force that he had to grip my back to keep me from dropping right onto the floor.
He released a long-suffering sigh, a grouchy prelude to his gruff demand. “Could you at least try to go five minutes without doing yourself some sort of bodily harm?”
“What about you?” I blurted.
“Me?” He scoffed, his pace not even slowing. “I’m more than capable of taking care of myself.”
“Not that.” I dismissed his rebuttal. “I got off, but you didn’t.” I was a lot of things, but selfish wasn’t one of them.
His body tensed. “I’m fine.”
“Oh. Did you come in your pants too?” I glanced between us, relieved I might not be the only one who’d made a mess ofhimself, but because my legs were wrapped around his waist, I couldn’t see.
He barked a laugh, the deep sound echoing to the tall ceiling of the bathroom. It was even bigger than the one I’d showered in earlier and nearly as tall as it was wide! Seriously, it was so nice that it momentarily distracted me with all the white marble and the glass shower, separate tub, and massive double vanity.
“I have a little more self-control than that,” he informed me, sitting me on the countertop and leaning over to tap the mirror, illuminating the lights built right into the glass.
Humiliation rushed through me all over again, this time with no buffer from the earth-shattering orgasm. Its sting was accompanied by a pinch of hurt, and I turned away so he wouldn’t see.
“What’s that look?” Kieran demanded.
“Nothing,” I muttered. “I should probably go.” I decided and gripped the edge of the counter to jump down. Piercing pain slashed through my cut palm, making me hiss and jerk my hand back.What am I even doing here anyway?
Eyes stinging, I shook out my arm and wiggled forward to leap down.
He blocked the attempt, stepping so close that my knees hit his waist, upper body forming a wall. “Hazard.”
“That’s not my name,” I snapped.
His fingers caught my chin, pulling my face around. Even with me on the raised counter, he was still much taller, and my stomach dipped when he bent so we were eye to eye.
So blue, like the ocean. A good place to drown.
“Why do you look like someone kicked your puppy?” It wasn’t a question but more of a command.
I scowled. “If I had a puppy and someone hurt it, I wouldn’t pout. I’d knock out their teeth.”
He pursed his lips. “And how would you do that?”
Annoyance blanketed the million other emotions already whipping through me. “I’m not as helpless as I seem. I grew up in an orphanage. I know how to fight. How to survive.”
I might have been small, but I was scrappy and I fought dirty. In the game of survival, the only rule was to… well, survive.
To my astonishment, he lifted his hands in surrender and took a step back. “All right, then,Hazier. Could you at least tell me why you want to leave?”
I know I didn’t know the guy, but this seemed like odd behavior. He didn’t seem like the type to back down or give in. And him calling me by my full real name?Awful.Ew.Never want to hear that again.
Frustration swelled inside me. He’d given me what I asked for… so why did I hate it?
When I pushed off the counter, my feet smacked into the floor, socks slipping over the tile and pitching me sideways. Kieran moved quickly but somehow so gracefully and stopped me from tumbling into a heap. My cheek pressed against his bicep, my whole body cradled against his. Relief washed over me in the form of his heat and scent and the confident way he lifted me back to my feet.
