This man has tortured me for so many years, yet his gut instinct is to dive over me and put his life at risk without a second thought. Despite all he’s done, that reaction was Dread’s feelings stripped to their roots, and it was purely an act of love.
How could I not love him for that?
His door cracks open, and Rogue’s grinning face appears, like a demon emerging from the depths of a pitch-black closet.
I exhale heavily and quickly straighten my T-shirt so it’s covering me properly, trying to decide if I’m more relieved or frustrated. Dread, however, is clearly the latter. He straightens with an annoyed growl, and I’m positive he’s giving his best friend a death glare right now.
“You guys were just making out, weren’t you?” Rogue asks, pushing the rest of the way into the room.
Severen’s right behind him, and the second he clocks my and Dread’s expressions, he snorts. “You’re being generous, dude. It looks like Rev just got lip injections.”
All three of them turn to look at me, and I bristle beneath their scrutiny.
“How do you know I didn’t?” I snap, tempted to cover my mouth again. It’d only make me look guilty, though, and I refuse to give any of them the satisfaction.
I cross my arms defiantly, but also because I feel a little exposed wearing no pants or bra. I spare a glance at Dread, but it’s another mistake, because he’s biting his bottom lip and staring at me with utter pride over my swollen lips, like he’s eager to do it again.
“Are they also responsible for the state of your hair?” Severen asks dryly.
Shit.
I’d forgotten Dread was pulling it, and I don’t need a mirror to know I look fucking insane right now.
My cheeks burn, but I lift my chin, refusing to give them a reaction. “I woke up like this.”
A wolfish grin splits Rogue’s face in half, and he pointedly glances atthe mattress while nodding toward it.
He might as well have told me the demon fromThe Grudgeis sitting right behind me. My heart drops, and I slowly twist at the waist until my rounded stare lands on the massive damp spot on the sheet. Most of it hasn’t dried fully, so the pattern makes it very clear it wasn’t just a spill of water, but more like something… splashed it. If I’m being honest with myself, it looks like a fucking dolphin used its flipper to smack the water repeatedly, and this is the result.
Mortification floods my veins, and my entire face feels like it’s on fire. It takes monumental effort not to stand and throw myself out of the window.
Yet, I redirect every ounce of stubbornness from my soul into my bones to keep my spine straight and chin hiked.
I face forward again, deliberately ignoring Dread’s stare, and sniff indignantly.
“Dread pees the bed at night. Super embarrassing for him.”
Rogue barks out a laugh, and Severen snorts. I risk a glance at Dread to find him shaking his head at me, though one side of his mouth is curled into a grin.
We all fucking know the truth, but if I have to choose between admitting to it or throwing Dread under the bus, I’ll put the bus in reverse and roll over him a second time, just for good measure.
“Well, on that note, you two need to get to the airport,” Severen says, grabbing the back of Rogue’s shirt and pulling him back out of the room.
I tighten my arms around myself, refusing to be sorry, even as Dread steps back in front of me and sweeps his palm along my jaw and into my hair before forcing my chin up.
Amusement swirls in his gaze, but he says nothing. Instead, he bends and presses a soft yet equally erotic kiss against my lips. He’s slow to pull away, but it’s still over all too soon.
He pauses a hairsbreadth away, darkly whispering, “I love you, Reverie Adams. Be a good girl for me while I’m gone, yeah?”
His stare is reverent as he swipes the pad of his thumb down my bottom lip, his gaze lingering there.
If I had the ability to breathe, I still couldn’t. He’s sucked all the oxygen out of the room, leaving me to choke on the carbon monoxide.
He bites his bottom lip and hums, a deep rumblelow in his throat, as if he’s pleased with what he’s seeing. Then, he lifts his eyes back up to mine. He keeps them locked, and my heart thuds heavily. I’m speechless and overflowing with butterflies as he retreats, grabs the handle of his suitcase, and drags it with him as he walks out of the room, softly shutting the door behind him, all before I relearn how to inhale.
Fucking… hell.
Ireallyhate that I don’t hate him.
