Page 88 of Vengeful Guard

“Ronan O’Malley.”

Kael’s face turns murderous, almost scary, and my eyes widen.

“You shouldn’t go around with the likes of O’Malley.” His voice is flat. Emotionless.

“Why not?”

“He’s a thug.”

“So are you.”

“I never said I was good enough for you.”

I stare at him for a long moment, huffing out a breath. “Well, you can't tell me who I can and can’t hang around with.”

“Like hell I can’t. My job is to protect you from guys like him!” He’s seething, his icy blue eyes flashing as he looks at me.

“You can’t police who I date, Kael.”

“You want to date him?” His eyes look almost gray, somehow, a storm brewing as he searches my face.

“I don’t know. Maybe.” I don’t. At all. But I want to know what happens. Catalina and Sophie said this would be fun, and I have to admit I like the way he’s affected by me.

“He can’t make you come like I do,” Kael says in a low tone. “No one can.”

Heat rushes through my body. “Oh yeah? Well, maybe he can make me come harder.”

Kael crawls toward me like a panther, his shoulder muscles flexing, and he takes my ankle in his hand. “That’s not what you were saying last night, crying out my name while I fucked you.”

I scoff. “You’re just jealous.”

Kael looks at me for a long moment, and then releases my ankle, sitting back down on the couch, almost defeated, his shoulders slumped.

“Aye.” He takes a deep breath. “You can do what you want, but not until after this Murphy situation is resolved.”

“You’re really going to let me go after Ronan?”

He shrugs. “If that’s what you want.”

He sounds almost despondent, and I regret my words. I regret all of it, because there’s not just jealousy in his blue eyes—there's hurt, too.

“Kael.” I get closer to him, straddling his lap and putting my arms around his neck. “I don’t want anyone else.”

His eyes widen as they stay on mine. “You don’t?”

I shake my head. “No, but that’s a problem. We can’t be together.”

He rubs my back. “It’s complicated. I don’t do relationships. Especially not with my best friend’s little sister.”

“I can’t help wanting you.” I press my forehead to his.

“I can’t help wanting you, either,” he murmurs. “And I can’t help it that thinking of O’Malley’s tattooed hands on you makes me fucking crazy.”

“I don’t want Ronan. I just...I wanted to make you jealous.”

He frowns, pulling away from me. “Why the hell would you want to do that?”

“Needed to know if you cared.” I’m so stupid.

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