Page 56 of Twisted Kings

Realizing I wasn’t going to get him to shift, not without causing him some serious harm, I deflated like a popped balloon.

“Fine,” I huffed, somewhat petulantly. I’d stick around until after Christmas and then leave. It was a big house, with morethan enough space for Cassian and I to avoid each other. For all I knew, he wasn’t planning on staying for long anyhow.

“You and Cassian need to talk.” My eyebrows shot up.

“What’s there to talk about? He thinks I betrayed him.”

“So did Landon, but you’re fine with him now?”

“Not fine,” I huffed.

“Oh really? You seemed pretty friendly not long ago, while he had you pressed up against the counter in the kitchen.”

Oh fuck, had he seen that? My cheeks flushed.

“Yes,kotenok, I saweverything.” He edged closer until my back hit the wall. “Maybe you and Cass just need to fuck it out of your systems.”

“I’m not fucking him again.” OK, so I wasn’t wholly against the idea. For all his faults, Cassian was hot as fuck, and the Daddy vibes he gave off definitely got my motor running. But fucking him again would be a mistake.

It was bad enough I’d let Landon dickmatize me in the kitchen. The pair of them were bad news. Kyril got a pass because he’d rescued me and never bad-mouthed me. And also because being here made me horny as fuck, and I needed at least one fuck buddy to relieve the pressure.

Was it pregnancy hormones? Yep, I still hadn’t taken a test. So sue me. If I was pregnant, there was nothing I could do about it for a few days. Or at all.

“Let’s go downstairs and eat. Everyone’s sitting at the table waiting for us.” He stroked my cheek and leaned in, brushing my mouth with his. For once, his kiss was more about reassurance than passion, but it didn’t stop the sparks from igniting deep in my core.

Not wanting to go down and see Cassian, I drew him closer, deepening our kiss. In no time at all, he grew hard against my belly.

“Bad girl,” he groaned. “I can’t go back down with a hard-on. Your sister is in the kitchen.”

“Then let’s stay here,” I suggested hopefully, avoidance being my middle name.

He reluctantly drew back after one last lingering kiss. “No. You two need to talk. But first, food. I can hear your stomach growling.”

Dammit. Since when had Kyril become the voice of reason? Had the universe flipped on its head overnight?

I rolled my eyes and threw the bag I’d packed on the bed. “Fine! Just know that if he starts bitching at me, I will fucking stab him in the dick.”

“He won’t,” Kyril promised. “From what little he said, he’s dealing with a ton of shit from his father.”

Was that why he’d traveled to the back of beyond on Christmas Eve? I knew from overhearing the guys talking that Lucian Forsyth was not a happy bunny. Hardly a massive shock. The sex tape had derailed Cassian’s engagement and probably cost Lucian a fuck ton of money in terms of losing business with Camilla’s father.

Not my problem, but still. If Lucian was anything like my father - and from what I knew about him, I suspected he was - then Cassian had been under immense pressure since the sex tape went viral.

“I could eat,” I admitted reluctantly as Kyril took my hand. Seeing Cassian would likely kill my appetite, but it was Christmas. If nothing else, we’d all have to play nice for Verity’s benefit.

“Good. Now let’s go and be mature adults.”

When we reached the bottom of the stairs, Kyril tugged me back into his arms before I could push the door to the kitchen open. Landon’s laughter caught my attention. His mood hadpicked up after days of sulking. Was our sexy moment in the kitchen earlier the reason?

The delicious aroma of spiced stew set my stomach off again. It seemed like my body didn’t care about Cassian’s presence - it wanted food.

“If you’re a good girl,” Kyril whispered in my ear. “I’ll reward you later.”

A shiver of anticipation slithered down my spine as I imagined what that reward looked like.

26

Cassian

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