Page 50 of Centering Kaos

“I uh… same.”

“Want me to get you some ibuprofen?”

I was trying to sneak out of his bedroom after sex, and he was still being sweet and trying to take care of me. Maybe I could use that to my benefit. “No. Thank you. But if you would please turn around for a minute, so I could get up…”

His eyebrows rose. “You want me to turn around?”

If my face got any hotter, it would combust. “Yes. Please.”

“You realize I’ve seen and touched every inch of your beautiful body, right?”

Did he have to be so blunt? “Yes, but that was last night.”

“And…?”

“It was dark. It’s daytime now. I’m shy.”

His eyes narrowed, and I got the feeling he hadn’t fallen for my explanation, but he turned anyway. I bolted for my shorts. Scooping them up, I jumped to my feet, but my head rebelled. Leaning against the wall, I took a few measured breaths, trying to keep from throwing up all over his floor. Finally, the room stopped spinning long enough for me to slide my shorts up and hold my shirt closed.

“Can I turn back around yet?” Kaos asked when I stopped moving.

I nodded, realized he couldn’t see me, and answered, “Yes.”

When his gaze landed on me, I caught a hint of disappointment in his eyes. “You’re leaving.” It wasn’t a question, and he sounded resigned. Good. He must have come to the same conclusion I had.

“Yes. It’ll only take me a few minutes to get our stuff together, but I… I think that’s for the best.”

His eyes widened and he shoved himself up to his knees, giving me a world class view of the most impressive body I’d ever laid eyes on. He was hard—everywhere—and it was almost impossible to look away. “What are you talking about?” he asked.

I didn’t understand his sudden confusion. “Dylan and I are leaving… going back to Elenore’s.”

“Like hell you are,” he replied.

Shocked, I stared at him. The part of me that hated confrontation and wanted everyone to be happy and live in peace kept trying to point out that Dylan and I should stay. After all, Kaos had done a lot for us, and we owed him. What had he said about that last night? Oh yeah.

“I don’t know why society teaches girls to be grateful when boys act like decent human beings.”

I couldn’t stay because I felt indebted to him. I’d gone down that road before and knew it ended in a big, fat dead end. I wouldn’t let another man control my life. Not ever. Not even someone as good and incredible as Kaos. Squaring my shoulders, I summoned every ounce of resolve I could muster, and said, “Thank you very much for letting me and Dylan stay, but it’s time for us to leave now.”

“But… why?” he asked, stepping out of bed and reaching for his discarded sweats. “You wanted last night to happen. We both did. You made it perfectly clear you weren’t too drunk, or I never would have—”

“I know. I know what I said, and I don’t blame you.” I backed up another step toward the door.

“So, you’re just gonna… leave?”

Another step. I was almost to the door. I nodded. “It’s for the best. I need to take a step back and think about everything that’s happened.”

His expression fell. “I see.”

I hated that look on his face almost as much as I hated the pain in my chest. But there was no help for it. I knew what I had to do.

Turning, I fled from his room.

15

Kaos

TINA AND DYLAN were leaving.

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