Page 24 of Fractured Loyalties
Me: I’ll be there, then. I’ll find you.
I close my eyes and let out a deep breath, imagining Kade staring at his phone, maybe thinking about what to say next, or perhaps just laughing at how obviously desperate I sound. But a few minutes later, I’m feeling relieved again.
Kade: Unless I find you first. ;) It was so cool to get to know you today, Ivy.
Something flutters in my chest, so I send a funny GIF back and then drop my phone onto my nightstand.
I flip onto my back and stare at the ceiling, counting the cracks in the paint and listening to the sound of the house settling around me. My body feels as if it’s buzzing for some reason. Maybe it’s the fact that Kade is so friendly—and hot, too. Regardless, my core grows achy, and I rest my hand on my stomach.
And suddenly it’s as if I’m teasing myself. I think about Kade, his easy smile, and the way he stood in front of me, a wall against Blair and her army. The way he didn’t flinch when I said my dad’s ashes were on the shelf, or when I joked about not understanding the dynamics of this family.
I think about his hands, how big and brown they are and lined with swimmer’s calluses, and I think about the way he said my name.
Ugh.I squeeze my eyes shut, roll to my side, and punch the pillow into a new shape. It doesn’t fix it.
The heat under my skin intensifies, rolling over my body in waves that crest. I know exactly what’s happening, and I mean…
Fuck it.I’m eighteen. If this house is suitable for anything, it’s privacy, I think.
Or wait… Someone’s always watching?
My eyes flutter open at that, and I scan my bedroom for a few tense moments. But there’snothing.No one is watching me in here.
That would mean someone would have to care.
I let my hand drift down, my fingertips skating across the band of my leggings, before slipping under the oversized hoodie. My skin is still clean and smooth from the shower, and I shiver at my own touch.
Slowly, I slide my palm over my stomach, up under my shirt, and feel the ridges of my ribs and the quick stutter of my own pulse. The air in the room is cool, but my body is hot, every nerve ending awake and electric.
I hesitate for a moment, holding my breath at the burst of shame, but then I push it away and let my other hand slide lower, underneath the band of my leggings. I press my palm between my legs, feeling the heat and the moisture of my pussy. My thighs tense around my hand, and my breath hitches in my chest.
Oh my God, I need this. It’s been too long.
I try to take it slowly, to savor the feeling, but my body isn’t interested in slow. I rub harder, pressing circles with my fingertips against my clit.
“Mmm,” slips from my lips, as my breath becomes quick and shallow, and my face heats up. I close my eyes and picture Kade, leaning over me, his hands braced on either side of my head. He’s smiling that stupid, crooked smile, and the weight of his body is enough to pin me to the mattress. His lips brush my ear, my cheek, my mouth. I imagine his hands on my waist, my thighs, everywhere at once.
“I want you so bad, Ivy,”I hear him in my head.
The thought isalmostenough. My hips lift off the mattress, chasing the feeling, and my other hand squeezes my breast. Every muscle in my body is straining toward something just out of reach.
Fuck, I’m so close.But it’snotenough, and a frustrated moan erupts from my throat as I drop back to the bed, panting.
I squeeze my eyes tighter and try to refocus on the fantasy.
Kade’s lips move lower, grazing my neck, my collarbone, down to the hollow of my throat. He whispers something, his breath tickling my ear.
“What is it?” I ask, my body desperate to grind against his. I want him to keep going, want him to touch me the way I’m touching myself, want him to…
Without warning, the face starts to change. The eyes shift to blue, the smile sharpens, and…
“Roman,” I breathe out, a new jarring burst of arousal shooting down my body, from my nipples to my clit.
“You little fucking whore,” his voice is deep, and it rumbles through my entire body.
“Oh God, you’re what I want,” I moan, my voice cracking as I start to skyrocket toward the edge. “I need you.”
He chuckles darkly, suddenly pressing himself between my legs. “You know how I would touch you, Ivy?” His hot breath tickles my neck as he pulls at my skin, tugging me into his mouth. “I’ll ruin you.”
