Page 19 of Discord
We silently stared at one another. His face was inches from mine. He smelled like sin and struggle and a man in the throes of losing it. The noiselessness between us was only magnified when his gaze dropped to my lips.
Brandon pulled my face in for a soft kiss. Sweet, gentle, and reassuring lips with fingers weaved into my hair. He finally pulled away to order, “Go to sleep. We’ll talk about it later.”
I opened my mouth to discuss the repercussions, resignation feeding into my soul. But it was difficult to speak with his giant arms protecting me. The broad build was too warm and inviting. My eyes drifted shut, and I fell asleep against his drugging weight.
Brandon
Milo:I’m taking some time off. I’ll be staying at my condo for a bit.
I frowned at Milo’s text. Common courtesy dictated making a bigger fuss over his sudden decision to move out. However, I chose not to reply. The glaring reminder of what I had done to his little sister was fresh on my mind, and unlike last time, I no longer had the moral high ground of playing ignorant of Mia’s age or relation to Milo. Any communication with him would be disingenuous.
I stared up at the brownstone. My gaze locked on the second floor, where I had one of the best sexual experiences of my life, and we didn’t even have sex. My self-loathing wasn’t strong enough to suppress the image of Mia licking off my cum or sucking me off. It left me troubled, both for what I had done and wanted to keep doing.
I ran my hand through my hair, tugging at the edges to pull out the repetitively obsessive thought from my mind—Make her yours.The words coiled through my strained muscles. I rolled my shoulders to loosen the tension and block out the erotic images from last night. Her glazed eyes. Soft lips. My cock sliding between her pussy. Her thighs when she squeezed me.
Christ. She’d barely graduated high school.Mia would still be a junior if she weren’t a year ahead in school. What was wrong with me? I was a piece of shit like my father. I should have never moved in with the Sinclairs. It was equivalent to an addict living in a crack house. Self-masochist instincts had bit me in the ass. Whereas my presence was supposed to torture Mia, I was the one tormented.
The door to the back porch opened with a bang, pulling my eyes from the window. Alexa startled. “What are you doing?”
“Just out for a smoke.” A terrible excuse for suspiciously lurking underneath Mia’s window. I rarely smoked. There might have been a justified reason to indulge today had I any cigarettes on hand. Luckily, Alexa was too preoccupied to notice.
“Did you get Milo’s text?”
I nodded. “Have you spoken to him?”
“I did, but he was evasive as hell. Said he was burnt out and needed a break.” Alexa folded her arms over her chest, resentful. “This is so annoying. We moved intohishouse. The least he could have done was tell us before moving out.”
The behavior might appear uncharacteristic of good old reliable Milo, but I couldn’t fault him. Milo and Raven broke up following the recent drama. Moving out was a practical decision. No one wanted to live with their ex unless they were a masochist like myself. Raven had similar notions and moved out, too. I spotted her leaving with Reid during my morning run. Apparently, Reid put his bender on pause and came to his best friend’s rescue.
Their absence was for the best. I planned to make Raven’s life a living hell if she played any part in the marks Mia sported. But first, a verbal confirmation was vital. It would devastate Mia if I ruined Raven for someone else’s crimes. I had to force an admission out of Mia before reacting hastily. Benefit of the doubt had to be exercised, so Raven was innocent until proven guilty. In the interim, it was best if she stayed out of my rage-filled sight and far away from Mia.
As for Milo, I was relieved at not having to face him. There was no gray area in the terrains I had trudged last night, but when Mia looked at me with her big, dumb eyes, I knew there wasn’t a thing I would have denied her if it made her happy. Not a desire I wouldn’t have fulfilled if only she had asked.
I spent my night erasing whatever nightmare chased her. Deep down, I also wanted to gratify the obsession I had been harboring for months. I was weak when it came to a certain teenager. Again, just like my father.
The horrifying thought nauseated me, and I redirected my attention to Alexa.
She lowered her voice. “Is it me, or do the Sinclairs have a lot of drama?”
I scoffed. Understatement of the year. “It’s not you.”
“Good to know,” she said. “By the way, Jaci and I are moving out. There’s no point in living here without Milo, and we are almost with everything for the California project. We can finish the rest from home.”
I nodded thoughtfully.
“What about you?”
I shrugged. “Probably the same.”
With Milo gone, there was no reason to stick around. None whatsoever. My gaze swept back to Mia’s bedroom window.
“All right. I’m going to start packing. Later.” Alexa opened the screen door to the kitchen. I heard a set of familiar footsteps through the ajar door. Perhaps my ears had primed themselves to listen for her movements, and that’s why I recognized the footwork before she was visible to the eyes.
My heart rate sped up. Mia strolled to the coffee maker, armed with an instruction manual. I had thrown out the original box and paperwork for the coffee machine. Clearly, she procured her own. Normally, Mia’s ingenious ways amused me, but I was in a deep state of hypnosis. I had snuck out of her room in the early hours of dawn. It was the first time I had laid eyes on her since.
The visual distorted once Alexa swung the door shut, and I watched Mia through the screen instead. It was one of those days when it hurt to look at her. A full stream of sunlight from the kitchen window glinted over her blondes, the baby hair on her forehead dancing slightly. Her multicolored silk pajama shorts contrasted against a loose neon green tank top. The ugly shirt did nothing to diminish the effect she had on me.
At first glance, I had chalked off her beauty as ordinary. Life would be simpler if this haze lifted, and I saw her as a plain Jane again. Then I wouldn’t think stupid shit like,she is the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.
