Page 36 of Silent Secrets

“You’re sweet, Kai. Thank you.”

I know that some people wouldn’t want to be called sweet—I’m pretty sure I’ve heard Marcos say that it’s the kiss of death—but coming from her, I can tell that it’s a good thing to her.

Hadley is quiet for a moment before making a face. “I guess this means I’m meeting your guys’ parents? Is that weird? Should I be scared?”

Her words surprise me and I laugh loudly… and I can’t stop. Hadley watches me, an amused look on her face as I try to calm down.

Finally, I shake my head and clear my throat before turning to her fully. “Sorry, I don’t know why I found that so funny. Scared? No. Weary? Probably.”

Hadley nods as she chews on her bottom lip. Reaching up, I pull it from her teeth before rubbing across the tender area with my thumb.

“Don’t worry, angel. Nothing will happen to you.”

She blinks at me for a moment, lips curling into a small smile as she sucks the tip of my thumb into her mouth. My dick is instantly hard.

“What are you doing to me?” My words are barely a whisper as her tongue twirls around the tip of my thumb, her eyes filled with heat. I want nothing more than to bend her over the table and fuck her hard and fast. But there are a few problems with that—the biggest being that I’ve never been with a woman before. In fact, I’ve never been with anyone besides Caiden.

With a sigh, I pull my thumb back and smile when she pouts.

“As much fun as this is,” I tell her, “there is still a lot you have to learn and not much time to learn it.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.”

Hadley shoots me a smile as she settles back into her seat. It only grows when she notices me adjusting my cock. Laughing, I shrug. What the hell am I supposed to do? She gets me hard with barely a look. It’s not like that’s not obvious.

Falling into instructor mode is easier than I thought it would be, and before I know it, our time is up and she’s hurrying to meet Hunter and leaving me on my own. A little over two hours until I have to deal with my father and stepmother.

Not wanting to think about it, I end up wandering around the gardens—watching Hunter and Hadley without letting them know that I’m there. At least until my phone buzzes in my pocket, and I know my father has arrived. He’s probably in my room and wondering why I’m not there waiting for him.

Pulling my phone out, I open the message as I stride back towards the palace. I know that if I let it sit on unread for too long, he’ll make me regret it. Goddess, I don’t want to deal with his shit right now. I growl in exasperation as I read his message, demanding to know where I am—I love it when I’m right.

It doesn’t take me long to make it to the wing that our rooms are in, but my father is nowhere to be found. That asshole let himself into my rooms, didn’t he? My blood is already boiling and I know this visit will not go well. My temper isn’t something that I usually have to worry about, but I can already tell that I won’t be able to help mouthing off to him. Which will, of course, mean punishment for me.

Pushing open the door to my sitting room, I find I was correct. Duke Kam Jin, also known as my father, is going through the papers on my desk while Bella lounges on the couch, her hand resting on her already protruding belly. With how much she’s showing, I’m pretty sure that she was pregnant before she and my father married.

“Father.”

He spins around, eyes narrowing in on me. “Finally. I don’t know why you thought it appropriate to keep me waiting. You should have been here when I arrived.”

“That would have been easier if you’d informed me when you’d be arriving.”

I barely hold back my flinch as his eyes blaze. I know better than to talk back. He will make sure that I pay for that, though who knows how?

“Boy,” his voice is deep and menacing as he moves toward me, “have you gotten too big for your britches since I last saw you?”

It takes all of my willpower to keep my mouth clamped shut and my face blank. I’ve already messed up once, I don’t need to do it again. Though I’m sure my defiance shows in my eyes as I continue to meet his gaze. There is only so much that I can do.

His face draws back into a snarl when he stops directly in front of me. I can already see his body tensing, his arm drawing back, and I know that is going to hit me. My body tenses and I lock my jaw, determined to hold back any noises from falling from my lips. If I make a noise, I’ll be punished for that as well.

“Kam.”

Bella’s hand lands on my father’s arm, surprising both of us. My father turns to her, raising his eyebrows in question. I can’t believe that she’s coming to my rescue—that’s a first.

“I just wanted to remind you that we’re going to meet the other dukes for dinner with the princess.” The face she makes paired with the disgust in her voice tells me all I need to know about where she stands on the topic of Hadley. “So, you’ll want to make sure that you don’t leave any visible marks.”

My father’s smile is sinister as he leans down to kiss her, and I can’t help but think that the pair of them deserve one another. “Thank you, Bella, for the reminder.”

He moves so quickly that I don’t have time to prepare myself, his fist slamming into my stomach and dropping me to the ground. I bite my tongue so hard that I taste blood, forcing my mind away from this moment and to my happy place—to Hadley and Caiden.

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