Page 40 of Tainted Rose

Xander crawls up my body, lying on top of me. He kisses me hard, stroking his tongue into my mouth, and I taste myself on him. My core throbs with powerful aftershocks.

“That was so fucking hot,” he groans next to my ear.

I giggle quietly. “What the hell, Xander?” I try rather unsuccessfully to breathe normally. “What if she had come in?”

“Then she’d have gotten an eyeful if she’d pulled back the covers, I guess?”

“My heart was seriously about to come right out of my chest.”

He nips at my earlobe and whispers, “Then why didn’t you make me stop? Why’d you spread your legs wider for me?”

“I never said I didn’t like it.”

“That’s my girl. My Red.”

He rolls to his back and draws me in to his side, and I throw my leg over his. We lie there like that, tangled up in each other for a long time, me intermittently pressing kisses to his chest, him stroking his fingertips over my back.

“We’re good together,” he mumbles, halfway to sleep.

Funny, but my mind is whirring a mile a minute. And I have a question because I’m confused. “Xander?”

“Mm-hmm?”

“When did Aria show you that letter?”

“Just the other day. Why?” He clears his throat and looks down into my eyes.

“The fact that your stepdad is probably my father is why you were pushing me away, right? Which I kind of get, because your mom doesn’t know, does she?”

“Yes, that’s why, and no, I don’t think she knows.” His body hums with tension.

“And you’re protecting her. And Janie. From finding out about … me. Right?”

“Yes.”

As the pieces click into place, I shove myself to sitting, pulling the sheet to my chest. He’s still keeping something from me. “If you only just found out, what reason did you have for everything you did to me at the beginning of the school year?”

He sits up, eyes flicking from mine down to his hands. “I—dammit, Red. At first, I was protecting them. Now I’m protecting all of you.”

“What aren’t you telling me, Xander? Why did you come over here and pretend to spill all of your secrets, only to hold on to some? If I know Sebastian is my father, and we know he knows I’m his because he’s paying for my schooling, what’s left?”

He runs his hand through his hair, gripping it and pulling, his eyes hard when they finally connect with mine. “You need to fucking trust me, Scarlett. I have to talk to Sebastian.”

I press my lips together as both anger and fear begin to rise within me. “Maybe I’d trust you more if you’d be honest with me and tell me stuff.”

His voice is laced with anguish. “I can’t. Not until I know.”

I gasp out my pain at him denying my request, clutching the sheet at my breasts. “Here we fucking go again. This is my goddamn life, Xander. You have no right to keep things from me.” Tears spring to the back of my eyes, burning. I’m not going to cry in front of him, though.

He shakes his head and shoves himself off the bed. “It’s clawing at my insides that you don’t trust me. It’s killing me.” He props his hands on his hips, staring down at me, his hard, muscled body on full display. His chest rises and falls faster and faster the longer we stare at each other. “I’m trying to protect you.”

“You’re not protecting me. You’re hurting me. You’re hurting us. Please leave.”

He closes his eyes, his jaw rigid as he blows out a hard breath. Without another word, he pulls his clothes on and leaves my room.

So much for getting any sleep tonight.

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