How can I confess that my family is searching for ways to betray his? Kingsley is bound to the same sense of loyalty as I am. It’s a no-win situation. I’m damned if I do and damned if I don’t.
His hand slides into my ponytail before wrapping the thick length of hair around his palm until there is no slack. His mahogany-colored gaze sifts through mine as if he can decipher my innermost thoughts. It’s a disconcerting sensation. When I avert my attention, his grip tightens, and my lips open on a gasp.
“What’s going on?” The playfulness filling his voice falls away, leaving a steeliness in its place. This is the contradiction that is Kingsley Rothchild. He can be soft and tender. Or forceful when necessary. Perhaps the latter should scare me, instead it turns me on.
Not only is he aware of it, he relishes it.
As much as I want to confide in him, I remain silent. If I tell him about my parents and nothing comes of it, I’ll have stirred up a shit storm for no reason. Everyone will be pissed off, and it will only create more bad blood between our families.
The entire town hates us for past misdeeds. Only now has it settled down, and that has everything to do with my relationship with Kingsley. In this realm, he’s king. Whether or not it’s a conscious decision, everyone follows his lead. I know what it’s like to have the student population of Hawthorne Prep turned against me. That’s not something I want to live through again.
“Answer me, baby girl.” His grip turns punishing, and a small cry leaves my lips. My heartbeat riots against my ribcage as arousal gathers in my core, flooding my panties with heat.
In the beginning of our relationship, the pleasure I derived from the hurt he inflicted disturbed me. It was impossible to wrap my brain around how something painful could cause so much arousal to flood my system. Was it normal to be so turned on by someone pinching my nipples, biting my lower lip, or tugging on my hair, all the while forcing me to surrender?
I have no idea.
Kingsley is the first person I’ve had a sexual relationship with. It’s a brand-new world he’s opened up. Whether or not it’s right, I’ve made my peace with it. I don’t care if it makes me a deviant or freak. I love the way he touches me. I love submitting to him. If that makes me weak, then so be it.
“There’s nothing.” I hoist my smile. “Everything is fine.”
When I shake my head, the strands of my hair tug against my scalp. It sends another punch of need to the bottom of my belly. All right, so maybe the explosion takes place much lower.
“Hmmm.” He scrutinizes my expression as if assessing me for the truth. Remorse slices through me. Even if I wanted to look away, I couldn’t.
His face looms closer until his tongue can sweep over my lips. Unable to help myself, I open, only wanting to banish everything that has been haunting me for the last twenty-four hours.
Instead of kissing me, he whispers, “Don’t ever lie to me, Summer. In order for this relationship to work, we need to trust each other. Once you’ve broken that trust, it’s gone.”
A shiver of unease creeps down my spine as my mouth turns bone-dry. I have no idea how to respond. When it comes down to it, I am lying to him by not admitting what I know. An omission of the truth is still a lie.
I’m saved from having to answer when a deep voice yells from down the hall, “Get a damn room, Rothchild!” Laughter reverberates off the walls as people turn in our direction.
Heat slams into my cheeks as I blink back to awareness.
How does he do that?
How is he able to make the world fall away around us?
“I’d love to,” he responds without releasing me from the intensity of his gaze. It’s as if I’ve been imprisoned and can’t fight my way out.
When my teeth sink into my bottom lip, he groans. “The only thing better than the way you’re looking at me is when you do it from your knees.”
I swallow as that image fills my mind.
His hand loosens from my ponytail before his large palms cup the sides of my skull. My eyelids flutter as his mouth settles over mine. The velvety softness of his tongue forces its way inside my mouth. It doesn’t take much persuasion on his end. I’m more than willing to give him what he wants. What we both want. He tips my head for better access. A whimper slides free from my lips as he stakes his claim for all to see.
When he pulls away, his eyes are heavy-lidded and full of promise. “Don’t ever forget that your mine.”