CHAPTER 11
C HAPTER 11
ALLYN
The drive back was silent—completely unlike the chaos swirling inside my head. I still felt dizzy, the wine had done its job. My body was overheated and restless.
And the man driving the car wasn’t helping. If anything, he made me feel even drunker than I already was.
He punished me with his silence, one hand gripping the steering wheel while the other scratched his chin. His eyes stayed locked on the road ahead, distant and cold.
“Why are you so fucking stubborn?” he finally broke the silence, his voice sharp. “Why can’t you, for once, do as you’re told?”
“I didn’t do anything wrong.”
I still didn’t understand what the big deal was. Why was he acting like I’d committed murder—or something worse?
He turned his head toward me, his eyes narrowing.
“Do you realize the danger you’re putting yourself every time you pull a stupid stunt like this?”
“Dylan was with us,” I countered.
“You’re not supposed to leave the house without me,” he snapped, his voice venomous. “Not fucking Dylan. Me!”
I shifted in my seat, trying to get comfortable. The car’s speed made me even dizzier.
“Well, you weren’t there, so I decided to go out for a while. ’’
“For a while?” He let out a humorless laugh, his expression utterly devoid of amusement. “You were gone for over six hours, Allyn.”
Okay, I didn’t realize it had been that long. I guess time really does fly when you’re having fun with someone you actually enjoy spending time with.
“Everyone is waiting for you to join us for dinner, and you’re out here irresponsibly drinking in some crappy restaurant.”
“Okay, maybe I lost track of time a little.” My attempt at downplaying things seemed to piss him off even more.
“How much did you drink?”
I leaned against the window, studying him. I couldn’t help but notice the way his throat moved each time he swallowed or how his biceps tightened with every slight motion, showing off just how ridiculously ripped he was under that black shirt.
“Three glasses of wine.”
“Fucking hell, Allyn,” he sighed, running a hand through his hair, making it even messier. “And you got drunk from three glasses of wine?”
“Are we judging now?” I raised a brow. “How did you even find me?”
“I have people all over the city. I can always find you.”
I can always find you.
It sounded like a threat, and coming from his mouth, it probably was.
“And why are you here and not Angelo?”
I blurted out, crossing my arms over my chest. He stayed silent, refusing to answer.
Of course.
I huffed. “You’re such an asshole.’’
“So you’ve said.”
The car stopped. Maddox killed the engine, as he stared into the darkness ahead, his hand still gripping the wheel even though the car wasn’t moving.
“Why did you stop here?” I glanced around.
The car was hidden in a dark alley behind the mansion’s gates. No one could see us from here, and for a moment, I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing.
“I can’t let my family see you like this.” He ran his tongue over his bottom lip and sighed. “Enter through the back gate and go straight to your room. All the guards are in the main hall guarding my family, so no one will see you.”
‘’But they’ll be expecting me.”
“Leave them to me,” he cut me off, his glare sharp and unyielding. “Just go.”
But I didn’t move. I couldn’t . My body was turned completely toward Maddox, my eyes locked on his shadowy figure. I wasn’t that drunk, but it was still enough to make me feel lightheaded, given how easily I got tipsy.
“I don’t understand you, Maddox,” I whispered, breaking the silence that filled the car. “You’re so confusing.”
“You’re not supposed to understand me.” He nodded toward the gate, his voice cold. “Go. Now.”
“No.’’
Maddox snapped his head toward me, his brows shooting up in confusion.
“No?”
“I’m tired of you telling me what to do all the time. I want to do what I want.”
His serious dark face cracked, the corner of his lip curling into what resembled a grin.
‘‘Oh really?” I nodded. “And what is it that you want to do?” he asked, his voice dipping, mocking as if laughing at me. “Drink all night in some shitty bar, I assume?”
My eyes drifted to his lips, completely unbidden. I didn’t mean to—really, I didn’t. It just… happened.
“You want to know what I want to do?” my throat throbbed as I swallowed. He nodded.
“Right now, I want to kiss you.” I blurred out the words before I even had a chance to think them through.
It’s wrong and messed up and the last thing on my mind should be kissing my future husband’s brother but screw it.
I’m drunk and hot and pissed and the thought of kissing this prick is bothering my mind for longer than I would ever admit.
I can’t stand him— that’s a fact.
But it’s a fact that has nothing to do with my desire to kiss him.
Maddox stayed unreadable, as if my words didn’t surprised him, but something was different. The spark in his eyes it’s more visible, stronger as if he has the same thoughts as mine.
After some time, I spoke again.
‘‘Forget it. It was stupid I-’’
‘‘Do it.’’
“What?”
“You were so vocal about what you want, yeah?”
Maddox leaned back, spreading his legs slightly.
“So, do it.”
It sounded like a challenge. A game he was certain I would back out of. His eyes sparked with anticipation, like he was ready to laugh the moment I turned and ran.
He thinks I won’t do it. He thinks I’m a coward.
A sudden rush of adrenaline hit me, every nerve in my body tingling with over-stimulation. Maddox looked too relaxed, too confident—too infuriatingly handsome for his own good.
His gaze dropped to my lips, and it burned, setting my skin alight. Instinctively, I wet them.
Do it, Allyn. Prove him wrong.
Prove you’re not a coward.
This is a game I refuse to lose. Not with Maddox King.
Before I could second-guess myself, I leaned forward, grabbed his face, and kissed him like my life depended on it.
And that kiss—it delivered everything I was terrified it would.
I had hoped it would be awful. So bad it would shatter every thought I’d ever had about this man. So bad I’d be disgusted, left with nothing but disdain for him.
But it wasn’t.
No, it was the most soul-breaking, heart-melting kiss I’d ever experienced. The way his mouth moved against mine made the world vanish. Every stray thought I’d ever had was consumed by how he tasted, how he felt. His low, guttural groan vibrated through me, pulling me deeper into the moment.
The way his tongue slid against mine—challenging, teasing, syncing to a rhythm so sweet it left me breathless—was enough to make me lose my mind.
If a soul orgasm exists, I am having one right now.
Butterflies swarmed my stomach the moment our lips synced, his hand tangling in my hair as though he was just as desperate for this kiss as I was. We kissed like we had no concept of time, no need for air. I’d rather suffocate than stop. My fists clenched his shirt like a lifeline, while his grip on my hair mirrored the same intensity.
Heat coursed through my body, pooling low, igniting every nerve until I moaned against his lips. He seized the sound, tugging my hair to slide his tongue into my mouth again, claiming me.
Maddox groaned—a deep, raw sound that was hands-down the sexiest thing I’d ever heard. It did things to me I didn’t know a simple kiss could.
I was drenched, my body betraying me, soaking the leather seat of his stupidly expensive car. And he hadn’t even touched me properly.
Maddox was the first to pull away, shoving me back slightly as if he’d flipped a switch in his brain. My lips stung, suddenly cold, already missing his warmth.
“Fuck,” he muttered under his breath, his voice rough and uneven.
He looked wrecked—his hair disheveled, his face flushed, his chest heaving as he fought for breath. His lips were red and swollen from our kiss, and the fogged car windows looked like we’d done far more than kiss.
“Just go, Allyn,” he snapped, his tone sharp and distant. He didn’t even look at me.
Ouch.
I bit my lip, swallowing any retort, and grabbed my things. What was there left to say?
My legs wobbled as I stepped out of the car.
Even as I walked away, I could still feel his lips on mine, like he’d branded them with his touch.
With each step toward the gate, reality pressed harder against me, its weight growing impossible to ignore. Panic surged through me, flooding every corner of my mind.
I had just kissed my future husband’s brother.
I kissed Maddox King.
The worst part?
I couldn’t bring myself to regret it.