Chapter 11
CHAPTER 11
CARTER
L istening to people cry ranks about as high on my list of shit I can’t stand doing as getting a root canal. But I have to honor the men that gave their lives in service to my family, so I listen to their wives or girlfriends or mistresses wail and holler about justice. Of course there will be blood. I won’t let what happened go unavenged.
Dad and I promise to pay for the services of everyone that was killed before we wire them each a million dollars. We also told them if they ever needed anything in the future, not to hesitate to ask. Their men died for us; we’d always take care of them.
The whole time I was talking to the families, however, my mind kept flashing back to Kai and the pain that was evident in his eyes before he stalked away from me. It was an expression I never thought I’d see on his face and one I didn’t think I’d care about if I did. But it’s really fucking with me that my words caused that look in his eyes.
I’m a fucking fool for thinking about more with Kai. And that more means not fucking hurting him.
I guess when I finger fucked my cum into him and told him I owned him, I meant that shit. Too bad my brain didn’t catch up to that memo before I shot my mouth off about the shit I observed between him and Charlie. Now I have to fucking apologize. I don’t apologize. It’s not something I do, because I’m never fucking wrong. But the pang I keep getting in my chest as I think about the hurt expression on Kai’s face, the one he couldn’t hide, I know that this time, I was dead fucking wrong.
Dad comes to the house with me so we can go over what happened with our delivery and the fuckers that blew up our money and men. My house is closer, and I want to get out of this fucking suit.
After I get changed into a pair of jeans, a loose t-shirt and stuff my feet into combat boots, I trek down to Kai’s room. Now that I think about it, I haven’t been to his room since he moved in and I showed him where he’d be sleeping. Kai also hasn’t been to my room. We’ve been moving around each other, less like roommates and more like strangers.
Well, strangers that fucked once.
My cock twitches as I think about Kai’s ass around my dick. Fuck, he was tight, hot, and fucking slick for me. I wonder why he was so wet, why his ass was prepped and ready for me to slide in. Was he fucking himself on his fingers? On a dildo?
I have to stop in the hallway before I get to his room to arrange my cock in my pants. Thinking about Kai’s plump ass swallowing a dildo as he fucks himself on it has my dick so hard, I can’t walk straight.
It takes a few seconds to get my dick to stay put against my left leg, but I get it in place so I can talk to Kai. Hopefully, I won’t try to fuck him when I see him. But when those gray eyes land on me, I sometimes think with my cock, not my actual brain.
Blowing out a long breath to prepare for Kai’s taunting when I apologize, I knock on his door. I stand outside like a fucking asshole, waiting for my husband to deem it necessary to allow me inside his room. I should just fucking barge in.
Annoyed, I rap my knuckles harder on the door. “Kai, open up. It’s Carter. Listen, we need to talk.”
Nothing on the other side of the door. No noise, no shuffling to get to the door, no chuckling that I came to him. Again, I pound on the door. “Kai, open up. Now.”
“Yeah, because that will get his attention.” I turn hard eyes on Nico, his stupid fucking bodyguard that annoys the shit out of me. “Maybe he doesn’t want to talk to you.”
“Don’t give a fuck.” I push into Kai’s room, intent on cursing him out for making me stand in the hallway like a son of a bitch. “Kai, get out here.”
I check his bathroom and find it empty, though the shower looks recently use. Confused, I walk back out, pushing past Nico and going to Kai’s closet. Not there either. I shoot him a look and head out of the room. Kai loves my gym, maybe he’s working out.
Even before I get down to the basement, I know he isn’t there. There are no sounds of machines churning or heavy breathing or gloves hitting the heavy bag. Even still, I check the gym and the showers down there. Nothing. Kai is nowhere to be found.
When I get back to the main landing, Nico is standing there, a look on his face like he fucked up. “What is it?” I growl, stepping closer to him.
He holds up Kai’s phone. “I found this in his room.”
Letting out a frustrated noise, I tell him, “Search the fucking house.” Snapping my hand out, I curl it in his shirt and pull him close. “You were supposed to be watching him. That’s your only fucking job!”
Nico snatches out of my hold. “This is the first time he’s lied to me about staying in. So don’t give me shit about trusting my friend .”
I grunt and jog back up to my room. I grab my keys and wallet, intent on driving around the city to look for him. That’ll be a bitch and a half, but Kai can’t be out in the world unprotected. Not only because he’s a St. Clair but because he’s a St. Clair- Whitlock . Someone wants both of us dead. Someone wants our families dead.
When I step into the hallway, Dad blocks my path. I try to step around him, but he moves in front of me. “Dad, I gotta find Kai.”
“I know where he is.” He shoves his phone in my face and shows me some GPS coordinates. “When I made your rings, I figured you’d need to know where the other was. So, I put a GPS tracking device inside them.”
“And you’re just now telling me?” I asked pointedly and snatch the phone from his hand.
“I was gonna tell ya eventually. When the time was right.”
“Thanks, Dad,” I say sarcastically as I punch the coordinates into the phone. Frowning, I look up at Dad. “He’s in Shell Village. At a night club.”
“Good. Go get him. We don’t know who could be out there trying to hurt him to get to you, me, and Charlie.”
I nod and dart around him. When I get back downstairs, I motion for Nico who just stepped out of the sitting room. “Let’s go. I know where he is.”
We waste no time hopping into my car and I speed out of the driveway. Before I exit out of the gate to our home, I call Declan. “Meet me at Club Aurora.”
“You got it,” he replies, then hangs up.
About ten minutes into my insane speed towards Kai, Nico clears his throat. I glance at him briefly, then face the road. “I’m sorry,” he says begrudgingly. “This really has never happened. I guess with his dad’s bullshit, then your bullshit, he needed out.”
“And he couldn’t take you?” His apology means fuck all to me. The only thing I care about is finding Kai and making sure he’s not hurt. I will fucking kill anyone that touches him.
“You like him, don’t you?” Nico asks, side stepping my question.
“What? No.”
“Yeah, you do. Or you would have sent me to get him. I am his bodyguard , remember?” I make noise between a grunt and scoff. “Don’t fuck him over, Carter or I swear to fucking god?—”
“You’ll do what? Kill me?”
“Yeah, I will. There’s nothing I won’t do for Kaison. If you’re going to be there for him, fucking be there. Don’t just screw him over or fuck with his head. Or I will slit your throat while you sleep.”
We say no more after that. I know Nico believes what he says, though he’d never get the chance to act on it. I don’t intend to do anything to Kai. I don’t know what I want, my head is so fucked up, but I don’t intend to hurt him. I did that today and it still makes me feel like shit. I can’t remember the last time something I did or said affected me so much.
Around twenty minutes later, we pull up to the nightclub. People are leaving for the night, but I don’t see Kai among them. Did he already leave? I look down at the app I downloaded that corresponds to our GPS coordinates, but it hasn’t moved. Kai hasn’t moved. What if…
“The alley!” I shout, hopping out of my car that’s stopped in the middle of the road. Pounding footsteps behind me has me turning around, meeting the eyes of my little brother.
“What is it?” he asks but doesn’t slow down.
“Kai,” is all I say.
Once we get to the alley, I see Kai’s shoes from behind the dumpster. “What the fuck?” I roar, putting on a burst of speed to get to him.
Rounding the dumpster, I see Kai struggling to sit up, his knife held out in front of him. “Go…the fuck…”
“Kaison, it’s me. Carter. I’m not going to hurt you. What happened?”
Declan brushes past me, taking the knife from Kai’s fumbling hands. “We gotta get inside, we’re too exposed out here.”
“Help me with him.”
We both step beside Kai and drag him to his feet. He looks over at me, his hair loose and in his face. “Husband, is that you?”
Despite the situation, I chuckle. “It’s me.” My laughter dies on my tongue when I spot the blood trail down his back. Raising my hand, I touch it and feel it’s still warm. “Fuck, you’re bleeding. What happened?”
“Got my wallet.”
“We’ll cancel your cards tomorrow. Where are you hurt?”
“Head,” is all he says before his legs give out under him and he faints.
“God fucking dammit!” I shout. I push Declan off Kai and sling him over my shoulder. “Get the car door.”
Nico had just pulled into the head of the alley haphazardly. Declan rushes around me and opens the door. Awkwardly, I stuff me and Kai into the back of the car, sliding over and dragging him with me until his head is resting in my lap.
“Go,” Declan says. “I’ll meet you at Lakewood Medical Center.”
The hospital he named is about five miles away. Nico stomps his foot on the gas to reverse the car, then throws it into drive without braking. He weaves around cars, honking his horn for them to move the fuck out of the way.
Kai’s eyes flutter open, and he stares up at me as if he can’t believe it. “You’re really here?” He reaches up and touches my face, his hand covered in blood. I’m not sure if it’s his or not. “I thought I was seeing shit.”
“No, you asshole. We’ll have words about you taking off the way you did as soon as the doc patches you up.”
Kai nods and nuzzles closer to me. A funny feeling settles into my gut as I look down at him. I don’t know whether to touch him or not, so I keep my hands to myself.
Nico pulls us up to the emergency room entrance and hustles to the back. He helps me drag Kai out. Luckily, he’s awake, so he can help us a little when we move him.
Once inside, I shout for someone to help and a few nurses run over, asking questions, and fussing over Kai. I hand him over and start to follow. One nurse grabs my arm, earning a hard shove from me for touching me out of turn. “Do not fucking touch me.” The man gets to his feet and holds his hands up, walking away with a quick glance over his shoulder.
“Sir,” a smaller nurse says, giving me a hard look. “Don’t abuse the staff here. If you want us to look at your friend?—”
“He’s my fucking husband and you will check him out.” I let the threat go unsaid, but she gets the implications.
“Right away, sir,” she says, turning to Kai as the other nurses get him settled into a bed.
They work on getting Kai hooked up to a blood pressure machine and an IV, then they check the back of his head.
A doctor steps into the room, introduces herself and takes over for the nurses checking Kai over. She snaps on a pair of gloves and pushes his hair out of the way and hums. “Looks like he’ll need a few stitches. Clippers.”
I grin at the look on Kai’s face when the doctor says that, but he’s still too fucked up to stop it. I’m not sure if it’s because he’s drunk or has a concussion, but either way, his hands can’t push them away as the doctor makes quick work of shaving a small patch of his hair. The rest of his tresses will cover his bald spot.
It doesn’t take the doctor long to throw three stitches into the wound on the back of his head. When she’s done, she looks at Kai. “I want to get some images to make sure you don’t have any fractures, in your skull or otherwise. You’re beat up pretty bad. Then we’ll keep you overnight for observation.”
“No,” Kai says, touching the back of his head gingerly. “Home. Wanna go home.”
She sighs as if she expected his refusal to stay. Her serious eyes turn to me. “You’re his husband?” I nod. “I can’t make him stay. He seems to only have a concussion and some bumps and bruises, but I want to make sure. After we take some images, I’ll have the discharge papers drawn up.”
“Okay,” I say with a sigh. I know no matter what I say, Kai won’t stay in the hospital if he doesn’t have to. No need to start a fight here for the world to see. I’d win and it would be shitty to beat a guy’s ass that already has stitches in the back of his head.
Three hours and a bag of IV fluids later, Kai is given a semi-clean bill of health. He doesn’t have any broken bones or a skull fracture, but he does have bruised ribs and a concussion. The doctor gave me instructions, telling me he could rest, but I had to wake him up every few hours to make sure he’s alert and aware.
“If at any point he becomes disoriented and he doesn’t know who you are or can’t answer basic questions, you get him to the nearest emergency room.”
By now, both Declan and Nico are inside waiting with me. No one speaks while we wait for Kai to sober up and for him to get his test results back. He dozes off every now and then, waking up with a start. Every time he does, he winces and touches the back of his head.
Nico grumbles the last time he wakes suddenly. “You’re gonna hurt yourself with that shit.”
Dazed gray eyes meet mine, then slide over to Nico. “‘S all good. Get me out of here.”
I push past Nico and wrap my arm around Kai’s waist to help him off the bed. I don’t know why I’m suddenly so territorial over him, but I don’t want anyone to touch him. Not while he’s hurt and vulnerable.
Guilt assails me when it never has before. If I hadn’t said what I did, he wouldn’t have ducked Nico and gone to that club alone. He wouldn’t have gotten hurt. This is all on me.
Declan climbs in the passenger seat while Nico drives. I sit in the back with Kai. Over his shoulder, Declan says, “If someone steals my car, I’m going to lose my shit.”
I grunt. “Call someone to pick it up.”
“Probably towed by now,” Nico adds unhelpfully.
Declan glares at his profile. “If you’d do your fucking job next time, this?—”
“Save it, kid. Your brother already gave me a lecture and it just sounds petulant coming from you.”
Kai barks a laugh, then nuzzles closer to me. My heart flutters in my chest at his small movement. “Leave him alone, Nico. I’d rather Declan not shoot you while you’re driving.”
“He could try,” Nico says with humor, like Declan isn’t glaring at him.
After their small spat, we’re quiet for the rest of the ride home.
It’s a bitch to get Kai out of the car, especially since he fell asleep again. When I wake him, he comes up swinging, getting a good shot into my jaw. Realizing it’s me, he gives me a lopsided grin. “I guess that’s payback for your bullshit earlier.”
“Fuck you, Kai,” I say, but the curse doesn’t hold the usual heat.
I drag him upstairs, but when we get to my bedroom, I turn the knob and usher him inside. Nico slowly follows me in and when I get Kai in bed, I catch his curious expression. I don’t say shit, just take Kai’s shoes off and begin to remove his clothing, starting with his pants.
Before I can pull them down, I look over my shoulder at Nico and Declan. “Unless you want to look at my husband’s dick, I suggest you both get out.”
“You could let him die,” Declan says nonchalantly. “Blame it on the head injury. Then you wouldn’t have to worry about having a husband.”
With steel in his tone, Nico says, “If you say some shit like that again, I will fucking end you.”
Before Declan can reply, I hold my hand up, exhaustion creeping in my veins. “E-fucking-nough. Both of you. Get the fuck out of my room.”
I continue to take Kai’s pants off as I hear the door click shut behind me. I unbutton his shirt and pull it from his shoulders, then pull off his socks. With a deep breath, I drag his underwear off. It takes effort, but I don’t stare at his dick. For long.
After he’s naked, I go to the bathroom and grab two cloths. I wet them both but only add soap to one.
Kai’s eyes flutter open as his steely gaze lands on me. “Don’t try anything dirty. I’m too hurt to enjoy it.”
I scoff a laugh and sit beside him. “That won’t happen. You smell like booze, vomit and garbage. Nothing makes my dick soft faster than that combination.”
Kai chuckles, then winces. “Thank you, Carter. For coming for me.” His eyes take on a more lucid quality. “How did you find me?”
I tap his ring. “My dad added a GPS tracker in them. Came in handy tonight.”
He breathes a laugh, then relaxes further into the mattress.
Washing him up doesn’t take long. By the time I make a third trip from the bathroom, he no longer smells like a fucking trash can. He smells like me. Fuck if that doesn’t make my dick twitch.
Kai is already asleep by the time I’m finished, so I get him dressed in my clothes and curl up beside him. The doctor said to wake him every few hours, so I set my alarm for three hours from now. Before I climb into bed, I take a quick shower, getting the smell of antiseptic off me.
I step into my room and just stare at Kai lying in the middle of my bed. Even with all his muscles, he looks so small. So helpless. He also looks like he belongs in my bed.
Sticking my dick in Kai was a terrible fucking idea. Before, I hated him. I wouldn’t have cared if he was skinned alive and I probably would have celebrated his injuries. Now, all I can think about is how to fully make him mine. How I can make him my husband in more than name.
Now, I wanted to fucking own him.