27. Hades
Hades
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Past
As I walk in the direction Kennedy went, I tell myself that all I’m going to do is try to knock some sense into her head.
I’m not close to the Coreys, but I know that the bastard, who must be just a little younger than me, maybe twenty-six, twenty-seven, has appeared several times in scandalous headlines. Unlike his brother, whose name escapes me now but who is a respected lawyer, Ryan is an idiot.
They are the only heirs of a traditional American family.
I’m not a hypocrite. Besides the desire to prevent Kennedy from messing up her own life, I’m insanely jealous.
I know I need to make a decision. Either I take her for myself and end this obsession that has turned my days into a living hell, or I let her go and leave her to live her life.
Live, not destroy, and that’s what will happen if Kennedy gets involved with Ryan.
My blood boils the closer I get to her. What does she think she’s doing, walking to the back door of the club? Did she arrange to meet him here?
“Kennedy,” I call, grabbing her arm, and the moment I touch her, the memory of the only time I had her like this hits me with the force of a hurricane.
“Hades?”
“Come with me. We need to talk.”
I’ve been to this club before. I know the owner and the place like the back of my hand. It’s a safe place for Pam to celebrate her birthday with friends. Nothing like SIN, which belongs to Ares and is definitely off-limits for my ward, or Hazard, which belongs to Beau and is even more off-limits for the girls than SIN.
I open one of the doors to a private room and am pleased to find it empty. I had the club closed so Pam could celebrate.
“What do you want?” she asks. “You’ve never come to visit me since I arrived, and suddenly you want a private conversation with me?”
The idea was to talk to her about college, about what Pam said, that Kennedy was spending her afternoons with Ryan and didn’t want to study.
None of that crosses my mind, however, when I see her standing just an arm’s length away.
I close the door behind me and know, just by looking at her, that our attraction is mutual, no matter who she’s dating.
“You’re not going to stay with him,” I state like a caveman.
“What?”
“Ryan. I’m not going to let you stay with him.”
“I’m not with him.”
“He’s not your boyfriend?”
“Of course not. I . . .”
I move closer, making her back up until her body is pinned between mine and the wall. “You’re free?”
“Why so many questions?” she responds evasively, but I see a nervous swallow work her throat.
“Say you’re free, Kennedy.”
Her gaze falls to my mouth. “I am, Hades. I don’t have a boyfriend.” She pauses. “No relationship that prevents me from kissing someone.”
“Someone? No, me, Kennedy. Only me.”
The way her head tilts when I hold her neck, the way her lips part and her body trembles against mine, is my answer, but it’s when her arms rise and Kennedy goes up onto her tiptoes to wrap them around my neck and moans a needy “please” that all the restraint I’ve worked on over the past month goes to hell.
My heart pounds intensely in my chest, echoing in my ears like a tribal drum.
I see in her eyes that Kennedy has surrendered herself to me, and her submission fuels my obsession even more.
At this moment, I am nothing but a man consumed by desire, longing for the woman I can’t forget.
One of my hands grabs her waist, my body pressing against hers, feeling the delicious softness of her smooth curves.
I lean towards her face and think I hear her moan my name, but I’m not sure because the next second, my lips take hers.
At first, it’s just simple pressure, flesh against flesh. A gentle touch, contrary to the overwhelming lust that has spread through me. Soon, the hunger becomes uncontrollable, voracious, and when I taste the sweetness of her mouth for the second time, I know my craving for her will hardly be satisfied, no matter how many times I devour her.
Slowly, my tongue glides over hers, in a dance of provocation, challenging her to follow my rhythm, to show herself to me.
Kissing Kennedy is like diving into the strongest drink, intoxicating myself with lust.
Surprised by the intensity of what I’m feeling, I suck, bite, and lick, drawing soft sighs from her. Feeling her reaction, her body writhing in response to my touch as my hand moves from her waist to her butt, only increases my desire.
I’ve never been so hungry for a woman.
The sound of our accelerated breathing fills the entire room, leaving right and wrong outside. Common sense, rules, and obligations don’t exist. All I know at this moment is that I desire Kennedy like I’ve never desired anyone else.
Our tongues intertwine in a fervent clash, where lust dictates the law.
I need to take her with me—that’s the only certainty I have, and with one last bite on her lower lip, I pull our faces apart.
“I don’t want you at Vina’s house anymore,” I say.
I’m giving up on running from my desire at this moment, knowing that this thing between us will never work with Pam around.
I’ll arrange a place for her to live until the madness between us passes. After that, I’ll let her stay in the place as long as she wants. I might even gift it to her.
“What?” she asks, looking shocked.
“I want you to leave Vina’s house.”
A second later, when Kennedy pushes my chest with all her strength and walks towards the door, I know she misunderstood everything.
She thinks I’m kicking her out.
I’m not used to being rebuffed, and seeing her leave without giving me a chance to speak pisses me off. “We’re not done talking yet.”
“Yes, we are, and I understood what you meant. Don’t worry. You don’t need to kick me out of Mrs. Vina’s house. I’ll leave as soon as I find a place to stay.”
“Kennedy!”
But she doesn’t hear me, and as soon as I step out of the room, someone grabs my arm.
“What were you doing with Juliet in a private room, Hades?” Pam sounds tearful, and when I turn to face her, her eyes are full of tears.
“Not now, Pam. I’ll talk to you later,” I say, freeing myself, and rush out like a madman after Kennedy, but it’s too late; she’s gone.