Chapter 4 Hunter
Hunter
My first instinct when someone gets in close to me is to pull a very sharp knife on them.
Rayne Colson had come at me like he was looking for a fight.
Face flushed, with a furrowed brow.
I knew he fucking wanted something from me.
I assumed it would be something more violent, which I was more than ready to entertain.
But he had the nerve to take something else from me.
Something I’d never give to him freely.
And I’m going to hurt him for it.
I bite down hard on his lower lip and feel him moan a little at the sudden flash of pain. Hurting him like that makes some circuit in my brain get crosswired, and my cock hardens.
Not the first time inflicting pain has made me hard.
Certainly the first time it was another man who made it happen.
I can taste whiskey and Coke as I give his tongue a little suck, making sure to nip him there too.
I push my tongue deeper into his mouth this time, bringing one hand up to cup his throat.
The slim flick knife in my pocket could be up against his throat in half a second. Part of me still wants to destroy him for catching me off guard.
You going to let me claim you?
How far are you going to take this?
The moment I give his neck a squeeze, he pulls away, giving me a wide-eyed stare.
I didn’t choke him.
Not even close.
It was just a hint. A suggestion. A reminder that I could end him.
He looks like a deer in headlights.
I look him up and down. “So are you trying to fuck me, Colson, or did you just need a goodnight kiss?”
He doesn’t answer.
His lips are slick and a little swollen from how hard he kissed me. His chestnut-brown hair is a little disheveled, and I can’t deny he looks better than ever. Rayne apparently lets his scruff grow out sometimes now, too.
He looks… harder.
You still have those big, brown puppy dog eyes, though.
I know exactly how soft you are on the inside.
He turns and darts a glance over toward a group of students in the corner.
He’s looking at two girls and two guys, all of them dressed immaculately and blowing cigar smoke out an open window.
And finally he talks to me.
“Not trying to fuck you. You were just a means to an end.”
The people in the corner keep glancing over at us.
And puzzle pieces begin to fit together in my mind.
“Did you just kiss me to make your ex-girlfriend jealous? Pretty sadistic for a good boy like you.”
“Fuck off,” he mutters, taking a step back away from me. “Ex-boyfriend, not girlfriend. But thanks for assuming.”
Damn.
So Colson finally did come out of the closet.
Apparently a lot of things have changed in the two years I spent in London.
Rayne is a sophomore in college now, and his face is still boyish, but his body is clearly built from months and months of hard work.
He’s wobbly on his feet as he steps away from me.
I have to reach out to steady him by his arm before he knocks over a half-full glass of whiskey on a table behind him.
He’s drunker than I realized.
I can see the regret hitting his expression in real time, like he’s realizing the enormity of the mistake he made.
“My brother isn’t in this room. Relax,” I tell him as his eyes glance around the room again. “Weston didn’t see your little stunt. I won’t tell him how much you missed me.”
“Didn’t miss you at all.”
“Not even a little? Your tongue says otherwise, Rayne—”
He reaches out like he wants to shove me.
I grip my hand around his wrist, cuffing it in an instant.
“Not afraid of you, Knox,” he says, but I can see the surprise on his face.
I squeeze my grip tight, making sure it hurts.
“I can take you to the ground the moment I decide I want to,” I tell him in a low tone, holding him tight. “Try fucking with me, Colson, and watch what happens.”
“Do you still hurt people, these days?” he asks. “Or is it all idle threats?”
You have no idea what I’m capable of.
I could incapacitate him.
Kill him, with ease.
Lucky for him, I don’t feel like dealing with a mess like that right now.
I pin my gaze on him. “You’re a strong person, but hitting the gym doesn’t mean you can handle me.”
“I’m Tara,” a voice says from beside us, and it’s like a snowglobe shatters around me.
I’m pulled back into reality.
Not going to hurt him here.
Not right now, at least.
I let Rayne’s arm go.
One of the girls who was sharing the cigar is coming over toward us. She’s wearing a glittering red dress, and there’s a rose pinned into one side of her hair.
My heartbeat is still ratcheted up.
The skin of my palm stings a little from how hard I was gripping Rayne’s arm, and I rub it with my fingers
The girl seems to be ignoring him. She’s only looking at me. Her manicured hand is held out and I shake it, giving her a nod.
“Hunter Knox,” I say.
“Pleasure to meet you,” she says. “Rayne, why didn’t you introduce me to your new friend?”
“We aren’t friends, Tara,” Rayne says.
“You must be new,” Tara says, looking me up and down. “I definitely would have noticed you.”
I nod. “Transferred in from London.”
She nods. “Fancy fancy. I’m in Luros Sorority. Our house is a little further down Red Row. If you need anything, let me know. We host the best parties. Rayne won’t admit it, but it’s true.”
One of the guys is walking over now. Rayne’s ex-boyfriend, I’m pretty sure, by the way Rayne suddenly looks absolutely fucking murderous.
“You ready to head out, Tara?” he asks her, averting his gaze.
When I look at Rayne’s eyes I can see a fire in them that wasn’t there before.
This guy hurt him.
Badly.
Even though any sympathetic parts of my heart died long ago, I still like the idea of fucking with anyone who deserves it.
I step behind Rayne, draping my arms over his shoulders and hugging him from behind.
It’s the type of cutesy, boyfriendy hug that usually would make me want to retch. Lovey-dovey shit isn’t my thing, no matter who it is.
But it’s worth it to see the sour-lemon look on his ex’s face as I do it.
I lean in, dragging my lips across Rayne’s neck and up to his earlobe, giving it a little bite.
“Should have known you missed me this much, Rayne,” I say loud enough that I know the others can hear it. “I’ll make it worth your while tonight.”
I can feel his body tensing up in my embrace.
He’s probably itching to turn around and clock me in the jaw.
Just as his ex and Tara start to walk away, I pull out the bottom of his tucked-in shirt. I expose his skin there, sliding my fingers under the fabric, settling on the spot just above his hips.
“You like pretending you’re my fucktoy,” I say in a low voice, right next to his ear, as the others walk off.
“Something’s wrong with you,” he mutters.
“Lots of things.”
But he doesn’t move to break away from me as my fingers slide up higher on his skin.
So I’m going to take it as far as I can go.
I let one hand roam higher, trailing my fingertips up to his chest. I slide them over his nipple, feeling it tighten under my touch as I give it a little pinch.
“They’re gone, Knox,” Rayne says, his voice strained, but he’s still frozen in my arms. “Your fingers are fucking cold.”
“So push me away,” I tell him.
He puffs out a breath. “If you’re trying to play gay chicken with me, you’re going to lose.”
I groan.
My cock is actually hard again now.
Because apparently I’m so fucking desperate that my brother’s bestie is confusing my dick.
The lighting is low in this party, and a group of people have their backs to us now, blocking us off from the rest of the room. Everyone is too absorbed in their own worlds right now to really pay much attention to us.
So I pull him around the archway in the wall nearby, shoving him into the dark hallway.
We’re near the front door to the house now.
This hall connects all of the front rooms of Onyx House, and right now, it’s blissfully empty.
Finally I’m alone with him.
I put my hands on his hips and push his body up against the wall, pinning him there.
I have no interest in Rayne.
But driving him insane almost feels as good as it would feel to fight him.
Psychological warfare hurts so good.
“Your ex touch you like this?” I ask him. I rock my hips forward a little, pushing my cock up against his thigh. “Or was he too busy cheating on you?”
“Mention my ex again and you’re going to be unconscious, Knox.”
“Wish you would try.”
“And that’s why you’re psychotic.”
“And you’re too obsessed with following the rules, so you can graduate with a pristine record. You want to secure a job that gives you the fat stacks of cash you deserve. Is that right?”
I press a tiny little kiss to the side of his hair, just because I think it’ll piss him off.
His hair smells good.
Probably also some fancy shampoo my brother bought him.
“Quit acting like you know me,” he says. “And if you’re going to pretend you’re gay, at least pay a little attention to my cock. It would be nice to feel something before I turn around and punch you.”
I push my fingertips a little underneath his waistband, but I don’t go anywhere near his cock.
He suddenly moves to try to break away from me, but as usual, I’m faster.
I hold him tightly and firmly on his waist, keeping him planted here.
And then I use my forearm to make a bar across his throat.
“I told you. I know you won’t really fight me,” I tell him. “That’s why I can do whatever I want to you.”
He hisses as I give his waist a little pinch. “And all of it will be idle threats, I assume?”
“Let’s play a game. I have one knife in my front pocket, another in my back pocket, and a third somewhere else. Want to use your hands and find out where?”
“You’re right. My ex didn’t touch me like this. You seem even more into me than he was, Hunter.”
I pull away from him suddenly.
I take away all of the physical contact at once.
Leaving him high and dry.
Punishing him for whatever bullshit he just told me and reminding him that I’m in control.
“You owe me,” I tell him as I smooth out the front of my shirt.
His bulge is obvious even in the low light.