CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
STORM
When Rebel and I returned home, I went inside and found Mom sitting at the kitchen table, sobbing into a cup of tea. Pulling up a chair beside her, I wrapped my arms around her, and together we cried. There was nothing either of us could say or do to make the other feel better. There was no bringing back my brother.
That didn’t stop me from wanting revenge. If Rebel was right and River had been behind this, we couldn’t let him get away with it. My brother was not a pawn to be used in his sick game. Chase had nothing to do with the Kings or Venom. It wasn’t fair that someone had used him this way.
When my mom finally ran out of tears, she popped a couple painkillers for a headache and went to take a bath. Since tea wasn’t going to cut it for me, I went to Larry’s wine cabinet and helped myself.
I poured a large amount of white rum into a cup and drank it straight. The liquor scorched a fiery path down my esophagus, reminding me that I was alive. Reminding me that my brother wasn’t.
Larry stood outside in the yard with his phone pressed to his ear. Probably making arrangements for my brother’s funeral or talking to the cops about the case. Would they find anything helpful? Somehow, I doubted it.
As the evening went on, I continued to use alcohol as a way to numb out. Mom came back from her bath and eyed my drink like she wanted to tell me to go easy but ultimately decided there was no point. We all needed to find our own ways to cope with this.
“Should we order in for dinner tonight?” Mom asked. “I really don’t feel like cooking. Or eating.”
“No, Mom, don’t cook. Don’t make yourself do anything you’re not up to doing. You have to take care of yourself right now. Takeout is fine, although I’m not all that hungry either.” Since I was starting to feel more than a little drunk, I decided to cool it on the alcohol. I didn’t really know what to do with myself.
We agreed to order a family sized lasagna from one of our favorite restaurants. However, when it arrived, nobody had much of an appetite. All three of us picked at our lasagna, shoving it around our plates, not eating much.
Finally, I excused myself to my bedroom. I needed to be alone for a while. Mom gave me an especially tight hug before I headed upstairs, holding me like she didn’t want to ever let go. It broke my heart for her. As hard as this was for me, I knew it had to be so much worse for a mother to handle this kind of loss.
Upstairs in my bedroom, I went through the motions of taking a shower and removing my makeup before tying my hair in a loose braid. Unable to even consider sleep, I scrolled my phone absently, seeing nothing but random images that made no sense to the chaos in my brain.
After placing a box of tissue on my nightstand, I crawled under the blankets and tried to get comfortable. I glanced over at the balcony door, finding it unlocked. Just as I’d left it.
Would Rebel come tonight? I genuinely hoped so.
Burrowing under the blankets, I watched a show on my iPad. I couldn’t handle the silence right now. It was a sad attempt to occupy my thoughts that didn’t work.
At some point, I must have started to doze off. The sensation of strong arms sliding around me pulled me from sleep. Rebel tucked himself against me, pressing our bodies tight together.
“You came,” I said. “I wasn’t sure you would.”
“Did you want me to?” His voice was a soft murmur in my ear.
“I left the door unlocked, didn’t I?”
“I thought maybe you could use the company.” Rebel was quiet for a moment before whispering, “I’m so sorry, Storm. This is all my fault.”
Rolling over in his arms to face him, I studied him in the lamplight. “What are you talking about? How is it your fault?”
“It’s because of me that River targeted you. He knew that I’d laid some claim on you, and it encouraged him to make a move. If I hadn’t confronted him, if I hadn’t told him to stay away from you, he would’ve had no reason to go after Chase.”
I sucked in a shuddery breath. That may have been true. Rebel’s actions most likely did encourage River to make his move.
“River made his own decisions. What he did to Chase isn’t on you, Rebel. Someone else hurt my brother. You can’t blame yourself for that.” I stroked a hand through his hair, twisting a piece of the blonde streak between my fingertips.
Being there with him in such a moment of calm and reflection felt nice. It was a strange new dynamic between the two of us. I could get used to this, although I knew that might be incredibly dangerous. I worried that in the light of day, Rebel would change. He would go back to being the asshole he used to hide who he really was inside.
“I wouldn’t blame you if you held this against me. You have every right.” Rebel momentarily closed his eyes, enjoying my gentle touch.
Had he ever experienced genuine affection from someone outside his family? I somehow doubted it. Sliding my hand from his hair, I caressed his cheek. Then I pressed my lips to his.
“I don’t want to talk about this right now,” I said. “I just want to enjoy being with you.”
I kissed him again, needing the human contact. Needing him. He seemed to understand exactly what I desired. Kissing me back, he deepened the connection between us by sliding a hand into my hair, clutching the back of my head as he passionately devoured my mouth.
I didn’t want a wild animalistic encounter. I wanted something tender and meaningful. Could Rebel handle that?
He read my emotions, proving that he could be what I needed right then. His touch was firm and possessive, yet affectionate and inviting. Sliding a hand up my side, he cupped my breast, teasing the nipple into a taut point. I moaned softly into his mouth while treating myself to an exploration of his inked body.
Over the curves and planes of his chest, down to his perfectly defined abs. Then lower to the hard on I found in his shorts. Wrapping my hand around his shaft, I stroked him in slow but steady motions.
Rebel made a sound low in his throat, a raspy groan of pleasure. Rather than take control as he always did, he allowed me to guide us. I stroked him until he was thrusting into my hand. Sitting up in the bed, I peeled off my top before shimmying out of my shorts and underwear. A clear and obvious invitation that Rebel did not pass up.
His hands were all over me. Pulling me against him, he sucked my nipple into his mouth. He circled it with his tongue before flicking the tip until I fell back against the pillow. Once his hand descended between my thighs, I knew that I couldn’t wait much longer.
I opened up to his welcoming touch as he delved into my wetness. One finger pumping inside me, a tease for what I really wanted. When he glided his wet finger over my clit, I almost came undone.
“I need you, Rebel. Now. I need to feel you inside me.” Clutching his arm, I pulled him closer. All I wanted was to lose myself in every touch, kiss, and slick thrust of his body into mine.
Rebel kissed along my throat before recapturing my lips with his. “Anything you want, pet. I’m all yours.”
As I lay beneath him, feeling the weight of him atop me, I felt the sudden rush of overwhelming emotion. A strange magic seemed to explode between us as he gently thrust inside me. When he continued to be nothing but gentle and tender, I felt myself slipping deeper into that warmth. If I wasn’t careful here, I might just fall in love with him.
Holding tight to Rebel, I raised my hips to meet every sensual stroke. He peered down at me, our eyes locking. It almost became too much to take. Did he feel what I felt? Or was this a guilty man’s way of making himself feel better?
Based on everything I knew about Rebel Kane, I knew I was taking a risk by letting myself be vulnerable with him. There was an extremely good chance this would all blow up in my face come daylight. Right then I didn’t care. If this was the closest Rebel and I would ever get to a genuine connection, then I was going to enjoy every damn moment.
When he was the first to break eye contact, I knew that he felt something too. Of course, I had no way of knowing what that something might be. Burying his face in my neck, Rebel kissed along my throat and collarbone. Something about the way he touched me felt different. Like it mattered more than it ever had before.
Maybe I was too engulfed in grief and this was my way of deluding myself into seeing something where there was really nothing. When he held me like he would never let anything hurt me, I knew I wasn’t imagining it.
I pressed my face against his shoulder to muffle my moans. Raising my hips to meet his, every thrust brought him deeper inside me. Still, it wasn’t deep enough.
A desperate need to have him consume me took over. I knew that I should hate him. That I shouldn’t so easily give in to the urges and hungers I harbored. It was much too late for that. No matter what happened between us going forward, I’d fallen too hard to climb back out of this pit.
“Fuck you make me crazy in the best way,” Rebel sighed. “I don’t know what you’re doing to me, Storm. It’s like I don’t even know myself when I’m with you.”
That was a relatable sentiment. There were no words for what I felt in this moment.
“I’m sorry?” I let out a breathy giggle followed by another moan.
He shook his head like he had no words either. Wrapping me tighter in his embrace, his thrusts grew more powerful. Faster. Together we chased that grand finale of bliss. We came in a simultaneous explosion of pleasure. As every intense wave racked me, I felt the warmth of his release deep within.
We laid there together, wrapped in each other’s arms. For a long time, all I heard was the sound of our rapid breathing and the echo of my own heart in my ears. Neither of us said a word. We didn’t have to.
There was a comfort in his presence that I’d never known before. Trailing a hand up and down his arm, I basked in the wonder of him. He held me with a possessiveness that had once frightened me.
As the night passed, we only clung tighter to one another. Like we knew that morning would come and tear us apart.