Chapter 6
Kai
The trail was quiet, thick with the sticky humidity of a late summer evening. Cicadas buzzed in the trees above me and the scent of damp pine and earth hung heavily in the air. My shirt clung to my back, soaked from the run, but I barely noticed.
Up ahead, a flash of movement caught my eye. A small figure was jogging down the path ahead; the streaks of bright color in their dark hair gave away whose backside was bouncing deliciously right in front of me.
I’d developed an interesting proclivity for bright red over the last couple of weeks, spotting it everywhere I went, so it was no surprise it caught my eye here.
Tori hadn't seen me yet, weaving along the narrow trail with impossible light-footed grace, her ponytail bouncing and her arms pumping. I slowed down to take in the sight, even though my chest was tightening.
How does someone make running look effortless?
I fell into her rhythm at a safe distance, careful not to startle her. There was something about the curve of her shoulders and the way her toned calves flexed making me want to push closer, test the limits just a little.
She glanced down at a rough patch in the trail and didn’t notice me as I closed the gap around a bend. The low sun slanted gold through the trees, making her hair glow and highlighting the sweat on her neck.
My pulse ticked faster — not just from running. Fuck. I better not pop a boner while running.
“Hey,” I greeted casually, falling into step beside her.
With a gasp, she jumped to the side, coming to a stop with her eyes widening. “Holy shit! Where the fuck did you come from?”
I grinned and hitched a thumb over my shoulder. “Back there.”
She was still panting, beads of sweat rolling down the side of her neck as she glared up at me. “You were following me?”
“Not exactly following.” I lifted the hem of my shirt to mop the sweat off my face, not missing the way her eyes darted down to the exposed skin of my stomach for just a fraction of a second. “More … coincidentally on the same trail.”
Tori scoffed, shaking her head before taking off again.
“Right … sure, coincidental,” she mocked quietly as I gave chase and fell into step with her.
We ran in silence for a few steps, side by side, the tension thick, close to boiling over. My gaze flicked to her tits, bouncing in the confines of her tight little sports bra and her thick thighs flexing as she pushed off the trail. Fuck, she was hot.
Tori side-eyed me and then sped up a fraction, rolling her eyes when I caught up with her again.
“You’re suspiciously quiet,” she said finally. “Having trouble keeping up with me?”
I chuckled. “Maybe. Think you’re faster than me, do you?”
Her eyes glinted as she pushed ahead slightly. “I’d bet on it.”
She was fast — faster than I had expected — but I hadn’t yet let her see how fast I could actually go. The trail narrowed ahead, winding between trees and roots, providing the perfect opportunity for a little … interference.
“Careful now.” I fell back as the trail no longer allowed us to run side by side. “Wouldn’t want you falling for me. Literally.”
Tori smirked over her shoulder. “Falling for you? Never gonna happen.”
A sudden bend in the road forced her to slow down and I surged forward, my fingers brushing the small of her back as I passed her. Tori flinched in surprise, and I could feel the electricity snapping between us.
“Hey!” She danced out of my reach, her green eyes flashing. “Not fair!”
“Fair?” I shot back. “I don’t even know what that means. You might enjoy getting caught by me more than you think.”
Tori snorted. “Sure.”
“Wanna bet?” My pulse was pounding and I could feel the first surges of adrenaline shooting through my veins.
She took a step to the side, forcing me to match her movement so I wouldn’t lose my footing on the uneven ground off the path. “You might get more than you bargained for if you catch me.”
My eyebrows rose and my half-hard cock twitched with interest.
Letting the edge in my voice grow, I fixed her with a hard stare. “Then maybe that’s the point.”
We slowed to walk for a moment, our hands brushing as we skirted a tree trunk. “So … when I catch you, what happens? I need to know what the prize is.”
“Prize?” she echoed, a sardonic smirk tugging at her lips. “Why spoil it? You’ll find out … if you can actually catch me.”
Nodding thoughtfully, I scanned the surrounding area. Dusk was falling and there was not a soul in sight.
“Fair enough. I also want to know where the lines are. How far I can go before it’s too much.”
She slowed just slightly, eyes glinting. “Lines? Ha. You wouldn’t last a minute with me. But … good luck trying anyway.”
Her words hit me like a spark in dry grass — taunting and electric. I felt the grin spread before I even realized it.
She wanted to play? Fine. I could play.
Without thinking, I reacted when she shifted her weight and took off.
“Catch me if you can, Pretty Boy,” she called over her shoulder. I surged forward, my teeth flashing in a grin I was sure had a feral edge to it.
Game on.
“You think I’m pretty?” I called out after her.
Tori zigzagged down the narrow trail, kicking up leaves in her wake. Laughing breathlessly, she cast a quick glance over her shoulder to assess how close I was.
She sped up with a squeal when she discovered me a mere five feet behind her. She was fast, but my height gave me an unfair advantage. For every three steps she took, I took one.
I could easily have caught up with her, but where would be the fun in that?
Deliberately slowing my steps, I let her believe she was getting away, delighted by the triumphant smirk playing around her lips as she looked back once more.
“That all you got?”
I really wanted to fuck this cockiness out of her. My pulse pounded in my ears and my adrenaline spiked as I chased after her, scanning the area for possible routes.
A plan was forming in my head. What I really needed to do was get her to leave the trail. Although it appeared to be deserted, there was no way I’d take the chance of being interrupted once I finally caught up with her.
I sped up once I spotted the perfect angle — the same instinct I use when reading a winger's hips. I didn’t go straight for her, though. Instead, I shadowed her steps, closing the ground between us in the same way I would when cutting off a sideline break.
Veering off the trail, I tightened my line so I could hit her from the blind side with a clean, controlled, inevitable move. Tori squealed again when she caught sight of me out of the corner of her eye, and just as I’d hoped, she changed direction.
She twisted around and headed off the path into the wooded area lining it on one side.
Jackpot.
Sweat was running down my face but I couldn’t care less. I was on a fucking mission, and there was no way I was going to mess up this insane opportunity. Racing after her, I watched her shapely figure dart around trees and jump over roots and branches.
Shit, this was so fucking hot.
The urge to catch her, make her submit to me, and claim her curled deep inside me, dark and feral. I’d never had the chance to act out any of these particular fantasies of mine. My blood was pumping and I was practically salivating for this — for the chase, for her.
“Fuck!” she cursed, realizing I was too close for comfort.
Closing the gap, I tried to calculate the best angle to do this. We’d both inevitably end up with a few scratches and bruises, but I was fairly confident I could keep her from actually getting hurt.
Besides, we were both well-acquainted with bruising, and she did say there were no lines.
Launching myself at her, I caught her around the waist. Our combined momentum caused us to tumble onto the leaf-covered ground. I twisted us around as much as possible so I would take the brunt of the fall.
She was so small, it barely made a difference when she landed half on top of me but we still both grunted upon impact. Good thing I was used to hitting the ground at full speed with no pads.
“Oh my God! Are you actually insane?!”
Tori’s eyes were wide, so I took advantage of her momentary stunned state to flip us over and straddled her thighs. I propped myself up with one arm, making sure I wasn’t crushing her, while using my weight to control her range of motion.
“Caught ya.”
She tried to throw me off using her whole body weight but ended up digging her fingers into my shoulders as she pushed herself back. The sharp pain of her nails biting into my skin almost made me groan.
I was fucking into this.
Tori raked her nails down my neck, making me lean back on my haunches, and I grabbed both her wrists.
Pressing them into the soft ground underneath, I enjoyed watching her struggle some more.
“Told you I would,” I rasped.
“Maybe I let you catch me.”
She lifted her chin defiantly and eyed me imperiously, despite being pinned to the floor with twigs and leaves in her hair, her ponytail loose. But her blown pupils told me she was loving this much more than she was willing to let on.
I cocked my head to the side. “Ooor maybe you liked how easy I made it look.”
We were both breathing heavily as I stared down into her flushed face. She surprised me again. Bucking her hips up, she ground her pussy into my dick, and I couldn't suppress a little whimper.
Her lips stretched into a smirk, and I had to summon all my self-control to hold back.
“I think it’s pretty clear which one of us enjoyed this whole chasing thing more. I don’t know if that’s kinky or if you’re just a perv.”
“Oh I’m a perv, huh? So if I pull down these tiny shorts I wouldn’t find your pussy soaked for me?” I baited her, glancing pointedly at her hard nipples outlined through the tight fabric of her bra.
“Guess you’d have to check and find out.”
The smug way she gazed up at me, brazenly laying out a challenge and obviously thinking I wouldn’t rise to it, made my balls pull up tight.
Don’t have to ask me twice.
“You have no idea what you’re in for, Love.”