Chapter Twenty-Three
Kylo
Iwalk into the kitchen to find Carter seated at the counter, nursing a mug of coffee. He lifts it in a mock salute and gestures to the empty stool beside him. I take it.
“Care to explain why Leo looks like he’s ready to commit a homicide?”
“He didn’t tell you?” I snap. The irritation from the hallway is still prickling under my skin.
“He gave me his version,” Carter says, setting the mug down with a clink. “But I’m more interested in what you have to say.”
“Why?” I ask flatly. I don’t have the patience for a debrief.
“I’m not telepathic, Kylo. You actually have to use your words.”
“There’s nothing to talk about. I’m not responsible for Leo’s temper.”
“That’s not how this works. We’re here to train and prepare ourselves for the Aether Hunters. Fucking Lia should be the last thing on your mind.”
My fists clench. If I hear her name used like that again, I’m going to put someone through a wall.
“It’s none of your business, Carter. Or Leo’s. She’s been doing the work, but you and Leo are suffocating her, expecting her to master a lifetime of abilities in weeks. Give her some goddamn credit.”
“Are you saying that because you believe it, or because you can’t keep your dick in your pants?”
The stool shrieks against the tile as I stand. “Say that again.”
Leo stands in the doorway, eyes locked on me like he’s seconds from throwing a punch.
If he wants a fight, he’ll get one.
“What did you do to Lia?”
His words hit their mark. I pause.
I’m the first man Lia’s let touch her since Julian. I know it. Leo must know it. But instead of giving her credit for her own choice—or giving me the benefit of the doubt—he’s lining me up next to the asshole who hurt her.
“Everything we did was consensual.”
“You’re her trainer,” he fires back. “You took advantage of the situation.”
He closes the final inch of distance, his chest nearly brushing mine. Carter vaults from his seat, pivoting between us.
“Enough,” Carter says. “The Aether Hunters are onto us. We finish training, pack up, and get the hell out of here. Quit fucking around. Lia needs every scrap of training she can get.”
“What do you think I’ve been doing?”
Leo scoffs, shaking his head. “You were assigned one task.”
“Leo, what happened between me and Kylo has nothing to do with training.” Lia’s soft voice breaks our standoff.
I turn, and the second my eyes find her, everything else vanishes.
Her dark hair falls in loose waves, grazing the curve of her chest where her training gear clings to her skin.
My body reacts instantly—a visceral, hungry pull. I want to throw her over my shoulder, drag her back to bed and fuck her until we forget there’s a war waiting for us.
That has to wait.
The idea of Lia facing an Aether Hunter hits me with a jolt of fear I haven’t felt in years. It’s the same gnawing dread I carried every time Blair stepped onto the field. It’s my responsibility to make sure Lia’s ready.
Even if I want her miles away from that kind of threat.
Images of last night rush through my mind—her skin flushed under my hands, her breath shaky and hot against my neck. I haven’t stopped thinking about the way her eyes held mine, pulling me in deeper than they should, or the faint dusting of freckles across her cheeks.
Whatever I thought desire was before her was a pale imitation.
The snap of fingers in front of my face jerks me back to the present.
“Un-fucking-believable,” Leo says, his voice dripping with condescension. “Were you even listening?”
I blink, my mind still clouded with the memory of the way she felt. I have no idea what he said.
“This is exactly why this is a bad idea,” he continues, gesturing between us. “We’re on a clock. We can’t afford distractions.”
A dark, dry laugh breaks out of my throat. He has no fucking clue what a distraction is.
A distraction is pretending for weeks that she didn’t get under my skin. A distraction is the agonizing effort of resisting the urge to pull her into my arms and devour her.
He doesn’t know I’ve been half-insane with distraction since the day I met her.
Now I can finally fucking breathe.
“We’re not discussing this anymore,” Lia interrupts. She steps into Leo’s line of sight. “You and I will talk later, Leo. Privately.”
“This is no longer my concern,” Carter says, his gaze sweeping over the three of us with a look of pure, detached indifference. “I don’t care what any of you do in your personal lives, as long as your training is finished.”
“Lia, can you give me a minute with Kylo?” Leo asks.
Her shoulders go stiff, her chin tilting up in a silent challenge. “Why?”
“We need to have a chat.”
“You can have that chat with me here,” she counters.
“Just a minute,” Leo says. His voice softens instantly when he looks at her. She gives him a pointed, silent warning that makes him take a half-step back. “I’ll behave, Lia. I promise.”
She looks at me, searching my face.
“I’ll catch up with you in a bit,” I tell her.
Lia hesitates, then follows Carter.
“I’m only going to say this once. If you hurt her in any capacity, I will end you. This isn’t a threat. It’s a guarantee.”
“I’ve been teaching her how to protect herself. I’m not some sick fuck who hurts—”
His eyes widen. “She told you about—”
“The piece of shit who assaulted her?” I grit out. “Yes.”
“Lia has suffered more than anyone I know. Julian”—he practically spits the name onto the floor—“barely scratches the surface of her scars. I suggest you figure out exactly what your intentions are before you take whatever this is between you two any further.”
“What the fuck does that mean?”
His stare cuts into me. “Just don’t hurt her.”
“I don’t intend to hurt her.”
I stare into his eyes—bright, almost glowing, so painfully identical to Lia’s—and swallow my pride. The last thing I want is this rift between Leo and me.
He exhales through his nose. “Your relationship isn’t my business,” he mutters, though his eyes remain hard. “As long as she’s safe.”
I think that’s the closest to an olive branch I’m going to get from him.
“She’s safe with me. No man will touch her.”
“I expect nothing less.”
From what I’ve gathered, he’s spent his whole life protecting his sister.
Exactly like I did.
I failed.
Leo hasn’t.
He still has something left to lose.
And for the first time in years, so do I.