Page 32 of Addicted

“And the races.”

Looks like I’ll need to goMy Fair Ladyon Nightingale’s ass.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

“MIDAS”BYSKOTT

LARK

The next time I wake up, I find the other ocean-eyed brother staring at me, his eyes soft like the calm, cool depths as he watches me from the end of Jude’s bed.

“Good morning, Dove.”

“Uh, morning?” It comes out more of a question than a greeting. I’m not used to this gentle politeness.

“Don’t look so fucking confused,” he huffs, and my lips tilt up in a half grin. There’s the asshole that we know and love.Wait! Not love, I meant like. Definitely like.“Time to get ready. We’re going out.”

“What?” I sit bolt upright, uncaring that the sheet pools in my lap, and his eyes rake over my exposed tits with molten, passionate fire making the blue glimmer.

“You know I don’t enjoy repeating myself,” he says, voice an octave lower than it was before. He looks back up at my face, although it appears like it takes some effort to tear his gaze awayfrom my body. “We’re all going out today, and you’ll be coming with us. Here.”

He lifts a pile of clothes, and I just stare dumbstruck.

“You’re giving me clothes? And taking me out?”

“Well, as much as I’d like you to remain naked, it’s not appropriate outside the house. Plus, no one gets to see what belongs to us,” he tells me, his eyes darting back down to my nipples, which harden under his continued stare.

I stay still for a moment, trying to work out what all this means, what the new angle is, my hands wringing the sheet pooled in my lap. He sighs.

“Look, Dove, we just thought that you needed a break and some fresh air.” He gets up from his place at the foot of the bed, still holding the pile of clothes, and walks around to my side.

He extends his arm, holding his free hand out, and waits for me to take it.

I pause for a moment, still unsure what price I will pay for this kindness. Nothing in life is free, I know that more than most.

With a huff, I decide that I’m not some wilting flower to cower over a pile of fucking clothes, and I really want to get out of this house, spacious as it is. So I throw back the sheet and reach for his hand.

A zing of electricity zaps up from my fingers as I make contact, and I’m sure he feels the same way when his eyes widen briefly. I can’t deny the flash of satisfaction when those deep blue eyes of his travel down my naked body.

“Jude left you some ointment for your new ink,” he says in that deep voice which always makes my core clamp. I register his words, gasping before releasing his hand and rushing over to the full-length mirror on the front of Jude’s closet.

“Jesus,” I whisper, taking in the admittedly stunning design of delicate chains that cover my body. They dip across my upperchest, dropping between my breasts and swooping underneath them, only to drop again and cover my hips and upper thighs. There are intricate mandalas at the center of my underbust and just above my pussy. What, perhaps, is most surprising is several small birds that hold the chains up, draping them across my body. “He gave me my birds.”

I watch as Aeron comes up behind me, his body warmth seeping into my back as he steps closer, one hand coming around to trace the outline of a swallow on my collarbone. My skin shivers at the touch, my nipples hardening to points.

“He said something about ‘not all chains keep you from flying’,” he tells me, and tears rush to my eyes. That shouldn’t touch me, they tattooed fucking chains all over my body to declare their ownership for fuck’s sake, but maybe Jude is right. Maybe, by becoming theirs, I’m freer than I have been before?

Taking a deep inhale, not ready to face that clusterfuck of a mind fuck, I turn so that I’m pressed up to Aeron, my breasts touching his shirt, my palms coming up to rest on his pecs. They flex under my touch and I’m almost wild with curiosity to see what he looks like with no clothes on. Is he inked up? Knox mentioned Jude has marked them all.

“Thank you for the clothes, Devil Man,” I whisper, needing to get rid of some of this vulnerability that’s coating my insides and making my throat tight.

Leaning in further, I ghost my lips over his, unable to stop the small moan that leaves my mouth at the softness of them.

“Dove,” he warns, his lips moving against mine, and I quiver at the sensation, needing more.

I run my tongue along the seam, dipping inside his hot mouth to lick inside. With a groan that has my thighs clenching, he tangles one hand in my hair and the soft sound of the clothes falling to the floor reaches my ears moments before his other hand grabs my hips as he yanks me closer. I whimper as hethrusts his tongue into my mouth, completely dominating the kiss, but I don’t care. He tastes like darkness and sin, like the things that you should run away from, but also, it's a little like coming home on a frozen winter’s night to find a roaring fire and a cup of hot cocoa waiting.

“Aeron,” I whine as he releases my mouth, angling my head to run lips, tongue, and teeth down my neck. “Please.”