Page 33 of Beautiful Trauma (The Irish Rogues #5)

A s we headed back to my apartment, I could feel the turmoil churning within Kellan. His posture remained tense while his jaw clenched. Since I knew I was partly to blame for his stress, I wanted to do something to relieve him.

Raising my head off his shoulder, I stared up at him. “You need to relax.”

“Impossible at the moment.”

“Maybe you need to get your mind off things.”

When he furrowed his brows in confusion, I cupped his cock over his pants. “I bet shooting your load down my throat would relax you.”

“Jaysus, Mila,” Since he wasn’t in the sex zone, my dirty talk sent a red flush over Kellan’s cheeks.

As his cock came to life under my fingers, I asked, “Do you want inside my wet, warm mouth?”

A shudder went through him. “I do.”

After unbuttoning and opening his pants, I pulled his cock out of his briefs. With a groan, Kellan thrust his hips up. To my surprise, his hand went to the controls on the door. A partition came up between us and the driver.

“Why the hell didn’t you do that when you were finger banging me?”

A dark chuckle rumbled through his lips. “Because I liked the idea of him hearing me give you pleasure.”

“And what if I wanted him to hear me giving you pleasure?”

“Not happening.”

“Excuse me?”

“Even though he’s one of the Neretti's men, I couldn’t appear weak before him. And nothing brings a man to his knees like a woman with his cock in her mouth.”

“Is that right?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Then I guess it’s time to bring you to your knees.”

“Yes, please.”

Giving him a wicked grin, I dipped my head into his lap. After flicking my tongue out, I swirled it around the head of Kellan’s dick. At his sharp intake of breath, I began planting kisses down his shaft and then onto his balls.

When I glanced up at him again, Kellan’s jaw clenched. “Please, Mila,” he begged.

To put him out of his misery, I slid him slowly into my mouth.

I didn’t stop until he finally bumped against the back of my throat–the metal from his piercing scratching against my mouth.

As a low groan escaped Kellan’s lips, I pushed his cock back out before starting to glide him in and out of my mouth.

When I gripped Kellan’s cock harder, he threw his head back. “Oh fuck, Mila.”

My free hand went to caress his balls, alternating between gently squeezing them and rolling them between my fingers. Over and over, I bobbed up and down on him, alternating between increasing and decreasing the pressure.

When I lightly scraped my teeth up his shaft, Kellan bucked his hips up. “Fuck, I’m going to come.”

Staring up at him, I hummed my approval around his dick.

I answered by taking him deeper into my mouth. Kellan grunted and began flexing his hips. “Mila!” he barked out as he detonated down my throat.

As he rode out his orgasm, I kept licking and sucking his cock. When he finally stilled, I slid him out. “That was fucking amazing,” he rasped out.”

With a grin, I tucked his slackened cock back into his pants. “Do you feel relaxed?"

“I sure as hell do.”

“Good.”

After the SUV came to a stop outside my building, Kellan buttoned his pants back together while I used the mirror on the seat before me to check my appearance. I swiped my lips and then fluffed my hair where it had been tangled by Kellan’s fingers.

Meanwhile, Kellan eased the partition back down, which signaled to the driver that we were ready. He hopped out to open the door.

When I got out of the car, Kellan followed me. “What are you doing?”

“Walking you to the lobby.”

I shook my head. “You heard Quinn. You need to hurry up and get home.”

“Five minutes isn’t going to make that much difference,” he argued.

My heart fluttered at his attention. “If you say so.”

Taking my hand, he walked me up the sidewalk. Although I hated sounding desperate and clingy, I couldn’t stop myself from asking, “With this development of Dare’s, I’m not going to see you for a while, am I?”

He grimaced. “Hopefully, we can wrap this up quickly. But until then, I’ll have to stay in Boston.”

“I could come to you.”

With a shake of his head, Kellan replied, “I don’t want you anywhere near this danger until it’s taken care of.”

“So, we’re down to sexting and phone sex?”

Kellan laughed. “While I won’t say no to that, I do plan on checking in on you every day.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

When we reached the entrance to my building, I turned to Kellan. “I know I said it before, but it bears repeating. This was one of the best nights of my life.”

He smiled. “Mine too.”

“Considering you’re not a fan of astronomy, I’m not sure how it could be.”

“It was a great night because I got to be with you.”

“Oh God. There you go again with saying perfect things.”

“Sorry. It’s just going to be your cross to bear with me,” he teased.

With a laugh, I replied, “I can live with it.” Glancing into the lobby, I sighed, “Why do I feel like Cinderella at midnight?”

Kellan rubbed his knuckles tenderly along my jaw. “Don’t worry. Your Prince Charming will be calling you bright and early in the morning to see how you slept. Then he’ll incessantly text you during the day for updates about Dima and the mundane details of your life.”

I laughed. “A modern day Prince Charming, huh?”

“I am.”

“And you’re mine,” I murmured.

The intensity of his stare caused me to shiver. “And you’re mine,” he repeated.

I didn’t care that we were on the sidewalk in front of God and everyone. I grabbed the lapels of his tux and jerked him to me. As Kellan dipped his head, I rose up on my feet to meet his kiss.

With the warmth of his tongue against mine, I slid my hands up his back. Before Kellan, I’d never believed in love at first sight. I’d scoffed at movies where the characters were saying I love you and riding off into the sunset after just a couple of days together.

The life I’d been born into had forced me to be a realist.

In my life, women didn’t end up with charming princes. They were forced into marriages with men who were so obsessed with them that they were only seen as possessions. Those men controlled every aspect of their lives.

And when they dared to have a voice, they were shot down.

Sometimes in their kitchens. In front of their innocent children.

But then I met Kellan.

And everything changed.

For the first time, I could believe in real love, and it was fucking overwhelming.

The buzzing of Kellan’s phone against my breast brought me back to reality. He grunted into my mouth before pulling away. “I don’t even have to look at my phone to know I have to go.”

“I know. And it’s okay. Really.”

“Talk to you tomorrow?”

“Absolutely.”

With a vulnerable smile, he asked, “Maybe even tonight?”

My heart flip-flopped in my chest making me feel like a teenager with her first crush. “Of course.”

“Good.” With a wave, he started back down the sidewalk to the waiting car.

Instead of going inside, I stood there like a lovesick fool and waited until his taillights faded in the distance.

With a roll of my eyes at my behavior, I started inside.

“Mila?”

I whirled around to see Lev striding down the sidewalk from the same direction Kellan had just been. “What are you doing?”

After glancing at my outfit, he countered, “I think I could ask you the same.”

“I had a date tonight.”

“Don’t tell me it was with Kavanaugh.”

Furrowing my brows, I asked, “How did you–”

“What other man is being chauffeured around in a blacked-out SUV unless he’s mafia.” He cocked his brows at me. “It seems like you got attached to your rescuer.”

“Yes, that was Kellan, and yes, I am attached to him. Very much.”

Lev slowly shook his head. “Christ, Mila, have you lost your fucking mind?”

“You don’t understand–”

“ I don’t understand? I was right there when Father choked you the other night. If we hadn’t been there, he would’ve killed you.”

“He was overwrought about Dima,” I argued feebly.

“And that’s not going to fucking change. His entire empire is sinking when his heir is crippled.”

“But Dima might not always be paralyzed. Kellan said he knew of a specialist in Boston who could help him.”

Lev’s brown eyes bulged. “Are you even listening to yourself right now? Do you think Dima would go anywhere that Kellan suggested?”

“What if we could bring the doctor here?”

“Neither Dima nor Father will have anything to do with something that one of the Kavanaughs has their hands in.”

“Then we won’t tell him Kellan suggested it. I’ll just say I found the specialist. After they’ve been able to help Dima, I’ll tell them the truth so they’ll have to forgive Kellan.”

“Christ, Mila. This isn’t a fairytale where you and our enemy ride off into the sunset.”

“But Kellan isn’t our enemy. It’s bullshit that Father is trying to make him into a villain.”

“Mila–”

“You weren’t there, Lev. There was regret in Dima’s eyes before he shot Kellan. He knew it was wrong what Father was asking of him, and now he’s paying the price for following Father’s orders.”

Lev jerked a hand through his dark hair. “None of this matters when we’re talking about Father.”

“But it should. And not just to us, but to Father’s men.”

“You need to get the idea of Father being replaced out of your head right now.”

“Why should I?”

“Because there is no way anyone is going to lead a coup against Father.”

“But the Korolova men respect Dima. If he passes him over for Aleks, it has to cause dissension.”

“While that might be true, they will never follow Dima if he’s in a wheelchair.”

As I pinched the bridge above my nose, I sighed. “There has to be another way.”

“There isn’t. That’s just how our world works.”

“Somebody should have the balls to change it.”

“And I suppose you think you have a pair to do it,” Lev challenged.

I held up my hand. “Can you please just stop it? It’s been a hell of a week for me. In case you forgot, I was imprisoned by a psychopath and sexually assaulted earlier this week. Tonight was the night I was able to forget everything and just enjoy myself.”

Although a brief flicker of regret flashed in Lev’s eyes, he shook his head. “There is no future for you if you pursue this thing with Kavanaugh.”

“Okay, I’m going up now. I plan to go see Dima tomorrow morning.”

When I started to go inside, Lev grabbed my arm.

The look in his eyes shattered me to the core.

“Please, Mila. I can’t lose you. And I’m not just saying that because of the shape Dima is in.

” His jaw clenched as he stared at the cars passing by.

“I know you’re not that much older than me, but after Mama was killed, you became my parents. ”

His words sent stinging tears to my eyes. Since I’d always done everything to protect him, I said, “You’re not going to lose me.”

When turmoil marred his handsome features, I brought my hand to his cheek. “I won’t let it come to that, Lev.”

“Promise,” he choked out.

I wasn’t accustomed to lying to my siblings. But tonight it was the most humane thing I could do for both their peace and mine.

“I promise.”