Page 21 of Blood Ties

Kai

I turn slowly to face her. Riley is on her knees on the mattress, tears staining her cheeks, her blue eyes glimmering in the dim lighting of the single bulb. One look at her and I know I can’t possibly walk away. Still, uncertainty churns in my gut as I cross the room.

Being around her scares me sometimes. Because it feels wrong to touch her when she’s chained up without a choice, but — God, I want to. She’s crying right now and I’m so hard it hurts; maybe I am a monster like the rest of my family.

But I can’t leave her. So after a moment’s hesitation, I tug on the string to shut off the light, and sit on the edge of the mattress. It’s awkward; I’m too big. I try to make myself as small as possible and press my back against the wall.

Riley curls up on her side, clutching the blanket, her shoulders racked by shivers.

But not just shivers. After a few minutes of sitting there, I hear her quiet sobbing in the darkness. A pang goes through my chest. At least my shameful boner is finally receding.

I lower myself onto the mattress beside her, a barrier between her and the hard wall. She leans into me without hesitation, and I loop an arm around her waist and hold her, her back flush against my chest. Her body is so warm, and so small, against mine.

She doesn’t say anything, and neither do I. But after a few minutes, her soft sobs recede, and her breathing eases. She falls asleep in my arms. I stay awake for a long time, holding her, queasy with the knowledge of how much I’m starting to care for her, and how very dangerous that is.

*

W HEN I WAKE AGAIN, I’m warmer and more comfortable than I can remember being in a long time.

.. except for the throbbing erection tenting my pants.

I try to shift away before Riley wakes and notices, but my arm is trapped beneath her.

When I move, she murmurs in her sleep and presses back against me.

I bite my lip to hold back a groan. Fuck , I’m so hard, and the soft warmth of her ass rubbing against me is nearly enough to destroy my resolve not to touch her.

Then she rolls her hips again, and I realize she isn’t sleeping at all. My breath hitches as she moves against me, a tantalizing rub of friction. She reaches back and winds her fingers through my hair, tugging just hard enough to send sparks of lust through me.

I can’t. I shouldn’t. But half asleep and all too turned on, it’s much harder to remember why.

Much easier to lean into her and lift my hips, ever so slightly, to grind into her.

She moans softly, encouraging me. So I do it again, and again, rutting against her.

In the darkness there is only our mingled heavy breaths and the rubbing of fabric against fabric, both slowly growing faster.

I press my nose into the back of her head and breathe in deep.

Her grip tightens in my hair; she guides my wrist with the other hand, bringing it up and under her shirt.

When my fingers skim her soft, bare breasts, I moan into her ear and thrust against her.

“Kai,” she whimpers.

The sound of my name on her lips undoes me. Before I realize how in danger I am, I’m already tipping over the edge. I gasp and grind against her ass, stuttering a curse as I come inside my pants.

Afterward, sticky and panting, the embarrassment and regret hits. I pull away from her, yanking my hand out from her shirt and pushing back against the wall to put space between us. My cheeks are burning, though it’s too dark for her to see as she rolls over to face me.

“Did you just—”

“Sorry,” I blurt, and stumble to my feet, racing for the door. I ignore her calling my name behind me.