Page 54 of Chaos & Carnage
“No? Then how did Demon’s ol’ lady get smacked in the face that night, huh?”
Neither of us said a word. Not one.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” Jake continued. “Times have changed, boys. Honour isn’t what it once was. Be sure you know the rules. See you around.”
Chapter Twenty
Light spilled in the room from the curtains I hadn’t closed that night, gentle, light-gold daylight, distracting from the frosty spring morning. Morning. Not the middle of the night, and he was still here, sleeping. I turned to face him, to study him as he slept. His arm lay over the top of me heavily, something comforting about the weight of it. He had wrapped his arm around me all night, and every time I turned over or inched away, he tugged me back against his chest. Now I could feel sleepy fingers clasping my side, preventing me from scooting any further back.
Cade’s hair fell haphazardly, some dropping over his forehead, some sticking up at the back, looking more of a mess than mine. But mess suited him. He was perfect. Not a blemish on him apart from the tiny break in his eyebrow. It had healed well, although I was sure it had been in the middle of his eyebrow, not the side. I’d been tired when I’d patched him up the other night.
Those eyebrows, a shade or two darker than the hair on his head, were perfectly shaped, and I ran my fingers over the way they arched, smoothing the hair back into place. The only imperfection was his nose, just slightly misshapen where maybe it had been broken, or where God had given him this one thing, just to make him more human.
Dark blond stubble shadowed his jaw, accentuating the beautifully masculine shape of his face, and my fingers trailed down to feel over his cheekbones, the structure of his jaw and the little cleft in his chin. The skin on his chest was the same, smooth apart from the little wisps of dark blond hair that brushed across his pecs. There wasn’t an inconsistency or a bump as my fingers explored, stroking over him. Over the bulge of muscle, the slight hardness of his nipples, the wave of his stomach, the hair growing denser as my hand sunk lower, leading me downward, to the satiny tip of his erect cock and the sticky little bead of pre-cum at the very end.
“Morning, Alice,” he mumbled, the guttural noise of sleep-filled words vibrating in his chest.
I jumped, pulling my hand away from him. Chuckling, he caught my wrist.
“You can touch me, kitten.”
“You’re still here.”
“You’re observant.”
“No. I just mean you didn’t creep off in the middle of the night.”
“Said I wouldn’t. Here I am.”
I liked it. I liked waking up next to him. He smelled different this morning. Not the fresh stab of scent from his aftershave, or freshly washed hair. He smelt more him. Warm and natural.
Cade pulled me closer, bringing us together, our naked bodies touching, but not joining. But I could feel his cock against my stomach. He didn’t reach for me. Didn’t push his hand between my legs to the awaiting wetness. Instead, he just held me to him, resting his chin on the top of my head, wrapping me up in the warmth of him.
“Tell me about your club, Cade.”
“Mmm?” He asked, sleepily.
“The Northern Kings. Tell me about them.”
“Why do you want to know?”
“I want to know what it’s like to belong to something. To someone.”
Cade shifted slightly, taking his head from mine and scooting down the bed a little till we were eye to eye.
“You belong to u…me, kitten.”
I opened my mouth to say something, but as my jaw dropped, the words disappeared. Belong? Maybe I could.
“You don’t feel you belong, Alice?” He asked again, concern hinting in his voice.
“No. Yes. I dunno. I feel like I’m just surviving, treading water. Days go by and nothing ever gets any easier, any different. Not until you and Kinobi came along.”
He smiled. Not a grin, just a small smile, something like contentment, maybe.
“We were lucky to find you, babe. Really lucky.” His eyes fluttered shut again, his lips sill pulled into that sated smile. “You wanna know what the club is like?” He muttered, sleep battling with him.
“Uh-huh.”