Page 33 of Redeemed (Redeemed #1)

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Kennedy

I t’s been a full day since Alex had me pinned to the sparring mat and my skin is still tingling with a need I can’t handle on my own.

We’ve been dancing around each other for the past week—my visible injuries have played a big part in neither of us succumbing to our baser needs.

And while my bruises have faded away, this time together has only made our attraction grow stronger.

There hasn’t been a single thought in my mind about going back to life as a crime lord’s daughter.

I’ve actually been more focused on how I can keep what I’ve found here with Alex longer.

Nathan has continued to call and text daily, hoping to figure out where I am and when I’m coming home.

None of his communications have centered around how I’m holding up or processing the demands of my father.

It’s only been about me reporting back to work and playing my role.

So, I’ve been drip-feeding my communication to him, only revealing enough so that he doesn’t send people out to look for me.

If I choose to leave the Empire, though, I will need to actually speak with him.

In the week I’ve been here, it’s bothered me when I think back on Nathan’s response to everything my father had to say.

We were supposed to be a team, and yet, he asked why I questioned being married off like cattle.

Does he really expect me to fall in line and marry some stranger?

There is literally nothing in the deal for me.

I finish going through my nighttime skincare routine and push thoughts of Nathan away, knowing I’m going to need to deal with it soon.

I’m coming down the stairs as Alex is walking through the foyer with a couple boxes of pizza. My stomach growls as though it’s a paid actor, causing Alex to chuckle.

“Did I tell you that you are my favorite person?”

He slides the pizzas onto the bar before turning to me, wrapping his arm around my waist before coming in for a sweet kiss. He had to go into the office tonight and I missed him while he was gone, but I don’t tell him. Physical attraction I’m good with, but emotions still trip me up.

“Am I your favorite person, or are you just happy to see food?”

“Two things can be true at the same time.” He tickles me before quieting my giggles with another kiss.

I move around the kitchen, gathering a couple of plates, while Alex pulls water bottles out of the refrigerator.

The vision of it all seems rather domestic, but I love the comfort that it brings.

Tonight, we eat at the bar top with a college football game playing in the background.

My mind drifts back to Nathan and the many nights we spent doing the exact same thing.

I miss him, but am I willing to stay in a life of constant sorrow only to hang onto a friendship?

“What’s on your mind?”

I look up from my plate to find Alex staring at me with an open expression.

“I want to leave The Rose Empire.”

Something about making the declaration out loud lifts a weight off my chest. Alex stops his pizza halfway to his mouth, before placing it back down to his plate

“What made you come to that decision?”

I take a deep breath as I decide where to start. “Being here, with you, has brought more joy into my life than I’ve ever allowed myself to feel, and I don’t want to lose the freedom you’ve given me to just live.”

“I understand. When you know it’s time to go, you have to make moves. If you sit too long with your what ifs, it’s easy to talk yourself into never growing.”

“What made you decide to leave?”

Alex looks away from me and his eyes get this distant look to them. I study his profile, with his strong jawline and a couple days’ worth of stubble growing in.

He begins talking, pulling me out of my admiration. “As mercenaries, we don’t have loyalty to anyone outside our team, and there are few limits to the tasks we are assigned. The last team assignment I went on scared me straight.”

I reach out to grab his hand. “Are you comfortable telling me what happened?”

“We were supposed to grab a man for big gambling debts—break him. When we arrived at his house, his family was there, and our leader at the time ordered us to tie them up and make them watch as we broke the man apart.”

I wince at the brutality of the situation he was put in. There’s this unspoken code with most crime organizations that women and children are off limits. While they may not have harmed the man’s family, the psychological effects would’ve been detrimental.

“Where’s that leader now?”

“Dead,” he says with no emotion before moving forward with his story.

“I remember I couldn’t move. The man had a daughter who happened to be home from college—the same age as Tori, at the time.

I couldn’t shake the feeling of Tori being in the situation like that because of me or my dad’s fuckups.

I resigned before we made it back to the car from the mission.

Nothing else mattered more than Tori’s safety. ”

This is the first time he’s mentioned his dad and the possible effect he may have had on Alexander and Tori’s life. “That’s when you made the deal?”

He takes a deep breath, nodding his head in confirmation.

“Can I know the deal?”

“It was simple. I get to walk away without any repercussions, and I would owe The Reapers three final missions any time Xavier Ross called on me.”

There isn’t a chance Ashton Rose would ever offer me a deal. In fact, with the business deal he already has in the works, I know he wouldn’t.

“I know I won’t be fortunate enough for a deal with Ashton Rose. The only solution, at this point, is to leave and deal with the fall out. I need to talk with Nate and give him a heads-up. Maybe he would even agree to leave with me.”

“Do you think Nathan would actually want to leave? He seemed content to keep you right where you were.”

“That’s my best friend you’re referring to,” I say with warning. Yes, I have my issues with Nathan at the moment, but he was all I had until this man showed up in my life.

I pick up my pizza and take an aggressive bite.

“Your best friend that didn’t stand up for you when he needed to.”

One of the things I admire most about Alexander is his ability to speak the truth in any situation. Even if it’s a truth you aren’t ready to hear. If there is an issue at hand, he wants all the cards out on the table.

“Because he knew it would only result in a bullet to his head.”

He shrugs before revealing, “I would’ve gladly taken a bullet for Patrick and you for that matter.”

I let that comment settle between us.

“Listen, I don’t want to fight with you, I just want to give the only friend I’ve ever had the chance to walk away with me. Even if he says no, my mind is already made up. I’m out.”

He nods his head, choosing not to push the conversation further.

I sigh and give more context to the history of the codependency Nathan and I share.

“Nathan has been with me through it all. He lost his father around the same time my mother died, and the trauma pushed us together. When my father began training me, Nate was there through every lesson. He has been with me on the road of revenge from the beginning. We’ve been struggling with seeing eye to eye lately, but I can’t imagine leaving my best friend behind. ”

“I understand the loyalty.”

We both grow quiet as we finish our dinner. When the bar top is cleared and pizza put away, we retreat to the living room to finish the game.

“Kitten, are you done being mad at me?”

“Not if you keep calling me that.” I fight the corners of my lips wanting to tilt into a smile.

“You know you love it.”

I do.

Alex pulls me over to him, lying back so my legs can straddle his hips. He kisses me softly on the neck and I tilt my head, giving him more access.

“You aren’t supposed to be arguing with me. I seem to remember you promising to continue the pleasure you were so generously providing this morning.”

That statement is like the shot going off at the Kentucky Derby. He leans in, kissing up my neck, to my jaw, and ending at the corner of my mouth.

“I’m all too happy to oblige when it comes to your pleasure, but I still believe your mind is clouded with the issues outside of our bed. How do I know I have your full attention, Kitten?”

I sit up to look down at him sitting beneath me. “This is the only thing that’s been on my mind all day.” His grip tightens on my waist.

“Does my baby need to be taken care of?”

The taunting in his voice is maddening as he grinds that impressive length in just the right spot.

I groan at the feel of him pressing against me.

He leans up so we are chest to chest and kisses me deeply.

His hand slides under my shirt and he moans against my mouth when he finds me braless.

When he moves his thumb across my nipple I grind against him again, finding him harder than before.

“Fuck,” he bites out on a groan as he taps my hips. “Pants off. Sit on the edge of the table, baby.”

I don’t think, I just move, shimmying my pants down and kicking them to the side. My ass hits the coffee table as Alex raises his hips enough to pull down his joggers, releasing his impressive dick. I’m mesmerized at the sight of him.

“We’re in the middle of the living room,” I say as my legs spread wider, my hand moving to my core.

“Well then, we better be quick. Let me see how you get yourself off.” Then he starts stroking himself, becoming the best porn a girl could ask for.

My hand slides lower between my legs, dipping into my slick heat before circling my clit.

I can’t keep my eyes open against the pleasure and the fever pitch of this moment.

“Look at you, so wet for me. I can’t wait to taste the sweetest pussy I’ve ever had again and again.”

I dip my finger in again, then open my eyes, connecting with his gaze as I stick my fingers out for him.

He doesn’t miss a beat as he leans forward and sucks my fingers in his mouth.

I swear it’s a shot straight to my clit, and my hand returns to my core with renewed purpose.

I’m so turned on that I need this release, and from the bunching of Alex’s muscles, I know he needs it too.

“That’s right, baby, put on a show for me.”

I groan, fueled by the lust coursing full speed through my body. I pause long enough to rip my shirt over my head, then I’m back to pleasuring myself, squeezing my breast, loving and hating the ache. My head falls back, lost in pleasure, until his voice commands my attention.

“Look at my Kitten, taking care of that pretty pussy.” His eyes are locked on my body, and his voice sounds like he’s barely hanging on to his control. “I need to hear my name on your lips when you come, baby.”

Never one to back down from an order, my orgasm rockets through me, his name falling from my lips on a moan.

He follows me, finding his own pleasure. I’m still breathing like I just ran a marathon when Alex stands, lifting me into his arms.

I shriek in surprise. “What are you doing?”

“Taking you upstairs to get you cleaned up. I’m thinking a long bath together and maybe wringing another orgasm or two out of you would be nice,” he says, as he carries me up the stairs.

I don’t have a response because he kisses it away, and I let him.