Page 23 of The Trouble with You (Rixon Raiders 1)

And it was all directed on me.

“That was... you can’t do that.” The words came out harsh, but she was tongue-tied and I couldn’t help but feel smug I’d affected her so much. Because fuck only knew, she affected me.

“I can’t kiss you?” I teased. “I think I just did.”

“Well, don’t do it again.” Her cheeks burned, the rise and fall of her chest quick. Oh, she wanted me to do it again all right, she just didn’t want to admit it.

Stepping into Hailee’s space until her back hit the storage rack, I stared down at her. She was still breathless, confusion clouding her eyes. “You want me,” I said.

“I do not,” she countered. “This... us... I hate you,” she seethed, but I wasn’t done playing with her. Sliding my hand along the curve of her neck, I leaned down, brushing my lips over the shell of her ear. “You can hate me all you want, Sunshine, but it doesn’t change the fact you’re probably wet for me right now.”

Her soft gasp filled the small space and I felt her shiver. “Fuck you,” she spat, trying to move around me, but I pinned her in place, sliding my leg between hers and pressing gently. I wanted to touch her, to test my theory.

But I knew I shouldn’t.

Knew if I did, I might want to do it again, and that would be a dangerous thing indeed.

“Cameron, if you don’t get off me in the next three seconds, I will—” A strangled moan left her lips as if she was fighting her own body when I ground my knee further into her and she practically rode herself against my leg.

“That feel good, Sunshine?” I did it again and her head dropped back, another soft moan slipping from her lips. But when my fingers dropped to the waistband of her jeans, and one of my fingertips stroked the bare skin above, she froze.

I felt the shift in the air, the temperature cooling right along with her icy glare.

“Get. Your. Fucking. Hands. Off. Me.” The venom in her words had me backing away slowly. She looked furious, anger rolling off her in dark waves. But Hailee could deny it all she wanted; I felt the chemistry between us. The push and pull.

And I knew she did too.

Her eyes burned into mine, her body trembling. I’d never seen Hailee so worked up and shit, if I didn’t want to believe it was my touch, my kiss, that did it. A beat passed as we stood there, locked in a battle of wills. Eventually though, her eyes flicked to the door and I stepped away, giving her free passage before I did something really fucking stupid.

Hailee rushed over to it, grabbing the handle, but at the last second she glanced back. “You think you can do whatever you like just because you’re a Raider and it’s fucking pathetic, but you don’t scare me, Cameron. None of you do.”

Defiance burned in her eyes and part of me was impressed. Even now, in a dark closet with me, she still tried to maintain the upper hand.

“Is that why you’re running?”

“I’m not…” Her lips pressed together as she refused to go another round with me, and I smirked.

“I think we both know you’re running,” I said. “But you should be careful, Sunshine.”

“Yeah.” She raised her chin. “And why’s that?”

“Because you can run but we both know you can’t hide.”

Hailee’s brows knitted as if I was a puzzle she wanted to figure out, but then with a little shake of her head she left, my laughter following her all the way.

Hailee

Cameron had kissed me.

Four days passed and I still couldn’t quite wrap my head around it. We’d gone from arguing, slinging insults back and forth, to him pressing me up against the racking in the janitor’s closet and kissing me. Only, kissing didn’t do justice to the way his lips had felt against mine. If kisses had names, Cameron’s would be called dangerous. It was like he’d taken all the hate between us, all the push and pull, and unleashed it on me. It hadn’t been sweet or tender, or a recognition of long-buried feelings. It was a hate-kiss, fueled by the ongoing tension between us. It certainly wasn’t because of emotions neither of us wanted to feel. Emotions I refused to acknowledge.

No. I wasn’t accepting that as a possibility.

He was my step-brother’s best friend.

A Raider.

Not to mention, he was one of my tormentors.