Total pages in book: 146
Estimated words: 147801 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 739(@200wpm)___ 591(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 147801 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 739(@200wpm)___ 591(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
I let my lips curl into a smirk. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
Kill would never suspect it’s a guy—or my professor, at that. He’s convinced I’m straight. Hell, I thought I was, too, until recently.
Not that I know what I am. I’m not gay, I don’t think. I’d have been drawn to Kayden even if he were a woman. And I still don’t find men attractive. Maybe I’m somewhere on the ace spectrum as V suggested. Or something else entirely.
Doesn’t matter. I don’t like labels anyway.
Kill tilts his head. “Scared she’d like me better?”
My hand freezes mid-motion.
He…wouldn’t. Right?
I mean, Kill is fluid—he’s fucked men before. Always on top, though, since for him, sex is power.
But Kayden wouldn’t let anyone fuck him, let alone be tempted by Killian of all people.
Right?
I’m better-looking, better company, and everyone—including Kill—knows it.
“In your dreams,” I mutter.
My brother always pulled this shit about the girls I dated, claiming they’d prefer him over me. I never cared, because those girls didn’t matter.
But I’d bash his head in if he so much as looked at Kayden.
“Ooh, you’ve got that unhinged look in your eyes, Gaz.” Kill grins wide. “I’m officially intrigued.”
“Keep your intrigue focused on your girlfriend.”
“But I’m in the mood to play.”
“Stay away from what’s mine, Kill. Don’t make me hurt you.”
“You mean like the way you stayed away from Glyn?” He taps my cheek, his grin smug and infuriating. “Hide her while you can, big bro. Payback’s a bitch.”
I slap his hand away, and he laughs as he strolls out, looking far too pleased with himself.
Goddamn prick.
Maybe I need to have another chat with Niko, make sure he keeps his big mouth shut.
He’s been unbearable since he found me corned by Kayden in the alley by the coffee shop the other day. Normally, he’s oblivious, but this time, he pieced the patterns together and figured out Kayden is the guy I mentioned months ago.
“You’re way more interesting now, cousin!” he’d shouted, barging into my room. “Fun Dick Alliance, let’s go!”
I kicked him and made him swear to keep it to himself.
How long he can hold out before spilling to Jer or Kill is anyone’s guess. Niko’s not exactly known for his discretion.
That’s why I prefer V. He’s a vault I can trust.
But the Niko angle is worrying.
It’s got me thinking I should stake a public claim.
Except there’s one glaring problem: Kayden is my professor. Going public would spark chaos—and possibly ruin his career.
I don’t want that.
At the same time, I hate this secrecy. I want him to touch me in public, kiss me in the street, and I want to blind everyone who dares look at him.
The thought of not being able to do that for three whole years sits like a brick at the bottom of my stomach.
28
GARETH
“I’m here!” I announce as I step into the apartment. “I brought food so we don’t have to worry about cooking.”
The first thing that hits me is the silence.
It’s oppressive.
Usually, he has some boring classical music playing.
The second thing is the relative darkness.
A ball of fur rubs against my leg, and I crouch to scoop Moka into my arms. She snuggles close, purring softly. “What’s up, girl? Did Kayden not come home yet?”
It’s weird to call this place home, but I guess it kind of is.
She meows, her eyes glowing faintly in the low light. “Aw, are you hungry?”
A long, dramatic meow confirms it.
I drop the bag on the kitchen counter, fill her empty bowl, and leave her to eat before heading to the bedroom.
He should be here by now since he only teaches in the morning today.
“Kayden?”
My feet halt the moment I step inside. Dim light casts eerie shadows across the room, and Kayden’s restless form lies tangled in the bedcovers. At first, I think it’s strange he’s sleeping this early.
But then I notice the shivers racking his body, the furrowed brow, and the sweat plastering his jet-black hair to his forehead.
The sound of his labored breathing fills the silence, and my chest tightens as I move closer.
“Kayde?”
I touch his shoulder, and his entire body stiffens, heat radiating into my hand like a furnace. His skin burns feverishly, and his lips are discolored as he grunts and mumbles something unintelligible.
I lean down, listening. Most of the words are jumbled nonsense, but then I catch it.
“No…no…don’t…touch…”
I’ve always seen him as invincible, indestructible. But right now? He looks vulnerable. Just human. And it makes something shift deep inside me.
A need to protect him from whatever nightmare has him trapped.
For the first time, I take his big hand in mine, stroking the veins on the back. “How did you even get so sick? Were you walking in the rain again? What’s the point of having a car if you won’t use it, idiot?”
Slowly, I brush the strands of damp hair away from his face. Sick people shouldn’t look this hot. Just saying.