Page 42 of His Dark Purpose

“Something like that,” she replied.

Seth shivered at his mother’s seductive purr. It was a noise he never wanted to hear, but the response alluded to what might have been going on before Kyle had left for his spontaneous chat with himself. It still didn’t make sense, though. Why would any man walk away from a lover to melt down in the hall unless something wasn’t right?

“And how was the omelet?” Kyle probed.

“A little cold, sir, but pretty good.”

Seth closed his eyes, willing his feet to take him away from what might transpire to be a sexual encounter involving his mum, yet needing to know for certain that she was okay. He’d heard her cry out—that had definitely happened—and there had to be a reason for her call.

“Maybe if you let me out of the bedroom next time,” his mum went on. “I’ll enjoy it even more.”

“Oh, I don’t know.” Kyle’s tone was knowing as he shrugged out of his robe. “I think you look good in the bedroom.”

Seth’s stomach turned over at the intimacy. He shouldn’t be hiding out there while the two of them got it on, but somehow, he needed to see Amy for himself—he needed toknowshe was all right before he left them to it.

“You’re only saying that because I’m cuffed to your bed, sir.” There was an edge to her voice then, a sense of injustice as well as friskiness.

As Seth processed her words, his pulse accelerated again.

Cuffed to his bed?Seth glared at the open doorway.

Why the hell was his mother cuffed to Kyle’s bed?

Maybe she wants it.

His free hand balled into a fist at the disgusting premise.

Maybe shedidwant it, but that still didn’t explain the ear-splitting scream she’d let out before her Casanova’s return. It wasn’t a good enough justification to reassure Seth.

Glancing back along the dark passage, he contemplated his choices. He could slither back into the shadows and rest somewhere until it was light. Then, he could let himself back out of the spa door and appear on Kyle’s doorstep in the morning. He could put the entire, sordid experience behind him and pretend he hadn’t heard any mention of cuffs or his mother calling Kyle sir.

“You’re cuffed because I can’t trust you,” Kyle’s answer shattered any prospect of following the plan unfolding in his mind. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy you.”

What the hell did that mean? Was the bastard trying to infer he’d take what he wanted whether his mum assented or not?

Anger flared in Seth’s chest as he warred with the possibilities. He couldn’t just stand there and allow his mother to be attacked, yet the idea of crashing in on what could still turn out to be a sexual rendezvous sickened him.

“You could enjoy me if you let me go,” she beseeched him.

“I could…” Kyle concurred. “But it’s a lot more fun this way.”

Fury knotted in Seth’s chest, and he found himself walking down the corridor, even though he hadn’t instructed his feet to move, his breaths shallow as he peered quickly around the doorframe.

If you touch my mum, I’ll fucking kill you!

Gripping the door, he brandished the knife in his other hand as he scanned the vast room. He didn’t know precisely what he expected to see as he looked, but he was braced for any outcome. Either he was going to see his mother embroiled in some complicated sexual position he’d never be able to delete from his memory, or he was on the precipice of saving her from assault.

His angst intensified as his eyes darted to the large bed—what he saw there threatening to cut off his air supply—but he was too far down the rabbit hole to walk away without confirming the truth. His mother had been screaming about something—maybe it was the prospect of Kyle forcing himself on her.

“Sir, don’t!”

Trapped beneath Kyle’s imposing stature, she was barely visible on the bed. Only her long limbs were apparent on either side of his body, her right arm jutting out with the metal cuff Kyle had presumably secured her to the bedstead with. Glancing over the bed, he thought he caught sight of her dark hair before Kyle lowered to kiss her.

“Just let me go.”

“I don’t think so, little girl.” Kyle’s chuckle was deeper as he nuzzled her. “You stay cuffed until I’m goddamn ready to release you.”

For one long and horrifying moment, Seth wasn’t sure if the prick was actually about to take her by force or whether what was playing out was consensual. He hovered there, suspended in the doorway, appalled and unsure how to proceed. It wasn’t until his mother let out a low and guttural groan that the answer revealed itself, the moan followed quickly by Kyle’s rhythmic grunts when his hips lunged forward.

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