Page 64 of Their Property
As the music slowed, gently nearing the song’s end, the vibrations through the air only became more prominent. My skin buzzed with awareness, and my pulse thrummed in every sensitive point in my body—my chest, my lips, my neck.
Between my legs.
T-Bone’s chest was a pulsing wall against my back, his heart beating in time with mine. When my eyes fluttered open, I became aware of his hand resting on the side of my hip. The weight and heat of him so close to me registered all at once, and that only amplified my senses more.
I looked through half-hooded eyes across the fire, curious about the state of the others. Chris and Tiff were wrapped up in each other, kissing aggressively while scooting toward their tent. The song had ended mere moments ago, and Dyno’s mouth was now in a firm lock with Grudge’s. The two men pawed and groped at each other, kissing like they needed the other one for air.
A soft groan rumbled out of the chest behind me. T-Bone and I were watching them both, a pair of voyeurs. My core throbbed harder, the sensation near overwhelming now. I was frozen in place but was desperate to move, to slide against T-Bone and feel more of him. To see if he’d soothe this pulsing ache between my legs, if he’d call the other two over here to help. Or they could just keep playing with each other and let us watch. I didn’t care, I needed it all.
I straightened, tilting my gaze up to T-Bone’s face. He was honestly so handsome up close, in a rough, brutal way. His beard was peppered with gray in some areas, and there was a bare spot under his chin that indicated some kind of scar. His mouth was relaxed in a soft smile, but his eyes were sharp and alert as a hunter’s. Firelight danced in his irises and made his skin glow. He was looking straight ahead, gaze fixated on his two lovers manhandling each other.
My pulse hammered as I leaned into him, focusing on a spot just under his beard on his neck. I was just as terrified as I was emboldened. He had already kissed me, so what was the big deal?
He might not want to stop at kissing.That was what scared me most. Dyno and Grudge were already running hands under clothing, grasping at bare skin and other areas they knew and had plenty of practice with. Unlike me.
But these men were theonlypeople I felt safe with. If I couldn’t take a leap of faith with them, I couldn’t with anyone.
I leaned in until my lips connected to T-Bone’s neck. His skin was so warm and surprisingly soft there. He stilled as his pulse thrummed under my mouth.
“Kyrie.” His voice was so rough, I swore I felt it caress over my skin.
“Travis,” I murmured back before placing another kiss, this time darting my tongue out to give a small lick to his skin. He tasted a little smoky and salty.
“What are you doing, little lady?” He brought a hand to my shoulder and gently pushed me away. His head dipped and he was staring at me now, but not with the heated desire from watching his men moments ago. It looked like confusion, his brows furrowed and mouth frowning.
“I…I thought…” The rejection hit me like a kick to the chest. I struggled to regain my breath, my mind reeling as I tried to figure out what the fuck I’d gotten so wrong. “You kissed me at the capitol, so I thought…”
T-Bone edged away from me until no parts of us were touching. He couldn’t look at me again, his expression sorrowful as he focused on the fire. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.”
My body refused to accept it. I ached for his warmth and his touch so much that ithurt. It felt so cruel of him to just tear that away. I curled my fingers into a fist to avoid reaching out for him again. And my mind couldn’t make heads or tails of any of his behavior since that kiss.
“But just now…” I knew it was stupid to keep talking, keep fighting this after he made himself clear, but it just poured out of me. “During the song, you were so close. You were…holdingme.”
“I’m sorry, Kyrie,” he repeated. “You don’t want someone like me. Like us.” He lifted his chin to refer to the other two. “We’re no good for a woman like you.” He rose to his feet and awkwardly dusted off his pants. “Goodnight. Sleep well.”
With that, he walked over to the next tent and left me alone in front of mine.
TWENTY
T-BONE
“What the fuck did you say to her?” Dyno hissed in my face. Not the way I liked to be greeted first thing in the morning, but understandable.
“What we all should have said weeks ago,” I muttered, stuffing my folded up tent and sleeping bag into the saddlebag of my bike.
It was the next morning, everyone noticed the shift in Kyrie’s mood, no matter how much she smiled and tried to shove down the hurt that was written so clearly on her face. She clearly didn’t sleep either, her eyes exhausted and swollen with redness.
And it’s all your fucking fault, you piece of shit.
A hard shove pressed to my shoulder, making me stumble back a few steps. Grudge had taken Dyno’s place, scowling and getting in my face. Clearly, he wasn’t satisfied with my answer.
“Can we handle this later?” I grumbled irritably. “When we’re not on our way to visit the site of our entire dead club?”
Grudge shook his head disapprovingly, his jaw clenched, but he got out of my way to pack up his own stuff. I sighed heavily, ignoring all the glares in my direction as I secured my belongings.
I knew I’d been a grumpy fucking bastard since church yesterday. Kyrie and the others didn’t deserve that. The guys were rightfully treating me like an asshole. This fucking day, the event that marked this day, they just haunted me, and I didn’t know how to make it stop.
The original Sons of Odin were our family, and we’d failed them. Dyno and Grudge grieved in their own ways and, for the most part, seemed to come to terms with it. Five years had passed since it happened, after all. But for some reason, I just couldn’t fucking let go.
