Page 10 of Kept
Eli blinked. Once. Twice. His mouth opened but nothing came out. But his body—his body leaned forward slightly, drawn in despite himself.
It sounded psycho. It had to. Kade needed to know the truth.
Anyone else in this situation would have been running screaming from Kade. If that line had made Eli blanch, freeze, run away—Kade would have backed off. He’d let Eli stay the night, safe away from the wolves outside, and then Kade would have let him walk away.
But instead Eli leaned forward, and Kade saw what was behind all those walls.
Want. Need. Everything that he’d been denying himself, too busy keeping his defenses up.
The proof was in every stolen glance Eli snatched of Kade’s body—quick, short, glimpses, like he wasn’t allowed to look too long. Like he was used to being denied everything good in the world.
Fuck that.
"You came into my house," Kade said, letting his voice go dark, rough. Every muscle in his body was taut with restraint, with the effort of not pulling the boy against him. "Slept in my bed. Got your scent all over my things."
"I can wash them, I can?—"
"You think that'll get your scent out? You think that'll make me forget you were here?" Kade moved closer, close enough that Eli had to tilt his head back to maintain eye contact. The position exposed his throat, and Kade's wolf howled at the unconscious submission. His hands shook with the need to touch thatdelicate neck, to feel that pulse against his palm. "You think Iwantto forget?"
Eli looked lost now, confused. But also... interested. His lips parted slightly, and his breathing had gone uneven. "I don't understand."
This close, Kade could see everything—the flush spreading down Eli's neck, the way his fingers twitched like he wanted to reach out but didn't dare. The boy's scent was overwhelming now, sweet and needy and his hishis.
"You keep thinking," Kade murmured, his voice strained with the effort of staying gentle. "I can see it. All those thoughts spinning. Telling you what you should and shouldn't want."
Eli's breath caught. His eyes went dark.
"Second-guessing everything. Analyzing every look. Fighting what your body's already telling you."
"I don't know how to stop," Eli admitted, barely audible. But he was swaying forward now, just slightly, like gravity was pulling him toward Kade.
Kade let his hand move slowly, deliberately, giving Eli time to pull back. When he didn't, Kade's fingers found his jaw—the only touch he'd allow himself. Gentle, so gentle, even though every instinct screamed at him to grip, to hold, to possess. "When I tell you something, it's true. When I say you're mine, you don't argue with it in your head. You just let it be."
Eli's eyes fluttered at the touch. A soft sound escaped him—not fear. Want.
The sound nearly broke Kade's control. The boy had no idea how close Kade was to snapping, to pressing him down into the mattress and showing him exactly what belonging meant.
Eli let out a shaky laugh, looking dazed. "You don't even know me."
"I know enough." Kade let his eyes track deliberately down Eli's body, took in the way he was practically trembling with want. His cock was so hard it hurt, and he knew Eli could see it, see how affected he was. Good. Let him see what he did to Kade. "I know you haven't tried to run even though I've been hard since I found you in my bed."
Eli's eyes dropped involuntarily to Kade's cock, obvious even through his jeans. This time he didn't look away. His tongue darted out again, and Kade could practically feel the heat radiating off him.
Fuck. Kade's control frayed dangerously. His hand on Eli's face trembled slightly with the effort of staying gentle. The boy was offering everything Kade's wolf wanted, everything he'd been looking for without knowing it.
"People don't—" Eli stopped. Started again. "I'm not—" Another stop.
"You're not what?"
"Worth that kind of trouble." The words came out in a rush.
"Who told you that?" Kade's touch stayed gentle on Eli's face, but his body language was anything but—shoulders rigid, muscles coiled like he was ready to hunt down everyone who'd ever made this boy feel small.
"Everyone. Eventually."
"Everyone's wrong."
"Please don't—" Eli’s expression was overwhelmed. "Don't offer if you don't mean it. Everyone always?—"
