Page 12 of Kept
Eli's breath left him in a rush. Not because of the strength. Because of the care. Men like this weren’t gentle in Eli’s world. Scott had made everything a weapon—volume, swagger, cruelty. Kade didn’t fit.
No cruelty in these hands. Not an ounce.
He held Eli like something worth caring for, not something flawed.
Another howl, closer this time. Eli flinched hard, but Kade didn’t let go. His grip tightened just enough to bring Eli’s hands to his chest, to the heat of him. The beat under Eli’s palm was a steadying hammer.
Eli’s eyes dropped because he couldn’t not. Kade was fully hard now, thick and visible even through soft, dark fabric, a heavy press angled toward the waistband of his shorts. No shame. No hiding it.
So close…
God.
Eli’s blood surged. He should really move. He should speak, say something about being tired or needing sleep, or thank Kade for not tossing him out to be taken by feral werewolves.
But Kade's hands were so warm.
And he was sick of hiding.
He wanted everything that Kade had said to be true.
What came out—unbidden and too quiet to believe—was a whisper: “Warm me up.”
Kade stilled. A low sound rumbled through the back of his throat—more breath than growl—but it made Eli’s whole spinal cord lock up.
He stepped forward again and began to unbutton Eli’s shirt. Not fast.
One. The scrape of thread through cotton. Two…
Eli forgot how to breathe right. Cool air slid under the fabric as Kade stripped him.
The next touch slid slowly against him, Kade's palms running down Eli’s ribs, mapping his shape. Learning him by hand.
“So thin,” he murmured. Not judgment. Not pity. Possessiveness?
Eli swallowed hard. His cock pulsed in his jeans, a helpless push forward.
Kade noticed. Of course he did. His thumb skimmed the soft hollow under Eli’s ribs, sending a shiver up his spine. The breath that escaped Eli had more voice than he meant to give it. Almost a moan.
“Don’t make sounds like that,” Kade rasped, voice rough, strained, broken with want. “Not tonight. I won’t be able to hold back.”
Eli froze, heart hammering. He’d never heard anything like that directed at him. Heat roared through his chest, sharp and impossible to ignore.This is a bad idea. Totally, completely wrong.And yet… the thought of it made him shiver in all the right ways.
He let his voice slip, barely a whisper, tremulous and daring. “Then… don’t.”
The word hung between them, fragile and combustible. Kade’s chest vibrated against Eli’s palms, a growl crawling up his throat, feral and raw. Eli’s pulse leapt at the sound, his body responding without thought. He tipped his hips up, pressing into the weight leaning over him, encouraging, inviting—testing the wolf’s restraint, daring him to break.
Kade’s control cracked.
Before Eli could think better of it, Kade pinned him down to the bed, hands heavy on his wrists, chest pressing into his, weight and scent and heat overwhelming. Eli’s breath hitched, caught between fear and ecstasy.
Eli gasped, letting the words, the grip, the danger wash over him. His hands twisted under Kade’s, pressing closer, urging, craving.Yes. Do it. Take me. I don’t care if it’s supposed to be wrong.
Kade’s teeth grazed the hollow of his throat, and Eli arched instinctively into it. His back lifted, hips rising, body tracking every inch of Kade’s intent. Heat and pressure, scent and growl, collided.
Kade’s mouth traced the length of Eli’s neck in slow, deliberate arcs, teeth grazing, tongue dragging, lips pressing down like silent promises. Not kisses. Not tenderness. Claiming. Marking. Mapping.
A sharper bite caught at the hollow just below his jaw. Eli choked on a sound he didn’t know he had in him—half plea, half inhale. His head tipped, almost instinctively, leaning into the sensation, begging for more.Please. He was dizzy with the rush of being wanted like this, wanted so completely that it made him ache.
