Page 103 of With This Kiss
And the only way for that to happen was if our dad was no longer in the picture. My heart hurt, torn between my brother and my father, not knowing which side was the right side.
What could Dad have possibly done to make Caine hate him so much?
It didn’t escape me that Caine still hadn’t answered the question. He was avoiding answering me.
Was it really that bad?
“I’m fine right here,” I said. I needed to think… to figure out what the hell was going on. I also needed to find a way I could stay with Reign that wouldn’t end in bloodshed on either side, which was sure to happen if any of the men—from both Reign’s side or my side—found out about us.
“Are you sure?” he asked. A shadow passed over his face, as if he was debating how traumatizing it would be if he were to kidnap me from here.
I leaned away from him unconsciously, a move that I knew he didn’t miss.
“She’s sure,” a voice said behind us. I turned around to see Reign standing there with a bag slung over his shoulder. His eyes were hard as he stared down at Caine. “And I think you’ve spent enough time here. It’s time for you to go.”
Caine didn’t say anything for a moment, just stared back at Reign. I shifted in my seat as the energy in the room seemed to grow tense and suffocating.
Then he stood up. I stood too. He cupped my shoulder and bent down so we were at eye level and said, “My offer still stands. You can call me anytime, and I will come over to pick you up.”
I blinked at him, unsure of what to say.
My eyes shifted to Reign, who was frowning.
“Thanks,” I said. “But like I said, I think I’m okay here.”
He nodded once and straightened. I felt him squeeze my shoulder lightly before he walked out of the apartment. The door closed behind him, leaving just Reign and me here.
The bag Reign was holding fell to the floor with a thud before he made his way over to me.
“There wasn’t really a reason to kick my brother out,” I said when he got close.
“Not a reason?” he asked, sounding incredulous. “He was trying to take you away from me.”
He sat on the couch and pulled me onto his lap. I wrapped my arms around his neck. “You sound so possessive when you say things like that.”
A strange look passed over his face. Then he said, “You think this is me being possessive? Oh, baby, you haven’t seen anything yet.”
I let out a small laugh, so sure he was joking. His face remained serious, and my laugh awkwardly died off.
I frowned at him. He couldn’t be serious, could he?
I shook my head.
He wasn’t. No one said things like that and meant it. I cupped his cheek, letting my palm run over the hard stubble on his jaw. “Do you know why my brother is working with you guys?”
He shrugged. “Don’t know. He might have told Kingston because that’s who he approached with this, but I wasn’t privy to the information, nor did I care.”
I leaned back and took in his face fully. “You don’t care because you don’t trust Caine.”
He didn’t admit or deny it, but he didn’t have to. I could see the answer in his eyes.
I looked down at his chest, unsure of how I was supposed to feel about this.
“Does Kingston trust Caine, then?” I asked quietly.
“He trusts Caine about as much as he can trust anyone. Which isn’t much to begin with.”
I didn’t know what to say to that. Caine was literally stuck in the middle of two enemy lines.
