Benath the Surface (Reluctance #1) Read online

  The punches had been hard, the jabs fierce, and both had taken his breath away when the guy connected with his ribs. He hadn’t touched Kyran’s face, though.

  One less bruise to lie about.

  It had taken three rounds before Kyran got a grip on his opponent’s pattern, because his head was still so full of Dale. The memory of her refused to go away.

  “I’m only asking because you have this weird grimace on your face. Usually you come back here pumped—every now and again you’re pissed—but you don’t grimace.”

  Kyran hissed as Sam dabbed his raw knuckles with alcohol. It stung, but the pain snapped his thoughts into the present. “I’m good. He got a few good jabs in. My ribs are aching already.”

  “Ice bath when you get home. You know the drill.”

  “I do.” Kyran nodded, switching hands.

  “So what’s got your panties in a knot?”

  “Nothing I want to go over with you, old man.” He smirked.

  Sam chuckled, undoing the bandages and tossing them into a bowl. “Aw, come on, sugar. We could get our nails done and do each other’s hair. All that girlie shit.”

  “Seriously, Sam?”

  The old man shoved Kyran’s shoulder. “Got rid of that pained expression, though, didn’t I? Lie back, lemme check on your ribs.”

  Kyran gritted his teeth, easing down onto the bench and raising his arms above his head. Sam’s fingers prodded the tender skin, checking for any signs of damage. Kyran relaxed, closing his eyes and allowing Sam to make sure all was okay. He wasn’t hurting, so he doubted any serious damage had occurred. Nevertheless, he could make sure.

  “Anyone asking for me?”

  Sam paused in his exploration and waited a short while before answering the question. “You expecting someone?”

  “Not really.”

  It grated that Dale hadn’t come to see him tonight. He had told her where he’d be. Sure, she’d been annoyed with him, but he’d assumed that was because she felt awkward—and a bit embarrassed—by what had happened. Neither of them planned on having sex. The condom had been in his wallet for a while. On that front, he was always prepared. Dale hadn’t believed him, and he’d bet that was why she hadn’t come to the club tonight.

  Thankfully, Sam left the conversation there, helping him sit up and passing him a clean towel. “You should clean up. You stink, your feet are filthy, and you have blood everywhere.”

  “Did the other guy come to yet?”

  Sam clicked his tongue. “Not last time I checked. You knocked him out cold.”

  “Good.”

  Kyran stood, and his head spun. He rolled his shoulders, easing the ache in his biceps. He started for the door, stalling before he reached the showers. “You know Trace, right? Trace Porter.”

  “I know Trace, but his last name isn’t Porter. It’s Jacks.”

  Kyran’s gut twisted. Trace wasn’t her brother? Dale had lied to him.

  “Do you need him? I’m pretty sure he isn’t on tonight. Well, I didn’t see him on my way in, and he’s the most reliable person I know. Except you, that is.” He gathered the bloody bandages and small bowl of water, carrying them over to the sink in the corner of the room. He kept his back to Kyran, cleaning up the mess and disposing of the soiled bandages.

  “Have you known him long?”

  “Are you going to tell me why it’s so important?”

  “It’s not.” Kyran attempted once again to go and shower, but the door that led to the bar opened. It slammed against the wall, revealing Dale standing with her hands on her hips.

  “Is he in here?” She scanned the room. “Okay,” she said when she spotted him. “I’m here. You’ve got what you wanted.”

  Her eyes blazed, and her curls tumbled around her face. She wore a huge sweater that fell off her right shoulder, revealing her pale skin, and a pair of well-worn black jeans. Kyran’s cock stirred.

  “What I wanted? I merely pointed out where I’d be tonight. I never asked you to come.”

  “You’re an asshole.” She banged the door closed.

  His hold on the towel tightened, and he was sure he could feel Sam glaring at his back as he waited for Kyran’s retort.

  “Not the first time I’ve been called that.”

  Dale sneered. “Won’t be the last either.”

  “What can I do for you, Dale? I was just about to take a shower. I’m tired and bloody.”

  Pointing at him, she stomped across the room. “You can talk to me, and don’t repeat the shit you offered up in the boardroom.”

  Sam coughed. “I’ve gotta, um, do that thing over in the . . . out there.”

  Kyran and Dale glowered at one another, only speaking again when they were alone.

  “What I said to you wasn’t bullshit. I have no clue what we do next. I never planned what happened. You’re an employee, for Christ’s sake.”

  Pushing her curls out of her eyes, she sneered. “I don’t believe you.”

  Arguing was getting them nowhere. He’d overstepped the mark by having sex with her, and now he was paying for it. “Think what you like. It doesn’t change the facts. I’m going to shower.”

  “You don’t know how to react around me now, do you? Well, newsflash, I don’t either. It’s not like I go around fucking my boss on a daily basis.”

  Kyran fought the urge to tell her she could, if she wanted. She had deceived him about Trace, and she was his employee. He needed to remember both of those things before he started being led by his dick. “Maybe you don’t, but it seems lying isn’t beneath you.”

  Intending to leave her alone with that thought, he walked into the shower room and chucked his towel onto the floor. Dale followed him, shoving his back as she shouted, “Please do not tell me you just called me a liar!”

  “I did.” Taking a few slow breaths and dismissing the sharp pain in his ribs, he twisted to face her. The fire in her eyes heated his blood and laced it with lust. The woman had a remarkable effect on him . . . and his groin.

  “How dare you! Never, not once, have I lied to you. Why the hell would you think that?”

  He tried to feign impatience and switched on the shower. “Trace. Your brother? Huh?”

  Dale nodded.

  “See, that’s where you’re lying again, Ms. Porter.”

  Her brows drew together, her lips turned down at the edges, and when she spoke her tone had softened. “How?”

  “His last name is Jacks.”

  The furrows still between her eyebrows deepened in thought. Then Dale blinked. “Not that it has anything to do with you, but we have different mothers. Trace is my half brother. I went to live with him when I was thirteen, so I don’t acknowledge the half.”

  As Dale explained, Kyran felt like such a dick. “I see.”

  “More of an explanation than you deserve, asshole.”

  He offered her a weak smile. “You can’t call me that. I’m your boss.”

  “Not here, you’re not!”

  The air around them began to stir, and it wasn’t from the steam now billowing up from the heat of the shower. Kyran’s fingers tingled and itched to touch her. The strange pull he always experienced around her began to build. Dale moved closer to him, sweeping her tongue out to moisten her lower lip.

  “Were you jealous, Kyran?” She swept her hand down his inked arm. “Did you think Trace and I had been together?”

  Kyran’s chest tightened, and his voice sounded gruff as he said, “I’d considered it.”

  “And did you feel envious?” She hooked her finger into the waistband of his shorts, pulling the elastic away from his body. “Is that why you were so mad at me?”

  “We should stop, Dale. This isn’t good for either of us. I don’t do relationships, and you can’t keep this light and casual. No woman can.” He shuffled backward.

  “Wrong.”

  “I’m never wrong,” he said with utter conviction, taking another step back. He huffed as the shower spray hit his back. However, wh
en he looked at her body he was met with the sight of a wet, aroused Dale. She didn’t care if she was fully clothed; she followed him into the shower. The water had sprayed her, catching her sweater and causing it to stick to her chest.

  The woman was braless.

  Protruding against the cloth, her nipples were hard and begging for his attention. His mouth watered and his balls hummed with a desire he’d only ever experienced with Dale.

  She cocked her head, pulling on his shorts again. Unable to hold back any longer, Kyran lowered his head and took her erect nipple into his mouth. He teased it through the sweater, scraping with his teeth. She gave a soft exhale, pushing her chest closer to his mouth. He considered stopping at that point, concerned that they’d resolved nothing, but as her hands began to remove his shorts, his concerns fled.

  The water sluiced down his back and over his aching muscles. It cascaded across his naked buttocks; Dale had finally managed to take his clothing from him. Her sweater followed seconds later, exposing her breasts to him and heightening his savage lust.

  “Jeans.” Kyran growled, taking hold of his cock and pumping it twice.

  Steam surrounded them, the sound of the water barely masking the heavy beat of his heart. Dale tugged her jeans down and kicked them across the tile floor. They stood, both naked and wet, assessing each other. Still bewildered by the force of passion that flowed between them, they slowed.

  “We’re going to do this? Again?” Kyran questioned, breaking the silence.

  “Why, are you planning on stopping here?”

  Kyran cupped her breast in his palm and circled the nipple with his thumb. “No. I doubt I could, but we will need to talk.”

  “Without arguing. But you’re an ass, so I doubt that’s possible.”

  “Anything’s possible, Dale.”

  Kissing the tip of her nose, he roamed her slick flesh, cupping her other breast and tickling her stomach. He kissed a path along her jaw and across her shoulder. Dale writhed as Kyran dropped to his knees and his kissed her stomach, swirling his tongue around her navel. She trembled when he lowered his mouth to her sex.

  Her taste was the sweetest nectar; he knew now once could never be enough. He licked her slit, dipping his tongue inside a little at a time as she placed her hands on the back of his head. The tremor in her thighs increased with every lick. Dale scraped her nails against his scalp, and a shiver tickled down his spine.

  “Open,” he said against her thighs, pressing at her knees to part her legs. “I need more.”

  He licked at her juices, swirling over her clit and making her purr with pleasure. Kyran positioned her leg over his shoulder, opening her up for his inspection. Focused on her alone, he kissed, sucked, and lapped at her until she was crying and begging for release. His cock ached to be touched or buried inside her slick heat.

  Dale held his jaw, elevating his face. “Please, Ky. I need you.”

  With his arousal just as strong, he stood, capturing her mouth and kissing her with abandon. Kyran’s lust went into overdrive, knowing she tasted herself on his lips.

  She panted, moaned, and whined, the little sounds driving him wild. Dale was dazed and completely carried away in the moment.

  Kyran lifted her and nestled his erection between her folds as he pressed her against the tiled wall. Dale rocked, trying to get him inside her. He wanted nothing more, but there was a problem. “I don’t have any condoms, Dale.”

  She sobered at his admission. “I never thought . . . I came here to yell, not fuck.”

  He kissed the tip of her nose, biting down on his molars to stop his hips thrusting. “But when you yell, all I want to do is fuck you.”

  Her grin turned into a hiss as he moved his hand over her ass cheeks, delving between her legs. Dale kissed his chest and started to roll her hips against his questing fingers. The compulsion to prolong this between them was great, but the desire to please her, even greater. Kyran eased two fingers into her, loving the sound that left her lips as her eyes rolled back.

  Kyran got lost in her body. The grip Dale’s body had on his fingers intensified every emotion. He thrust, twisted, and pumped into her, wishing with every cell that it was his cock and not his fingers.

  Dale’s sexual history didn’t concern him, although maybe it should considering they didn’t know each other well. He’d never had sex without a condom, and he wasn’t going to start now. Kyran knew fathering a child would be disastrous. Children and his fucked-up mess of a life were not in any way compatible.

  Dale murmured words of encouragement, the walls of her sex sheathing his fingers. The sensation was delicious. Her whimpers of pleasure floated around the room and mixed with the sound of the cascading water. He nibbled along her shoulder, thrusting into her with force as he circled his thumb around her clit. She clamped her thighs tighter around his hips, using his own hips as leverage to rock faster.

  Dale focused her lust-filled green eyes on his as she panted out his name.

  “You look amazing,” he said, leaning forward to nuzzle her neck.

  “Make me come.”

  Her thighs shook as he pumped into her, fast and aggressively. Dale cried out for more, begging for her completion.

  Kyran licked up her neck, from collarbone to ear—an action that was unbelievably erotic and her undoing.

  Dale’s stomach twitched as she screamed his name. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, while she was consumed by her molten orgasm. Sucking a pert nipple into his mouth, Kyran felt his balls grow tight. He suckled her, fighting off his own crescendo. If he couldn’t be inside her, then he wouldn’t come at all.

  He stood and whispered, “Amazing.”

  “How can you make me feel this good?”

  Kyran chuckled and sucked the lobe of her ear into his mouth. Groaning at the sound she made, he said, “I spiked your drink.”

  Laughter burst from them both, each clinging to the other. The water still rained around them, and they were beginning to wrinkle, but Kyran didn’t give it another thought. He kissed her and their excitement grew again as their bodies rocked against one another.

  Reluctant to stop, he growled as he pulled away from her lips. “Sam will be coming in to check on you soon. He’ll be worried after the way you came through the door.”

  With care, he lowered her to her feet and moved his hands to frame her face. The flush to her skin made him want to fuck her all over again.

  Dale kissed his chin and smiled. “He must know you wouldn’t hurt me.”

  “I think he was more concerned about you hurting me. Those daggers you were shooting from your eyes hurt.”

  Her expression grew serious. “Cross me again or call me a liar, and I’ll make sure they do.”

  “I lost my head. It’s not difficult to figure out, I suppose.”

  Smoothing her hands up his tattooed arms, she shook her head. “I love these.”

  “I know, you’ve told me.”

  “I’m telling you again.”

  They parted, turning off the water, and collecting their sopping wet clothes. Kyran peered out of the room, making sure the coast was clear, but when he gestured her through, she didn’t budge.

  “There’s no one here, Dale. It’s okay.”

  Dale stared at him, clutching her clothes to her chest.

  “What’s wrong?”

  She opened her mouth to speak but shut it again. He waited, watching the worry morph her features.

  “W-what do we do now?” she asked, trying not to make eye contact.

  Irritated, Kyran marched over to her. He took her hand and laced his fingers with hers. The action was uncharacteristic of him, but he’d acted on instinct, strange as it was. When he was around Dale, he felt the same rush of adrenaline he experienced after a fight. He forgot the stress of the job, forgot his wayward brother and stoic father. Kyran could be the person he rarely allowed himself to be. He squeezed her hand. “Fucked if I know. Let’s get out of here and see what happens.”

  Chapter
10

  “So, how come you lived with Trace?”

  Dale popped a fry into her mouth and chewed slowly. They both still had wet hair and flushed cheeks. Her clothes had been too wet to salvage, so Kyran had loaned her a spare T-shirt along with a pair of shorts that were huge. She knew she should feel self-conscious, but she felt so comfortable being with Kyran.

  “My mom wasn’t all that great. When I was thirteen, she decided her sleazy boyfriend was more important than I was. Trace found me home alone, trying to make pancakes four days after she took off.”

  “Did she come back?”

  Not quite answering his question because it still hurt to think how a mother could abandon her child, Dale said, “There’s always another boyfriend. Besides, it was easy for her to stay away when she couldn’t bump into me at the store.”

  “Why not?”

  “Dad and Trace lived on an island about fifteen minutes by boat from here. I went to stay with them. I became number 894.”

  “Huh?”

  “People on Barren Island.” She rolled her eyes. “Your business was everyone’s business.”

  “I see.”

  “And now you know some of mine; I think it’s your turn.”

  Kyran shook his head. “You don’t need to know my business. Besides, you work for my brother and know about my father, so what else is there to tell?”

  “Your mom?”

  Kyran paused and tossed a fry back into its container. “My mom died when I was small. Taylor was just a baby.”

  Sympathy swamped her. “Oh, Kyran. That must have been so hard for you.”

  “Truthfully, the hardest part was watching her suffer. The cancer left her in so much pain toward the end. Even as small as I was, I knew my father suffered as much as she did. He couldn’t bear to watch her.”

  Dale wanted to reach out and console him, but Kyran shot her a warning glance and lifted his burger. He took a bite, wrinkling his nose before tossing it onto its paper wrapper.

  “You don’t like burgers?” Dale asked, feeling the need to change the topic of the conversation.