Where the Sun Hides (Seasons of Betrayal #1)(39)

“Except I didn’t do it.”

His lips parted to speak again, but he hesitated.

“I didn’t,” she repeated. “And you won’t hurt me for not doing anything at all.”

Kaz’s mouth curled at the corners, and he flashed his white teeth in a mix between a sneer and a grimace. She felt his fingers tighten to her throat and his thumbs press against the hollow just enough to make her stand a little straighter, freeze under his hands, and wait.

She didn’t have to wait for long, but his next move was not what she was expecting.

Violet blinked and Kaz’s mouth was crushing down on hers rough, hard, and demanding. The shock of his kiss made her gasp, and his tongue instantly sought out the heat of her mouth. His hands never left her throat, but they had loosened enough that she relaxed. And when his tongue struck hard against hers, she was already fisting his jacket and pulling him closer.

He groaned against her mouth, the sound originating from somewhere deep in his chest. Violet’s eyes were locked on his, only shutting for a brief moment when his teeth sunk into her bottom lip.

The shock of pain was electric.

Jesus.

She whined low, and pulled him closer again.

There was no hiding how she shook and he let out a ragged sigh as his forehead rested to hers.

Silence echoed.

He watched her like that, saying nothing.

She didn’t mind—she no longer wanted to move.





A heartbeat’s time passed before Kaz moved away, fighting to get himself under control. This wasn’t the first time he had ever kissed a girl, and even if it had only lasted for no more than a minute, his cock was harder than it had ever been.

She didn’t take her eyes from him, not even when she licked her lips, just a quick swipe of her tongue that made him ache all the more. Would she look like that when she was on her knees? Would she be as excited to have those pretty little lips wrapped around his cock?

Shit.

He shouldn’t have been thinking of her, not that way, but he couldn’t get the image out of his head, and the more he stood there staring at her as she did him, the more he thought about getting her exactly as he wanted.

Reaching down, he palmed his erection, shifting it into a less painful position. Violet’s eyes followed, a flush blossoming in her cheeks as she watched his actions.

Knowing that it wasn’t going to do him any favors by watching her reaction to him, Kaz turned away, taking a breath as he contemplated where to go from there. It wasn’t like he could pretend like it didn’t happen—he didn’t want to.

He had learned rather quickly that she had already managed to dig her way under his skin, and at the moment, he had no intention of trying to get her out. So since she was already there …

Turning back to her, he got himself under control long enough to ask, “Hungry?”

Maybe it was the confusion of all that had just happened, or perhaps because he sounded so unaffected that she frowned, her brows drawing together. “What?”

“Are you hungry?” he asked again. “For food, I mean.”

That, at the very least, wiped the confusion from her face, only for a scowl to replace it. “Why are you asking?”

“Let’s grab something to eat.”

Violet looked like he’d sprouted a second head. “Are you joking?”

Kaz shrugged a single shoulder. “I’m quite serious.”

“You have to be joking … Kaz, are you forgetting who I am? Who we are? We can’t be seen together, let alone be together.”

It sounded more like she was afraid of being seen with him as opposed to not wanting to go with him at all. “Come with me. We’ll get out of Brooklyn, I’ll take you to a little place I know that’ll keep you out of trouble, and we can have a moment to ourselves. What do you say?”

Violet looked nervous, unsure even, but as he expected her to decline, maybe even talk more about the risks, she nodded.





Kaz waited in the living room as Violet disappeared into her bedroom to change. While he hadn’t gotten the chance to fully appreciate that dress on her, that would have to wait for another time.

Another time …

He was already reading too much into the situation.

It shouldn’t have mattered that they kissed, or even that she made him feel something he couldn’t explain. She was still a Gallucci, and he was a Markovic—the two families just didn’t mix. But as he waited for her to reappear, that distinction didn’t seem to matter to him.

Taking in her space, he eyed it carefully—the soft gray walls, the mixture of fabrics and textures, something Vera would have pointed out, if she were there. His sister always liked to point out things whenever they were together, like she couldn’t control the impulse. For the most part he tuned her out, but sometimes he picked up on smaller details.

Kaz had only been waiting a few minutes when Violet reappeared, dressed in a pair of jeans that hugged her hips and contoured to her legs, along with a simple white tank-top beneath a bomber jacket. Despite how understated she’d attempted to be, she still stood out. She had even gone so far as to pull the long length of her hair up into a ponytail, and washed the makeup from her face.

It almost felt like he was dealing with another person entirely—like seeing another side of her. He had never seen her this way, so ... vulnerable.