Radley
What's going on?
First, Alaric came to our house with his father and he kept ... staring at me. Shoving himself in my space. His gaze had been intense. He spent most of the time pushed up close to me - in the kitchen, on the sofa, walking close to me. He had even wrapped an arm around me and touched my cheek, his touch leaving a trail of fire on my skin.
He had been looking at me like ... he was in awe or something.
And now ... with Orion ...
He was kissing me. Right now. His tongue was eagerly exploring my mouth, just as I was exploring his. The scent of pine cones filling my nose, his closeness threatening to overwhelm me.
I ... liked both guys.
A tickling sensation fluttered in my stomach, warming my chest, sending prickles along my skin. A strong pulse was aching at my crotch as it was pressed against his.
My eyes had closed on their own the moment Orion had pressed against me. My heart was leaping around excitedly once more, having never really calmed down since Alaric had touched me.
What was going on?
Why were two of the most gorgeous men I had ever seen paying me close attention?
Orion pressed me further against the tree trunk, his body moulding perfectly to mine. One of his strong arms was wrapped around my waist, holding me up since my legs were way too wobbly to hold my weight on their own, while his other hand was brushing through my hair, pulling gently on the strands.
My hands found their way into the tight coil curls on his head ... the curls that I had longed to feel brushed between my fingers.
Oh my god.
This was really happening.
Again.
My thoughts seemed to stop as Orion took charge of the kiss, moving his lips expertly against mine. My whole body felt on fire, my skin hyper-sensitive as he pulled me closer to him, almost as if he didn't want any space between us.
A cold breeze blew around us, rustling the branches of the woods above our heads, pushing the fallen leaves along the woodland floor. I barely noticed any of it. Orion had my whole attention, every one of my senses seemingly tuned in to only him.
His hand gently moved from my hair to cup my cheek as he pulled away slowly, reluctantly. Leaning forward, he pressed his brow to mine and smiled.
"I could do that all day," he muttered, his words quiet, almost as if they were for my ears only.
I ... didn't know what to say. I mean, what could I say? I agreed with him ... I, too, could spend all day kissing him.
Who wouldn't?
He was gorgeous.
Letting out a shaking breath, I managed a small grin of my own. "I ... uh ..." I licked my lips, unsure of what I wanted to say. Words ... what were words?
Orion chuckled and he pressed a kiss to my forehead, before pressing his brow to mine once more.
"Want to go for a walk?" he asked, his dark eyes glittering in the low light of the woods.
He ... wanted to walk? In the woods? With a killer on the loose? Isn't that why Conri was making sure everyone in the town stayed indoors?
I swallowed, watching his cheeky expression. He seemed kind of playful. He was breaking the rules, being out here. Conri had just told us he was enforcing a curfew, making sure everyone stayed in their houses, stayed safe.
And here we both were, standing in the woods, exactly where we shouldn't be.
Even Claudia didn't know where I was. I told her I was going to sit on the front porch. Told her I needed the air. She hadn't even questioned it. Just let me get my coat and go.
Glancing to the side, I realised I couldn't see my house from here. Too many trees in the way.
Orion noticed where I was looking. "Do you want to go home?" he asked. Pretty sure there was a hint of disappointment in his voice.
Pretty sure.
Almost sure.
Did he really want to spend time with me?
I found it kind of hard to believe that someone as handsome, and surely as popular, as Orion would want to spend time with me.
No one ever did, really.
But then, Alaric had asked to see me something similar earlier. Said he wanted to see more of me around the town. Even offered to take me on a personal tour of the mansion.
Two incredibly good looking guys were asking after me, wanting to spend time with me, touching me ...
Seriously, what was going on?
I felt like I had slipped into some sort of alternate reality.
Was I dreaming?
Orion took a step back, his arm slipping from my waist to grab my hand. His other hand was still touching my cheek, rubbing gentle circles over my skin, leaving behind trails of fire and sparks.
With my free hand, I pulled on the hem of my coat, making sure it was covering the tent in my jeans. Smoothing down the front of it, I bit back a whimper as the movement rubbed fabric across my erection.
Oh my god.
Orion's face was soft as he tugged my hand. "Come on." He pulled me away from the tree and led me back to the road and towards my house. I was walking unsteadily, and I wasn't sure if it was because of my arousal, or if it was because my legs were trying to find their strength again after Orion had kissed it away.
Oh crap.
Stepping out onto the road, I realised something.
I didn't want to go home.
Not really.
I wanted to spend more time with Orion.
The thought of going the rest of the day with just Claudia ... not seeing either Orion or Alaric again ...
I stopped as we reached my front yard, digging my heels into the path. Orion halted and looked over his shoulder at me. He raised his eyebrows.
"I thought you wanted to go home," he said, nodding towards the house.
Well, I was supposed to be at home and do what Conri told us to do. But part of me didn't want to. That part wanted to break the rules to spend time with Orion.
Shrugging, I tugged on his hand till he stood facing me. I peered at him from under my eyelashes, to find a questioning look on his face.
"Why did you come here?" I wanted to know. "Why were you hiding in the woods?" I needed to know if I was living in dreamland ... needed to know that this, right here, was real.
"Like I said, I wanted to see you." He reached up and booped my nose with the end of his finger, his smile lighting up his face.
I ... couldn't help but stare at him. Was he serious?
He frowned. "Is that ... wrong?" He took a step closer and brushed a hand through my hair.
"Uh ..." How could I explain this to him? That I had never had a friend before. That everyone usually kept me at arms' length.
He wrapped both arms around my waist, pulling me flush to his chest. "I like spending time with you, Radley," he whispered, then ran his nose along mine, heating up my cold face. I felt a couple of raindrops fall on my cheeks, cooling them off slightly.
Orion looked up at the sky, eyes narrowed, almost as if he was seeking out the offending rain. A couple more drops fell on my face, then a couple more ... followed by more ...
Orion wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into him in an attempt to protect me from the rain.
I felt him bury his head in my hair, taking a breath.
Was he breathing me in?
Alaric did something like that earlier ... leaned towards me to breathe in the air around my head.
Bringing my hands to my chest, I let myself be held by this tall strong guy, his powerful arms wrapped snugly around my torso, making me feel safe, protected, secure.
I wonder if I would feel this way being buried in Alaric's arms?
I was sure it would feel the same ... I knew he had the body of a God from when I'd seen him naked outside of the mansion on the night of the party.
Another hard throb in my groin had me burying my head in Orion's shoulder, hoping he hadn't felt that.
"You should get inside." Orion's deep voice sent a shiver along my spine. "The rain is getting harder."
That's not the thing getting hard right now.
I gulped as I pulled away slightly, only to stare into his deep dark eyes.
Gorgeous.
Absolutely gorgeous.
He leaned down to kiss my forehead, before pulling back further, grabbing my hand and pulling me towards the house to shelter near the front door.
"Go on," he urged, placing my hand on the door handle. "Get yourself inside." He took a step back and pulled the hood of his coat over his head.
Watching as he started to back away from the house, away from me, I felt a sinking feeling in my stomach and I reached out for him.
"It's okay, Radley," he said, a warm smile on his face. "You'll see me again soon."
"Tonight?" I cocked my head to the side as his smile grew wider, showing off two rows of perfectly white teeth.
"Yes." He nodded. "I'll see you tonight. Look for me out of your bedroom window after Claudia goes to bed."
He winked at me, before spinning on his heel and dashing along the garden path to the road, then running along the walkway until he entered the woods, his movements confident and deliberate.
Like he'd done it so many times before.
I sighed. I missed him already.
And that was crazy.
"Radley?" I heard Claudia's voice on the other side of the door. "Come inside. It's starting to rain."
Sighing again, I gripped the door handle tightly, noticing how my hand shook slightly.
It wasn't shaking with nerves, though. Instead, it was excitement thrumming through my body.
I was excited about seeing Orion later.