Dare to Kiss (The Maxwell Series Book 1) (9 page)

I pushed up onto my toes and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you.” I eased back. “It’s good to see you, too. Dad tells me you guys are doing great.”

“Yeah. If it weren’t for your dad, we’d still be playing those dives in New Orleans.” He pointed with his chin. “Are you going to introduce me?”

I glanced over my shoulder. Kade had one of his masterful blank expressions. “Oh, I’m sorry. This is Kade.”

“Boyfriend?”

“God, no.”

Kade tugged me to him, his fingers pressing into my hips.

Lenny’s eyebrows shot up. “Mmm. I don’t think he agrees with you, Lacey.”

I lifted a shoulder. My back molded to Kade’s chest.
Was Kade staking out his territory
? Then Kelton’s words rang in my head:
Kade doesn’t share his women
. A miniscule sliver of me warmed to the idea, then I quickly discarded it. I didn’t belong to anyone. I itched to knee him in the balls again. I would’ve, if it weren’t for the subtle circles he was tracing on my hips.
Didn’t predators calm their prey before attacking
?

“Nice to meet you, Kade,” Lenny said.

“Same here, man. I like your music.” With the barest of movements, he mashed his thighs against me.

Desire rushed south. Annoyance climbed north.

Placing my hands over his, I dug my nails into his flesh, hoping the act would cause him to release me. Instead he pulled me even closer. His tall, hard body, all male, all hotness, pressed into me. My cheeks warmed, as did other places on my body.

Lenny laughed. “You sure about that, man? I’m not convinced coming from someone wearing a Zeal shirt.”

Kade laughed. “What can I say? I like them too.”

“Fair enough. Lacey, are you going to hang around to listen?” Lenny asked.

“That’s why I’m here.”

“Good. See you later then.” Lenny hopped up on stage.

I didn’t move. Neither did Kade. I probably should find Becca, but the lazy circles he was still drawing on my hips had me spellbound. Plus I didn’t want him stop. I hadn’t had this much attention from one guy since Brad. Even with Brad, he didn’t make my heart race like it was doing right now.

Lenny adjusted the mike.

I turned, and looked up at Kade. He looked down at me through his eyelashes. “I’m going to find Becca.”

“I thought we could talk first. I’m sure she’s fine. Let’s stand over by the wall.” He nodded to his left.

I guessed talking couldn’t hurt. After the way he’d just held me, I was curious about his intentions. We found an empty spot close to a table of two boys and two girls.

The band dove into a slow ballad called “Crazy,” and couples embraced, swaying to the soulful beat. Instantly, I was taken back to the time when Brad used to hold me like that as we listened to Zeal rehearse at the Eko Records studio. Now he was probably holding my best friend, Danny, like that. I had nothing against them playing for the same team. Regardless, humiliation still clung to me like a wet blanket. Why hadn’t I seen it? And why had Brad broken the news to me only two weeks after the murders? Plus there was a part of me that was mad at myself for giving him my virginity. I shook my head, hoping it would clear the past, at least for the present.

“Are you okay?” Kade asked.

“Yeah, why?”

His eyes met mine. “You’re clenching your fists like you’re about to punch me again.” He gave me a crooked grin.

I did want to punch someone, but it wasn’t him—not now, anyway. Thankful for the distraction, I smiled back.

“You should smile more, Lace.”

I did smile, more so now than a few months ago. “I thought you wanted to talk.”

“Too loud. On their break.”

That probably wasn’t for another thirty minutes or so before the band was done with this set. “Then I’m going to look for Becca,” I said. If I stayed, I might ask him to hold me again and trace circles on my body.
I hardly knew him
.

“She’s fine. She’s with Kel,” he said, watching the lead guitarist transition into a solo, while Lenny took a long drink from a water bottle. “They’re on the other side of the stage.”

Standing on my toes, I glanced over that way. Kelton had his arm draped around Becca’s shoulders while a tall blond guy spoke into his ear. Her body moved slightly as she focused on the guitarist. No sooner had the blond guy vanished than Kelton caught Kade’s eyes and angled his head toward the exit.

Kade straightened. Leaning down, he whispered in my ear. “I’ll be right back. Don’t leave. Regardless of what you told my friend yesterday, hunting season is definitely open when it comes to you, Lace. And I always get my prey.”

I rolled my eyes and focused on the band as the guitarist wound down his solo. Then Kade nibbled on my ear. White-hot heat slid down my belly, pooling between my legs. I screamed internally at my sex hormones to go back to sleep. My damn body was a second away from rolling over and letting him have his way with me.

“Did you hear what I said?” His hand cupped my chin gently, guiding it so our eyes met.

“Whatever.” I rolled my eyes again. “I may or may not be here.”

One side of his mouth twitched. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

He brushed his lips over mine, lingering for a long second before he pulled away. My body quivered for him to kiss me. My brain snarled in protest. Then he strode away.

My body was in yo-yo mode. One minute I wanted to strip him naked, the next, I wanted to beat the crap out of him. Snapping out of the Kade trance, I pushed off the wall. Becca weaved through the crowd, panic painting her pretty features.

The majority of the people were heading for the exit.

“What’s going on? Why is everyone leaving?” I asked.

“Oh, my God,” she said. “Greg Sullivan is outside. The guy I told you about, who got into it with Kade and his brothers a couple of years ago.”

“You’re kidding.”

She waved for me to follow her. The band finished their song. Lenny gave me a
what the heck?
look. I shrugged as I went with Becca. A few people jumped into the empty seats that were vacant now.

“Is there a fight or something?” I asked, following her.

“Not sure, but if Kelton and Kade are involved then probably,” she said over her shoulder.

A voice in my head told me to go home.
Get the hell out of there before Kade returned
.

Chapter 7

O
nce outside, the night air sent a chill through me—or maybe it was the ominous scene of hungry spectators looking for a fight. A swarm of teens crowded the lot, lounging on tailgates of trucks, leaning against cars, and a few girls even sat on the shoulders of boys.

I didn’t move from under the marquee. Becca stood beside me, scanning the lot.

The burly bouncer who’d checked my ID earlier raised a walkie-talkie to his mouth. “Buster, get outside. We have a situation.”

In the open lane of the lot, Kelton and Kade faced Aaron Seever, the captain of the baseball team, and a short stocky dude who I hadn’t seen before. I assumed it was the infamous Greg Sullivan. With their backs to me, I couldn’t see Kelton’s or Kade’s expressions, but Aaron stared down Kelton, and Greg stared down Kade.

“Greg is here to kill Kade,” someone in the crowd whispered.

“Over here.” Becca tugged on my arm, leading me to a pickup truck parked directly in front of the building. We were still behind Kade. She jumped onto the bed.

I hesitated. The voice in my head shouted to skedaddle while I had the chance, especially if blood was going to be shed. I shivered at the memory of me slipping on the floor in a puddle of blood when I found Julie’s body.

“It’s okay. It’s my dad’s truck.”

Go home
.
Baseball tryouts are next week. You can’t get into any trouble.

“Lacey,” she said nervously, holding out her hand.

I glanced out into the lot where my car was parked.

“Lacey!” Becca snapped.

Swallowing hard, I took her hand and hopped up. I was going to regret this. Once Becca and I found an edge of the truck to sit on, a queasy feeling skated through me.
Did Greg intend to kill Kade
?

There was clearly bad blood among the four guys.
Why Aaron
? I wasn’t sure. Another wave of nausea washed over me
.
If he were involved in this, did that mean we were going to have trouble on the ball field? Kelton was trying out, and so was I. I didn’t know Aaron that well, so he shouldn’t have any ill feelings toward me. Still, tension on a team never won games.

“You’re not wanted here,” Kade said.

The crowd quieted. The bouncer’s walkie-talkie beeped twice.

“What’s wrong, Maxwell? Afraid I’m going to finish you this time?” Greg said. His greasy black hair looked as though he dumped a bottle of Wesson oil in it.

Someone snorted.

Kelton laughed. “You think you have the balls to try?”

“I’m here, aren’t I?” Greg countered.

“So, Aaron, do you want to ruin your senior year? You know you just started a war bringing your cousin here,” Kade informed him.

“Bringing your brothers back was a mistake, Kade,” Aaron said.

“Oh, I don’t think so. You see, unlike you and Shorty here, my brothers are a force to be reckoned with. Mess with any one of them, and you’ll have me to deal with.”

“Are you threatening us?” Greg asked.

“No threats, man. All promises,” Kade drawled calmly.

“Aaron and Greg are related?” I asked more rhetorically than anything. The acid in my stomach intensified. If Greg was trouble, that meant Aaron was too. Maybe I should be worried about Tammy’s comment
.
The guys don’t want you to play baseball
. Was she talking about Aaron in particular? I searched the crowd for my new arch-nemesis. I hadn’t seen Tammy and Grace since they stormed away from Kade and me.

“I know, right?” Becca said as she watched intently.

The entrance door to the club slammed open. A hulking man with a buzz-cut stalked out and up to the other burly bouncer. They had a few words before the man with the buzz-cut started barking orders.

“Let’s get back inside before I call the cops,” he said as he strode past everyone.

A few obeyed. Burly Bouncer sprang into action, helping his partner guide teens back inside.

“I didn’t think it would take long before my father sent out his security team,” Becca said, sounding disappointed.

“Wow, that guy is huge,” I murmured.

“That’s my dad’s head of security.”

The name Buster fit him well, reminding me of a bulldog—husky and mean looking. “Is there a problem, Kade?” Buster asked, stepping in between him and Greg.

“Just talking, man,” Kade said.

“You’ll have to take your discussion somewhere else,” Buster announced. “We don’t want any trouble on the premises.”

“How’s the wimpy brother of yours, Kelton?” Greg taunted.

Kelton pounced, tackling Greg to the gravel surface. Kelton delivered punch after punch anywhere he could while holding Greg down. Greg tried to push Kelton off him, but all he could do was protect his face.

“Get him, Kelton,” one boy shouted.

“That’s it,” another yelled as Kelton drove his fist into Greg’s gut.

Everyone started talking and shouting, a few betting Kelton would win.

Buster and Kade yanked Kelton up by the arms. He struggled to get free while Greg pushed himself to his feet. Blood trickled out of Greg’s nose as he brushed off his jeans, as though it was just another day at the office.

Buster waved at his partner. “Take Kelton inside.”

The bouncer jogged over and wrapped his fingers around Kelton’s biceps.

Kelton jerked his arm away. “I can walk on my own, man.” He raked a hand through his disheveled hair.

“I’m not going to say this again,” Buster announced. “Either go home, or get back inside. If not, I will take names and you won’t be allowed in the club anymore.”

Several teens scattered back into the club. Buster’s directive was my sign to go home. I started to push off the edge of the truck when Becca grabbed my arm.

“Where are you going?”

“There’s nothing more to see out here,” I said.

A wiry-looking boy who walked past the truck said to his friend, “It would’ve been cool to see Kade lose it on Sullivan.”

“Nah, dude. That wouldn’t have been pretty,” the other boy said.

Would Kade have killed Greg?

“Yes there is,” Becca told me, ignoring the boys. She released me. “Pay attention.”

To what
? The fight was over. Or at least I thought it was, until I shifted my gaze.

Aaron was pointing in my direction. “I hear the new girl is good. She yours?”

Kade turned his head. As though someone had control of my body, I waved. What was wrong with me? I was trying to avoid attention.
I am such an idiot.

Anxiety curdled in my stomach.
I should’ve listened to my damn intuition and gone home.

Turning back, Kade grabbed Aaron by the shirt. If anything was said, I couldn’t hear it.

“Man, step off,” Buster said to Kade.

Kade hesitated before letting go of Aaron.

“You two leave the premises before I call the cops,” Buster said, waggling his finger between Aaron and Greg.

Without another word, Aaron sauntered over to a black BMW.

“It’s good to be back. It’s going to be like old times,” Greg shouted as he joined Aaron.

The few remaining spectators dispersed. Car doors slammed. Engines roared to life.
Time for me to leave, too
. Buster hung around for a few minutes, making sure Aaron and Greg had left, and everyone else did as he’d said.

Becca hopped down from the truck and I wasn’t far behind her. I started for my car.

“I’ll call you tomorrow,” I said. With the eerie feeling I’d just gotten from the Aaron-and-Kade interaction, I was ready to get on a plane to California. I didn’t want anything to do with anyone else’s problems. I had enough of my own.

“Wait,” Becca said. “The band is still playing.”

“I’m not feeling good.” It wasn’t a lie. “We’ll talk tomorrow.”

Becca frowned as she turned back to the club. I was surprised she didn’t protest more. Maybe she had Kelton on the brain.

Buster and Kade were still talking behind Kade’s truck. “Can you check on Kelton for me?” Kade asked. “I need to take care of something.”

“Sure thing, man.” He spoke as though Kade was the authority and not him.

Uh-oh
. He’d told me not to leave.
Don’t look.
I picked up my pace, digging for my keys in my purse. Vehicles trickled out of the pebbled lot across the street, their headlights putting me on display. Just what I needed—a beacon for Kade to find me. I scurried into the lot, walking past the last car waiting to exit.

A halo ringed the moon. The field beyond the open lot shimmered under the bright night sky. The night dew was settling in. I was no more than a foot away from my car when I caught the sound of gravel crunching under heavy footsteps.

“I told you not to leave,” Kade said from behind me.

I closed my eyes and stilled.
So close to making a run for it.
I opened my eyes and was about to turn when his lips landed on my ear. He really had a thing for ears, apparently. “If you value your sex life, you’ll let me go. I’m sure your girlfriends or Tammy would be disappointed.”

He laughed, nibbling on my ear for the second time tonight. “There are lots of ways to please a woman,” he said, low and husky.

Oh, crap on a cracker
. The guy was going to make me take off my clothes right here. “I would like to go home,” I said, trying to keep my voice from shaking or my body from melting into his.

“We have some unfinished business.” He grasped my hips, drawing me to him, my back to his front.

I almost kicked and screamed, but decided not to. I was beginning to like our little interactions, and frankly, I loved his strong hands on me. Plus it was time to hear what he had to say. Maybe then he would leave me alone. “If you want to talk, then talk.” I took in a deep breath. The fresh night air was a welcoming relief as it breezed over my heated skin.

His tongue licked my earlobe, his hot breath making me squirm against him. “I don’t want to talk,” he whispered.

Tingles rushed along my spine. “Kade?”

“Shhh. No talking.” I could imagine a night of wild pleasures listening to his husky voice.

The guy was torturing me. If pleasure was his form of punishment, it was definitely working. So do I push him away or give in to temptation? Before my brain caught up with my body, temptation won out. I turned in his arms, and my hands snaked around to his tight butt.

He groaned. “Be careful, you might like how this ends.”

“Nah, I know I would hate it,” I lied.

He chuckled as he rested his forehead against mine.

“Is this your way of talking?” I asked hoarsely.

“Maybe.” His hands slid around to my lower back and began tracing circles as he had earlier on my hip.

We stared at one another. If he knew my tragic past and how seriously screwed up I was, would he still try to lure me into his seductive web?

His gaze dropped to my lips. My pulse jumped. He gently eased me toward the back of my Mustang.

“I need to go home,” I said in a pathetic voice.

“Do you want to run, Lace?”

He never kept a girl for very long, Becca had said, and I wasn’t in the market for a one-night stand, no matter how good-looking he was. Heck, I wasn’t even ready to date yet. Sure, Kade made my body react in a way that was new for me, and every fiber in me knew he wasn’t gay. If I were wrong, I’d introduce him to Brad myself. Still, my focus had to be baseball and school, nothing else. Then there was Tammy. Where did she fit into Kade’s life? I didn’t need trouble.

“Cat got your tongue?” he asked as his hands reached up to frame my face.

My breath hitched, and heat spiraled down to settle between my legs.
Damn body
. He slowly lowered his head as his eyes darkened, desire flashing. Heat met cold along my arms, and I didn’t know whether to shiver or melt. As his lips drew closer, mine prickled in anticipation.

He stopped just as my tongue darted out. A deep rumble rose from his chest. Then his lips wandered teasingly over mine, and my legs were like warm saltwater taffy. Yep, I was done, fried to a crisp, and he hadn’t even kissed me.

Then he sucked my lower lip, in a slow sensuous tango.

I whimpered.

Groaning low, he eased back as though he were trying to get control of himself. His breathing was ragged, his gaze never wavering from mine. I reached up and curled my hands into his hair.
Heaven
. I ran my fingers back and forth, feeling the softness of the brown strands. I moaned softly. As if that little noise was his cue, his lips slammed into mine as he pressed his chest against me. Hard against soft. His tongue plunged into my mouth, desperately searching for something as though I had what he needed to survive. When our tongues collided, jolts of pleasure slithered down my belly, and I mashed my hips into him. He groaned again, taking, tasting, teasing as he bit and sucked. Then he gentled the kiss, with nips to my top lip then my bottom one before he grinned.

“Something funny?” I asked, breathing heavy.

“I’ve never tasted anything as sweet as you.”

“You mean I’m still sweet after those things that I did to you?”

His hands roamed underneath my shirt, one sliding down, the other sliding up close to my bra. Then his lips found my ear, nibbling. “Those things were only foreplay, for me.”

My muscles tensed; my body stiffened.

“Don’t freak, Lace.” His lower hand met the other that was now on the clasp of my bra. “Kiss me again.” His tone was demanding yet gentle.

I grabbed hold of his face and followed his command. Not because he told me to, but because I wanted to. I didn’t know what to make of his foreplay statement except that he was crazy, but so was I.

After a long, slow, wet kiss that had my insides screaming for release, I let my fingers roam over his face. The moonlight hit at just the right angle, illuminating his handsome features, even with the black eye. I loved his mile-long eyelashes, the flecks of amber in his copper eyes, his dimples that made me squeeze my thighs, the softness of his honey brown hair that I just realized had streaks of blond on one side, and I absolutely loved his lips. I wanted to kiss them all day long.

“I’m happy to see you two finally sucking face,” a male voice said in the distance.