The Unfortunates (Unfortunate #1) (27 page)

It’s late. Not even a mouse stirs in the large manor. Guests from dinner have returned to their own mansion
s or are still passed out on the grass out the back. The Unfortunates have finished putting away the tables and chairs and most have retired back to their rooms… which makes me wonder about Thirteen. I haven’t seen her in so long. Worry turns my stomach at the thought of Vince punishing her for what went down weeks ago in the Black House. As the worry progresses, panic begins to stir. I haven’t slept alone in weeks, not since that night.
What if Vince knows? What if he knows I’m down here alone in my bed?

I shoot up and swing my legs off the bed. The bare soles of my feet touch the cold stone and I realise my door has no locks… I can’t stop him even if I try. Desperation clenches my organs. I
need
Kade. I want to be tucked up in his large, soft bed and wrapped in his strong, thick arms. The thought alone is enough to have me on my feet and out the door.

The halls of the manor are dark and long. I move as quickly as I can, letting my fingers graze against the smooth walls. The last thing I want is to get caught out
here alone. No good will come from a Fortunate or Moderator who spots an Unfortunate sneaking about a manor at night. The conspiracies they’d spin with that would be endless.

When I reach the stairs, I move quicker than ever before, putting all of my weight on the tips of my toes. Not only is this Kade’s part of the manor, but it’s Vince’s
, too. The second my foot presses the very first floor board at the top of the stairs, I hear a door open and close, then the unmistakeable sound of a girl swallowing her own sobs. The sound lights a fire under my ass and I launch forward, sprinting across the hall in front of me and into the first door I see. Inside, it’s dark and quiet, but I don’t waste time looking around, instead, I peer through the crack that I left. My quick pants of hot breath collide with the cool wood and blow back onto my face. In the dim light, I see her, Thirteen, treading as softly and as quickly as she can, desperate to get away from Vince.

“Thirteen!” I whisper, but she doesn’t hear me.

As she passes my door and her shaky fingers reach out for the railing, I open the door a little and peer out. I’m aware my neck is so far extended it could be slit at a moment’s notice if I’m caught by a Fortunate. I suck in an inhale, ready to call her name again until I see
him.
Vince, shirtless and completely happy with himself treads lazily to the stairway. Even in the darkness, I see his lazy grin and notice his satisfied gait. I pull my neck in as quickly as I can and press my back hard against the wall adjacent to the gap in the door and clamp my hand over my mouth. My heart thumps loudly, so loud I’m certain he’s going to hear me. With my back to the wall, I’m forced to see more of the room I’m hiding in and
holy shit
there’s a sleeping Fortunate in the massive four posted bed on the other side of the room. If my heart was racing before, it’s absolutely flooring it now and I have nowhere to go, nowhere to hide. This was a bad idea… I should have stayed in my bed, not venture out to climb into Kade’s. How could I’ve been so stupid?

“It’s late, Unfortunate. I trust you’ll make it back to your room without waking anyone up
,” Vince says and I dare myself to have a little peek between the crack.

“Yes, Master Vince
,” Thirteen responds, then silence falls.

I wait with bated breath. The sleeping Fortunate shifts in their bed and I squeeze my eyes shut. If I can’t see them then maybe, just maybe, they won’t be able to see me. Thankfully,
whoever it is doesn’t wake up, and after a few solid minutes of silence, I push myself to my feet and step out of the room. The cold, metal door handle squeaks inaudibly in my hand, but I manage to get the door shut without any major disturbances.

“Sneaking about, are you?”

I squeak as I whirl around, bracing my hands against the door frame. “Master Vince,” I exhale anxiously. My heart squeezes into my throat as he pushes off of the banister.
Idiot!
I was so anxious to get out of the room I didn’t think twice about looking for Vince by the stairs. I take a minute step back and instinctively play off my fear with a nervous smile.

“Y
ou scared me. I-I was just on my way to Master Kade’s room.”

“Were you now?” His tone is sceptical and I don’t like it. “Shall we go see him?”

Familiar panic begins to raise its head, but I don’t dare let it cross my countenance. I nod and step forward. Kade will have my back. He’ll lie for me. If he doesn’t, if he’s still mad about earlier and wants to me suffer, I’m screwed.

I let out the smallest exhale as we stop in front of Kade’s door and clench my fist before finally tapping my knuckles softly against the wood.
In a fit of impatience, Vince reaches around me, grabs the handle and pushes the door open. It swings with a vengeance and slams against the wall. In a slow, unbothered movement, a half-naked Kade turns his head towards us. I take in the scene before me. Kade lies on large cushions smoking a pipe in front of a crackling fireplace that casts a beautiful, luminous glow around the room. He eyes Vince and me closely. The look is enough to set me on edge and my hands begin to tremble.

“There you are, Unfortunate
,” he states finally. My spirits lift, my eyes widen and appreciation floods my tummy. I knew he wouldn’t throw me to the dogs, or dog, rather. “Did you get lost?”

I nod, overeagerly. “Yes, Master Kade.” I step closer. “I’m sorry.”

With a bored sigh, Vince leaves and fear begins to grow roots in my belly once again. I stand still as he draws his pipe to his mouth and inhales, all while his eyes lock on to me. The long, thin glass pipe is the width of a human finger then round, like a bubble. I drag my eyes down the pipe to the small embers that flare and burn the grass at the bottom. Ten seconds pass before he lowers the pipe and blows out the smoke. I watch as it swirls in mesmerising patterns in front of him.

“Come in
.” I step inside and a small twitch pulls at the corner of his lips. “Shut the door.”

Trembling, I reach out for the handle and push the door shut. Of my own accord, I lock it.
I don’t want Vince to come back.

Kade’s eyes narrow in.
“Sneaking around the manor at night… do you have a death wish?”

“No
, I—”

“
—what do you want?” he asks, almost bored.

I guess he’s still mad
I made him ruin his pants. I almost smile at the memory of how useless he was to stop it. I had his body under control. I owned it.

“I
’ve come to see if you need any company.”

He turns his attentions back to the fire.
“I would’ve called you if I needed company.”

“No, you wouldn’t
have.”

Silence falls between us. The only sound to stop it from being deafening is the lulling crackle of the burning wood.
“Come. Sit.”

I do as I’m told and make my way over to him as quickly as possible. This is where I want to be… in here with him. I feel safer. I always feel safe when he’s around. He gave me the benefit of the doubt tonight. For all he knows, I could’ve been walking around looking for an escape.
I lower myself onto a large, red cushion beside him and he hands me the pipe. A distinct lesson blares in my head. ‘Drugs of pleasure aren’t meant for Unfortunates,’ and so I shake my head at him. Kade’s volcanic eyes narrow in and he draws the pipe closer to my mouth.

“I promise you’ll like it.”

I swallow hard and recall the last time he said that to me. We were alone and it was right before he blindfolded me. The last time ended well so why would I say no this time? With minimal hesitation, I lean forward and put my lips around the warm, smooth glass. The taste of trees and dirt tickle my tongue, numbing the area. There’s a gleam in Kade’s eyes, an arousing, naughty gleam, so I inhale and hold, letting the smoke caress my throat and burn my lungs. Instantly, my head begins to float, feeling completely unattached from my body. Almost instantly, I begin to pulse in hot waves between my legs. The waves then intensify when I feel Kade’s rough hand on the inside of my thigh. His hand feels like a million tiny, vibrating nodes and I close my eyes. I inhale more smoke, loving the way my head swims and my fears slip away from me.  And suddenly, I no longer exist… which is really hard for me to wrap my head around. I mean, I exist, I can see Kade and my surroundings, but I feel light and… invisible. In this moment, I’m no longer an Unfortunate, but a human, equal to Kade. I don’t fear him… I crave him. I crave his mouth, his skin, his tongue, and his hands. All of it.

I want it.

I open my eyes and he’s watching me with the same lustful expression that is undoubtedly displayed on my own face. I blow the smoke out and he lowers the pipe, letting it drop to the floor with a slight thump. We watch each other, neither one making a move. It’s quiet—dead quiet—and I hear my heart drumming in my ears.

“
Careful, Unfortunate,” he murmurs, his hand stilling on my thigh. “If you keep looking at me like that I’m going to have to do something about it.”

“I didn’
t know empty threats were your style,” I say, almost breathlessly.
They haven’t been so far.

“I wasn’t expecting you to come tonight
,” he admits, pushing himself further onto his elbow. “I was just lying here, wishing you’d show up at my door…”

I eyed him warily, ignoring the way my stupid heart flutters.
“And I did.”

He nods
, his thick, warm fingers twitching against my thigh. “You did.”

Warmth floods my body, washing over me like solar flares. My head ceases to spin, but the pulsing waves refuse to stop.
“Do you want to talk about this afternoon?” I ask, swallowing hard, and he dips his head subtly. In a swift movement, he’s on his hands and knees and closes the slight distance between us. I try not to worry about his arms that are planted on the floor either side of my legs. His gesture is sexual, not violent.

“T
his afternoon when you came in here all confident and impertinent I decided I was going to
finally
slip myself between your legs and have you.”

My breath hitches and I fall back on my elbows as he crawls over me, his demeanour as calculated as a tiger. “You were?”

“Oh yes.” He lowers his mouth and kisses the very edge of my lips.
God…
he smells good. “I was going to be kind and loving… then I was going to bury myself deep inside you.
That’s
how I wanted to come, but you were being too sexy. Your body felt too good against mine and I couldn’t help it.”

“I was being sexy?”
I never thought I’d hear him admit that I succeeded this afternoon.

Kade pulls back slightly
, his eyes flaring in front of mine. “I came in my pants, Nine. Fuck yes, you were being sexy.”

“If that’s how you felt this afternoon… how do you feel now?”
My head is clear, my mind unhindered by the effect of the pleasure drugs, but my body is working itself into a frenzy. It’s taking everything I have not to wrap my legs around his hips and pull him into me.

“Don’t worry about me.” He plants another kiss on my lips, making them part unintentionally. “I want this to be all about you.”

“What, more nipple pinches and hand slaps?”

He smirks playfully, making my heart slam into my ribs. Why doesn’t he do that more often? It takes years off of him and makes my insides melt like butter.
“Only if you ask me to.”

In the next heartbeat, his mouth is on mine, his tongue slipping right in between my lips. The taste of wood smoke and berries floods into me, making me dizzy. As he continues to sensually taste me, I breathe him in. He smells of cherry and musk, a scent I wish I could capture in a bottle. Kade pulls back and our breath collides in hot pants.

“I wanna take you, Nine. I wanna take you places you’ve never been before.”

“Well,” I say, unable to hold a nervous laugh. “The beach is a good start. I’ve never been there.”

He chuckles. “Always sarcastic.” Kade pulls back even more, far enough to let me take in his whole face. His stare flicks between my eyes and my mouth. “Tell me what you want me to do, Sweetheart, and I’ll do it.”

I watch him curiously.
Why is he being like this?
All kind and
not
asshole-ish. What has changed between this afternoon and tonight—despite the obvious? The drugs have my body on fire and there’s a building pressure between my legs, even my nipples pulse in agonising rhythms against my dress, but other than that, I feel normal. I don’t feel funnier, happier, angrier or sexier… just normal. Kade, on the other hand, is different all over.

“Are you al
l right?” I ask, caution lacing my tone.

“I’m better than al
l right.” His stare falls to my lips again and it stokes something wicked inside me. “I’m happy… even happier now you’re here.”

I’m unable to hide my smile
, and dammit, I don’t want to. I want him to see that I like it when he’s nice. “I make you happy?”