Cursed Hearts (A Crossroads Novel) (27 page)

Fuck taking the stairs
, he
thought.

He stepped into the elevator, taking it up to
the third floor alone. He reached his room in what felt like record time, tearing
off the dirty tank top as he slammed the door behind him.

Kaleb popped up from where he’d been reclining
on Rome’s bed.

“You smell like pasta,” he remarked.

Rome startled. “What the hell are you doing in
my room?”

“I’d think that would be obvious. I was waiting
for you.”

“Do you already know?”

Kaleb smirked at him in response.

“That you look amazing shirtless?” he said.
“Yeah, I knew that.”

Rome tensed. It was this kind of shit that had
gotten him in this
situation in the first
place. “I’m leaving,” he decided, walking across
the room and opening
his closet. “I’m getting so fucking far away from this town, and these people,
and all this magical, supernatural, vengeful ghost bullshit.”

“No,” Kaleb said, slipping off the bed and
closing the closet with force. “You’re not. You’re staying right here. If I
can’t leave, you can’t leave. I’m not going to let you leave me to put up with
all of this on my own.”

Rome pressed his forehead against the cool
glass with a sigh, fogging up the mirror before rolling his body around
languidly to face him. “You know, what you said to me before, it’s true. I am
worthless, and ugly. I don’t look good without a shirt on. I’m mangled and
disgusting and no one in their right mind would want me,” he said bitterly,
staring up into his eyes. “My own father hates me. And it turns out you were
right, he’s not even my father. No one gives a shit what happens to me. They
don’t even care if I live or die, or if I’m being assaulted in the middle of a
restaurant. I’m fucking trash, I’ve always been trash, and I’ll never be
anything
but
trash.”

Kaleb frowned at him
unhappily. “You’re not trash. I’ve known
trash. You don’t even come close. And those
things I said…” Kaleb stared down at his boots, scratching the back of his neck
awkwardly. “I was mad.” He couldn’t bring himself to say the words. “You’re not
mangled and disgusting. Or maybe I’m just out of my mind,” he said, glancing up
at him nervously. “But
I
want you.”

Rome was speechless. He felt like a hypocrite.
He’d said and done all these things, he’d spoken up about not caring what
others thought, and he’d even called everyone else out on being close-minded
and scared. He supported the right to love someone else regardless of their
gender, and yet what was he doing? He was staring back at a person that he
thought he might actually have feelings for, and the only thing stopping him
from admitting it, was the fact that he was a guy.

“I don’t…”

There were so many things
Rome could think of to finish
that sentence. I don’t know what to say, I
don’t know what you want me to do, or
how I’m
supposed to feel. But what came out was, “I don’t like you like that.”
He
clenched his jaw, closing his eyes. Maybe it was just because of what had happened
with his father, but he was actually waiting for Kaleb to hit him. After that,
he felt like he deserved it.

Kaleb laughed quietly before staring out at the
room. “I know,” he said. “You know I didn’t really mean that,” he added,
fumbling to cover what might have been the first hint of something genuine that
he’d shared in years.
“Isn’t that what you’re
supposed to do for friends? Tell them things they want
to hear?” They
both knew that was shit. If Rome was kind, he’d let him keep his lie. Kaleb was
praying he was kind.

“Don’t start thinking you actually mean
something to me, because you don’t. I’m a shameless flirt. I like sex and the
sound of my own voice, and most of all, I like to make people uncomfortable.
And those are just a few items on the long and varied list of my flaws. Neither
of us is perfect. No one is, in fact.” Kaleb turned away from Rome,
straightening out his jacket and brushing his hair back over his shoulders.
“You shouldn’t leave,” he concluded. “It would be an annoyance, finding someone
else to play with.”

Kaleb wasn’t the kind to be timid about how he
felt. He was loud, and more than often opinionated, and he didn’t mind being
the one running the show. He actually preferred it that way. Rejection didn’t
bother him. He’d lived off a steady diet of rejection and prejudice since he
was a child. If
anyone else had said that to
him, he would have fought the issue, thrown
them into bed and fucked
them until they changed their mind. That was why he was so baffled by his
reaction to Rome’s statement. When Rome had said that, for the first time in a
long time, it actually hurt. And he didn’t know where to put that emotion.

“Kaleb, I don’t know what I’m going to do in
the morning, but… if I decide to leave, do you want me to say goodbye, or just
slip out?”

“If you think you’re going to leave, come see
me.”

If it came down to it, he’d find a way to
change his mind.

Chapter 25

Everyone was down at dinner by the time Ariahna got back
to her room. She unlocked her door and shuffled Christian inside, thankful
that there
was no one around to see them. He had a split lip and a
bad attitude thanks to his encounter with Rome, and she was hoping to remedy
both. “Sit,” she said gently, motioning him towards the bed. She looked at his
lip with remorse, wondering how she could have let this happen. Tonight hadn’t
gone quite as planned. Nothing ever did when it came to them.

“Let
me find you a tonic. I think I have one in my drawer.”

Christian watched her flit away from his side to rummage
through her things. Thankfully, the car ride hadn’t been as eventful as their
date, though it had been as awkward. He hadn’t spoken to her since they’d left
the restaurant. He didn’t know what to say. She’d been
kissing
Rome,
touching Rome, and it
made
him aggravated and pissed beyond belief. They
couldn’t even have one night together without him, one night where he was the
only person who mattered.

“I’m
sorry,” she whispered suddenly. He sighed and accepted the potion from her. “Christian,”
she said, “I had a nice time tonight, before... all of that. I’m glad you asked
me out. I’m glad you took a chance.”

Christian grabbed her wrist, pulling her close. He wasn’t
really
mad at her.
He was mad at Rome. The throbbing pain in his jaw reminded him of that. “Oh for
three,” he remarked wryly. “It’s like the universe is trying to tell me
something, but I’m just a little too dense to get the message.”

She
bit her lip guiltily. “Life was easier before boys,” she decided.

Christian
laughed.

“Easier,
sure, but where’s the fun in anything easy?”

“He
really got you,” she said, brushing her thumb across his jaw.

Christian
grit his teeth. “I let him get one in. I figured he needed it, after being
pushed around and humiliated. I’ll bet he feels better now.”

“I
doubt it,” she mumbled. She closed her eyes and Rome’s vibrant gold irises were
staring back at her. She could hear that growl, feel the power
in his voice and the insistence of his words. He’d
said they belonged
together. The truth was, they were cursed to be.
There was a difference.

“If
you’re feeling better, you should go.”

“Or
maybe we could just talk for a while? It’s not like I exactly got the chance to
kiss you goodnight at the door and make sparks fly. But I figure we could at
least have twenty minutes of uninterrupted conversation. That is, if the
universe decides to show us some mercy.”

Christian
slipped his dirty jacket off and his tie, setting them on the floor like it was
his own room. He didn’t even realize how comfortable he
was making himself. “I’m sorry about your dress.” He reached over and
snagged a tissue off her nightstand, reaching up to wipe away
the
mascara still staining her cheeks. “Why don’t we clean you up and get you into
some dry clothes? I’d really feel like a jerk if you got sick again.”

“Yeah,
okay,” Ariahna said, examining her dirty dress. “Let me slip out of this and
then we can talk.” She opened her closet and pulled out some fresh clothes,
setting them on top of her dresser. The sensation of Christian’s eyes on her pulled
her out of her thoughts. “Turn around,” she said in amusement. “I didn’t have
that much wine.”

“Right,
sorry.” Christian slipped his shoes off and laid down on the far side of her
bed, facing the window. He could see her reflection in the glass, and he
couldn’t bring himself to look away. He could see her fighting
with the zipper going down the length of her spine.
It was caught on the
fabric of the dress. “You almost done?” he asked
casually.

Aria
huffed in frustration and tried to slip out of the dress with it half unzipped.
She wiggled and squirmed, but she couldn’t pull it down over her
hips. This was so embarrassing. She leaned against
the closet door
, resting her forehead over her knuckles before turning
to look at Christian’s back. She wasn’t going to end this night with any sort
of dignity, she realized. “I, um… I can’t get it off.” He glanced at her over
his shoulder, and she crossed her arms quickly over her chest, turning away.

Christian
walked over and placed his hands on her shoulders, smoothing his palms down
over the tops of her arms. “I got it,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to her
cheek. He unsnagged the fabric in the zipper and let the dress fall to her
ankles. She was standing in front of him in nothing but her underwear, and he
could feel his heart starting to race. He could actually feel his hands shaking
as he mapped his fingers down her back. He wanted nothing more than to press
hot kisses over her spine.

“Christian,”
she breathed.

“Aria,” he whispered back. He pulled her hair away and
his lips
found her
neck, hands gliding over her sides and pulling her back against his body. “You
smell so good,” he said.

She
swallowed as his lips moved over her throat and his hands swept over her
stomach, dipping down into the crease of her thighs. She turned in his arms,
gazing into endless brown eyes and admiring his full, parted lips. “Do you want
that goodnight kiss?” she whispered.

He
cradled her jaw in his palm, kissing her softly in answer.

The
world felt like it was spinning as she wrapped her arms around his neck,
stumbling with him over to the bed. The back of her knees hit the mattress, and
they toppled over onto the smooth sheets.

Christian
panted into her mouth, moaning breathlessly. She was touching him, and he’d
never been so nervous. Nothing had ever felt this good. He could feel her
desire, and it was stirring up a fire inside of him, leaving him yearning for
more. He started fumbling with the buttons on his own shirt. He wanted nothing
more than for Ariahna to touch him in more intimate places. He wanted to feel
her hands move down his taut stomach and
dip
dangerously into his waistband. He wanted her to take it nearly all
the
way and then tease him until he begged. “Touch me,” he pleaded.

Aria
moved her hands over his skin uncertainly. She didn’t know what she was doing.
She’d never done anything like this before. Christian guided her hand down
towards his hips until her fingers were brushing over the edge of his pants.
Her heart was beating heavily in her chest.

What
if she did it wrong? What if he laughed at her? Why was she even doing this? He
pressed passionate kisses over her collarbone and she tipped her head to the
side to allow him better access. He tore his shirt off, tossing it onto the
floor as her palm slipped over the fly of his pants. She pulled away instantly,
holding her hands at her sides.

“Christian,
I don’t—” He cut her off with a fiery kiss, his tongue slipping back into her
mouth and battling with her own. He was making her feel weak and light-headed. His
fingers started gliding along the back of her thigh and she moaned softly,
gasping as he pressed himself between her legs. He was rubbing them together
tortuously, and Aria was getting feverish at the friction. She wanted to shove
him away, but she was quickly being swept away by desire.

Christian
teased agonizingly at the sensitive skin just below her breast. He wanted to
make her hot. He wanted her so aroused that all she could think about was being
completely naked with him. His lips found the perfect curve of her neck and he
sucked gently on the skin, rubbing his arousal against the thin fabric of her
panties.

Ariahna
knew she was getting in over her head. She knew she should
say something, anything, to make this stop, but all
that ghosted across her
lips was his name. “Christian,” she begged,
shocked by the desperation in her voice. She blushed at how quickly he reached
underneath her and unlatched her bra, exposing her skin. He was claiming her
greedily
with his eyes and she
covered
herself with an arm, looking shyly away.

“You’re
gorgeous,” he whispered, pulling her arm back and kissing down her chest. Her
head fell back against the mattress as he locked his soft, wet lips around her
nipple. He was sucking and licking her into his mouth, and kneading her other
breast in his palm. Ariahna shuddered beneath him, fingers slipping into his
hair as she arched off the bed. He could feel the burning pleasure spreading
through her body. Nothing had ever felt so thrilling, so dangerous. She was
delicate, and her skin was as soft as silk. Christian knew no one had ever
touched her like this, made her feel like this. His fingers slid down over her
hip, provoking a near painful throbbing between her legs. She was aching for
him and mewling softly whenever he rolled his hips against her.

“Please,”
Aria cried, hands slipping down his muscled back and finding the top of his
boxers. She tugged suggestively at the material. She
couldn’t believe what she was doing, what she was asking for, but she
felt like
she might die if he didn’t give it to her.

Christian reached down and unzipped his pants slowly as
she watched
with a
timid fascination. The thought alone of her seeing him left him excited. “Don’t
look away,” he breathed. He stood up, letting his pants fall to the floor along
with his boxers. Christian bit his lip, gliding his hands down over his
own body. “Do you want to touch me?” he asked, his
voice as gentle as a caress.

She exhaled nervously, nodding as she scooted over to the
edge of
the
bed. She sat in front of him, eyes
locked on his body as a deep, red blush
claimed
her cheeks. She glanced up at him and then quickly back down as she
reached out to touch him, ghosting her hands up
over his thighs
. She was scared – excited, and scared. She closed a
shaking hand around his shaft, stroking over him with inexperienced fingers.

Christian’s face was screwed up in pleasure. A hot breath
escaped
his lips on
a shudder. “Oh god,” he breathed, letting his eyes slip closed. He looked down
at her after a few timid strokes, gently touching the side of her face. He
brushed his thumb over her lips, suggesting with the drop of his gaze what he’d
like her to do next. “You don’t have to, if you don’t want to,” he said. “But
if you do, I promise I’ll return the favor.”

Ariahna
looked up at him reluctantly and shook her head. She wasn’t ready to do that,
and she certainly didn’t want whatever he was suggesting he’d do in return. “Maybe
we should stop,” she said apprehensively.

“It’s
okay,” he said, laying her back on her pillow. He got on top of her and started
leaving tender kisses down her body. Ariahna whimpered softly as his mouth and
fingers reached her hips, closing her legs weakly. Her hands were reaching for
him as though she were trying to pull him up. “Shhh,” he breathed. “Just relax.
I promise it’ll feel good.” She was writhing beneath him, aroused and needy. He
kissed over her wet panties before working to slide them down her legs. “I want
to make this pleasurable for you,” he said sensually. She let him touch and
kiss her, teasing around her until his tongue brushed slowly against her most
sensitive skin. Ariahna let out a startled moan, and he hummed happily between
her legs. She was already so wet, but he knew the more aroused he could make
her the better.

Aria
didn’t know what to do with herself. Christian was taking her into his mouth
and filling her with an insatiable heat. He was driving her wild, making her body
tingle and burn. His tongue started flicking against her even
faster and she cried out, fingers grasping at his
hair. Just when she thought she
couldn’t take it anymore, he pulled
away, leaving her mourning the loss of contact. He locked eyes with her as he
crawled back up the length of her body, trailing his wet tongue and hot lips enticingly
over her skin. By
the time
they were
eye to eye again, she couldn’t breathe.

Christian cradled the side of her face in his palm as he
kissed over
her
neck. He was sliding himself back and forth between her legs, easing her into the
idea of what was about to happen. Aria tensed as he tilted his hips back to
press against her. He could feel her trepidation.