KENNICK: A Bad Boy Romance Novel (17 page)

Chapter
Twenty-Five

And then he was gone. Kim’s heart was beating nearly
out of her chest. And when Kennick’s arms encircled her, she melted. Turning,
she felt a flutter in her stomach. He was looking her up and down as though
he’d just found the Holy Grail.

“Holy fuck,” he whispered, pulling his arms in so that
their bodies pressed together. “That was the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.”

“Oh yeah? What are you gonna do about it, big man?”

He smiled. She was floating, high on adrenaline and
the passion of being swept entirely in his eyes. And when he kissed her, it was
all her best futures coming true. Pulling away, he answered her question with
the smirk on his lips as much as the words coming from his mouth.

“I’m gonna fuck you ‘til you scream my name.”

In a single motion, he’d swept her up into his arms
and carried her through the trailer to his bed, his mouth against the warm
flesh of her neck, his tongue darting out to spark her sensitive nerves as she
held tight around his neck. When they’d entered the sanctum of his room, the
light smell of incense lingering in the air, the warm purples of his walls
bathing them in a sensual aura, he dropped her to her feet once more.

“Take these off,” he demanded, fingering the business
casual blouse she’d been wearing for work that day. Never taking her eyes off
him, Kim began to undress, slowly, watching his eyes widen with each button
that unbuttoned, until finally she slid the shirt from her arms and unzipped
her skirt, letting it pool around her feet. It had been too hot for stockings
that day, and the only things that kept them apart were her bra and panties.

“All of it,” Kennick growled, reaching out with one
finger to pluck at the strip of fabric between the cups of her bra. She felt
wild under his eyes; his tongue coming out to lick his lips seemed to beg to
return to its rightful place in her own mouth. As she removed the last of her
clothing, standing entirely bare before him, she lifted one hand to the top of
his jeans.

“Tit for tat,” she cooed, wanting him to return the
favor and show her what he held beneath all his clothes. To her surprise, he
grabbed her wrist and pulled her hand away, stepping forward to press his body
against hers, mouths meeting in a hungry clash of lips and tongue; when he
raised a palm to the center of her chest and pushed backward, she was caught
off-guard, and toppled backwards onto the bed, the mattress bouncing slightly
beneath her. He dropped to his knees before her, his eyes dancing over her
prone body, her succulent breasts and already-damp slit, as she leaned
backwards on her elbows, watching him with one eyebrow raised.

“Patience,” he said with a sly grin, and leaned
forward until his mouth met the sensitive skin of her belly, right above her
navel, his tongue stroking gently as he made his way downwards. Each inch of
skin that he graced with his tongue sparked, sending ecstatic trails upward,
and made Kim relax deeper and deeper into the mattress, until eventually she
was on her back and he was poised just above her sex, his hands coming to grab
her thighs and wrenching them apart, his hot breath running in gusts across her
tingling clit.

“Please,” Kim moaned, beside herself with anticipation
as he teased her, blowing long warm breezes over her now-swollen clit. Her sex
glistened before him, ready and open, and he growled against her as he finally
reached his tongue out to taste her, drawing the tip upwards from her pussy to
her slit in devastatingly slow motion.

Kim’s hands flew, automatically, to his hair, running
through each long strand as he began to pleasure her throbbing clit with his
tongue. Relief swelled and flooded her taut muscles as he circled the tight
bundle of nerves with his tongue, then lapped over it, then flicked upward,
each motion designed to draw her closer and closer to the precipice.

Darts of ecstasy nipped at her nerves, her thighs
closed around his head, her fingers rolling through his hair faster. She let
her head roll back on her neck as he licked her steadily, a balloon of pressure
developing in her deepest self. She could hear the desperate little cries that
escaped her mouth, and she knew she was pulling his head towards her, her hips
beginning to grind gently against his mouth.

Releasing his grip on her thighs, Kennick pressed two
fingers against her moist slit; they slipped in easily, and Kim groaned in
abandon as he probed her slowly, making her squirm and buck in an effort to
feel him deeper as he began to increase the pace of his tongue on her clit. The
balloon was filling more and more, her body wavering as her muscles tightened
to the point of pain, her throat releasing moans and cries of pleasure with
wanton lust.

“Kennick,” she groaned, aware of nothing but his name,
his fantastic tongue bringing her pleasure she’d never imagined, his fingers
inside her probing, now curling, and pressing, some deep and primal place
inside her, pressing harder until the balloon was about to burst, and he
suckled her clit between his lips, flicking the tip of his tongue across it as
she exploded around him.

Kim’s body shuddered and bucked in ecstasy, her
passion flooding every inch of her body as she came and came, his mouth never
leaving her sex, driving her orgasm to new heights. With a ragged breath, she
pushed away at his forehead, the sensation too much as the fireworks peaked and
began to fall in gloriously vibrant embers around her.

Her slit was dripping now, her juices flowing freely
as her orgasm subsided, and Kennick rose to his feet, his own breathing
labored, his cock straining through his jeans, the taste of her lingering on
his tongue. Kim pulled herself up and grabbed at his jeans, popping the button
and ripping the zipper down in a frenzy. She wanted him in her mouth, wanted to
make him explode the same way he’d done for her. She wanted it more than she
could remember wanting anyone’s cock in her mouth.

As his veiny, engorged cock released and stood
straight before her, a moment of panic swirled through her at its size. But the
drop of glistening precum on the tip begged for her tongue, and she leaned
forward, taking the plushy head in between her lips, rewarded with a groan from
Kennick above her as she swirled her tongue around the head, an emphatic moan
sending vibrations up his cock.

The briny pre-cum dripped down her throat and made her
want more; she let her tongue dip forward, before her lips, soaking his shaft
so that it slid easily through her mouth and down her throat. She took her
mouth away, replacing it with her hand, just long enough to shift so that she
was kneeling before him on the bed. With her fist firm around the base, she
bobbed her head up and down on his cock, savoring the taste of him and the feel
of the vein underneath it throbbing against her tongue.

He was barely halfway buried in her mouth when his cock first
hit the back of her throat, making her gag slightly, tears forming in the
corners of her eyes as her nose struggled to capture enough breath. Her hand
pumped steadily on the bottom of his shaft, her lips meeting her own knuckles
so that every inch of him was covered and pleasured.

His hands found their way into her strawberry blonde locks and
closed into tight fists, taking control and holding her in place as his hips
began to rock back and forth. Looking up at him, his nostrils flared and his
eyes were half-lidded with lust. Kim let him use her, feeling the raw power of
his thrusts as he slid deeper and deeper into her mouth, each stroke determined
and commanding, her tongue lapping at whatever part of him it could touch.

“Touch yourself,” he growled, and Kim obeyed happily, letting
her fingers plunge into her dripping slit, her palm pressed against her
still-buzzing clit. She pumped wildly against herself, the sensation of
Kennick’s cock filling her mouth making her desire rise fast and hard. She
loved the way he was using her, taking her mouth and throat as his own, taking
what he wanted, what she was so happy to offer. As his pace quickened, her own
body began to shake, her hips bucking slightly as she pressed against her clit
and thrust her fingers upward.

His dick throbbed and strained in her mouth, and she knew he
was close. Her own body was beginning to shake, her pleasure barreling towards
her faster than she could stop it, and the moment his hot cum hit her throat,
filling her with the musky sweetness of him, she came against her hand, body
snapping in fiery bliss as she swallowed every drop of his cum, savoring the
raw burn of it down her abused throat. When he slid out of her, a few last
streams of seed fell across her breasts, and she ran a finger through the mess,
bringing it to her lips to suck the last bit of him into her mouth, her body
tingling and sparking.

“Christ, baby,” he groaned, twisting and falling at the same
time so that he lay beside her on the bed, his feet on the floor, his stomach
fluttering and chest rising heavily.

“Mmm,” Kim could only respond, leaning back to find her place
in the crook of his arm, one of the only places she ever felt truly at home,
one of the only places she never once felt bad.

Chapter
Twenty-Six

“Kennick,” Kim asked, her voice slow, not wanting to
spoil the otherwise perfect moment. “I know this isn't the best pillow talk
but...”

“Ah,” Kennick sighed, turning to his side so he could
face her, then leaning up on one elbow. His long hair fell into his eyes and
Kim fought back the urge to run her fingers through it, pull him down, and kiss
him into the next week. She settled for just running her fingers through his
hair, letting her fingertips tickle down his jaw and through his red beard. “I
thought this was coming. Can't get anything past you, huh,
keshalyi?”

“I mean, okay, it's not even a question, is it? I
know. I was right there when he said it. You're growing weed out here,” she
said, letting her hand fall to her chest. “You know I work for the mayor,
right? And weed is still illegal in the state of Delaware?”

He collapsed onto his back beside her with a sigh.

“I know,” he said. “Trust me, I know.”

Kim let the silence draw out for a moment before
propping herself above him, trying to hide her smile. By the worry that was
still etched in his face, she was hiding it well.

“Did you also know,” she said in mock seriousness.
“That you're lying in bed with someone who has
tried
marijuana before?”

His eyebrows rose slightly as he studied her face.

“I didn't,” he said, reaching out to stroke her bare
arm, the sensation settling straight up her spine.

“Did you know,” she said, leaning in and letting her
lips hover inches above his, “that you're lying in bed with someone who didn't
just try it, but tried it and liked it?”

It was Kennick's turn to hide a smile as he leaned
upwards, meeting her teasing lips with his own. Pulling away, he shook his
head.

“I didn't know that,” he said. “But it's very
interesting.”

Kim giggled and lowered her head to his chest,
settling into the crook of his strong arm, inhaling his scent of sandalwood and
heat.

“I don't really care,” she said. “As long as it's just
weed. But if it gets to be serious stuff...”

“Never,” Kennick said shaking his head. “Worst we ever
tried was mushrooms, but they're finicky at best.”

“Well, I guess that wouldn't be awful either,” Kim
shrugged against him. “But no pills. No meth. No smack, coke, angel dust, bath
salts, DXM, speed...”

“Jesus,” Kennick huffed, “you sure
you're
not a dealer?”

“I'm serious,” she said, looking up at him from her
place on his chest. He smiled down at her, petting her hair gently.

“Me too,” he said. “We only work in herbs. I swear
it.”

“Good,” she sighed. “Maybe you can lend me some. If I
could get Mayor Gunderson hooked on pot instead of booze we'd all be better
off...”

Kennick smiled, but when he saw that she hadn't really
been joking, his brow furrowed. He stroked her arm.

“What's on your mind?” he asked, sure that there was
something more brewing behind those bright blue eyes. Kim shook her head but
kept her gaze on the ceiling, her jaw moving slightly as she worked out what
she wanted to say.

“I love Mayor Gunderson,” she finally said. “He's a
lovely man, a good boss, he's very nice and sweet. Treats me well, with bonuses
on Christmas and my birthday and all those good things. But he's not...he'd
just
not
the kind of man who should
be in charge of a town. I just wish he would retire, gracefully. Not run again
next election, you know?”

“Well,” Kennick said with a quick bark. “Wish with one
hand and shit in the other and see which one fills up first. If you want a
better leader for Kingdom, do something about it. Run against him.”

Kim shook her head. It wasn't that easy.

“They would never vote a woman into office,” she said.
“And I couldn't very well keep my job as his assistant if I ran against him, so
once he won I'd be out of a job and have spent all my money on a campaign.”

“Who's they?” Kennick argued, his hand running lower
to graze her side. Kim looked at him then, and was taken aback. His eyes on her
weren't just lusty. They were searching, and confident.

“They. The people. People like Bob Talkee and Pastor
Hendrix,” she said, looking down now to avoid the determined way he looked at
her. She'd told Kennick all about her experiences with the two men who most
agitated her.

“Screw them,” Kennick said, suddenly rising from the
bed and pulling his clothes on in a hurried rush. “You'd be a damn good leader.
You've got twice the head on your shoulders as your drunk boss. No offense, I
know you like him, but come on, Kim. You do all the work there anyway.”

Kim raised herself onto her elbows, watching him cover
his strong torso with no small disappointment; she was a big fan of those
tattoos across his chest and biceps, and being able to see them and stroke her
fingers over them and kiss them and...

“Get dressed,” he said, throwing her discarded dress
onto the bed so that it fell across her lap. “We're going to see Tula.”

She raised an eyebrow.

“Tula? Your cousin? The fortune...”

“
Not
a
fortune teller,” Kennick interrupted. “Fortune tellers are hacks. Tula is
a
 
drabarni.
The real deal.”

“You know, Kennick, on our first date when you talked
about fariries, it was cute. And I like all your stories. But I'm sorry – no
matter how much I love you...”

At that, she clapped a hand across her mouth.

She'd actually said that.

Casual as could be, she'd just dropped the L word.

She hadn't even
known
that she felt that way, but as soon as the words left her mouth, it felt
right.

And it also felt embarrassing as hell.

Until she saw the smile on Kennick's face, and he sat
down, slow and meaningful, on the edge of the bed. He took her hand away from
her mouth, bringing it to his lips and kissing the now-clammy palm. Kim's heart
was racing, but as she looked into his confident eyes, she felt a warmth
spreading through her body.

“Ah, beautiful, what're you embarrassed for? There's
nothing shameful about love. If there was, I'd be blushing too, every second
that I spent with you,” he said, giving her back her hand. She took it in her
other hand, as though it had come back to her different than it was when he'd
taken it. “Come on. Let's go.”

Kim found Tula Volanis’ trailer the strangest of the
few she’d been in so far, because for someone who was supposed to be a seer,
and connected to the stranger things in life, it was rather barren. The
interior was
 
plain wood and the
walls painted a pale yellow. Some family photos dotted the walls, but there
were no hanging dreamcatchers, tapestries, artwork, or anything else to
distinguish the small living room.

She’d half expected to find a circular table with an
elaborate scarf draped over it and a crystal ball in the center. Instead, there
was a plain black sofa and a small TV on a stand, a rocking chair in the
corner, and a plain wooden coffee table. The kitchen had held some strange jars
of mushrooms and herbs and vials of unidentifiable liquid, but that was the
only evidence of anything paranormal in the whole place.

As Tula, a slight girl who looked to be in her early
twenties, brought in three steaming mugs of tea on a tray, Kim admired her
green eyes, which seemed to be the calling card of the Volanis family. Her
brown hair was plain and thin but sleek and rich-colored, and she had straight
bangs covering her forehead, a button nose dotted with freckles, and a mouth so
small and pink it could have belonged on a cat’s muzzle. Everything about Tula
seemed vaguely feline.

“So,” Tula said, settling herself into the rocking
chair with the fragrant mug of tea under her nose, “to what do I owe the
honor?”

Kim sniffed at the tea as Kennick clasped his hands in
his lap and smiled broadly at his cousin. The tea wasn’t anything she could
recognize, extremely herbaceous and slightly woodsy. She took a sip and felt
the warmth flood through her, calming her down to her marrow.

“Kim here would like to know if you see anything in
her future,” Kennick offered with a gesture to the woman beside him, who shot
him a deathly glare.

“
Actually,
”
Kim interrupted, “Kennick dragged me here because he thinks you’ll see me being
elected mayor of Kingdom next election.”

Tula hummed in amusement and closed her eyes. For a
long moment, she just sat there, rocking back and forth in her chair, the tea
clasped in her two tiny hands under her nose. Kim glanced at Kennick with her
eyebrows raised. Was this is? She’d expected to have to her palm read, or her
blood drawn and thrown into a bowl of corn or something. When Tula opened her
eyes again, it was with a sort of jealous admiration.

“This is beautiful,” she said, her voice thick and
heavy, like a person just coming out of sleep. Despite her disbelief, Kim
leaned forward, captivated by the dazed look in Tula’s eyes as she studied Kim
from across the room. “You are both so beautiful.”

To Kim, Tula sounded like she’d had a bit too much to
drink. Kennick, however, groaned.

“We know
that
,
Tula,” he said with feigned impatience as his cousin crinkled her nose over a
bemused smile. “Will you get out of
there
?”

“Sorry,” she said with a giggle. “It’s hard to avoid
with both of you sitting there.”

Kim glanced at Kennick, confusion on her face. It was
like they were speaking their Romani language, having a conversation she
couldn’t hope to understand.

“You are very in love, it’s true,” Tula mused, closing
her eyes again and smiling. Now, Kim understood and blushed. Were they? It had
certainly seemed like that’s what they were both saying just a little while
ago, in the trailer.

But to have someone else say it, based on seeing them
together for approximately five minutes, was off-putting to say the least. Tula
peeked at Kim, opening one eye and smirking. That smirk screamed Volanis just
as much as her green eyes. “Fight it all you want, lady. Won’t help you any.”

Kim buried her face in the mug, taking a huge sip to
avoid blushing even further. Tula closed her eyes and resumed her rocking, the
living room filling with the slight creaking of her chair. When she finally
sighed, it felt like fifteen minutes had gone by. Tula opened her eyes and
finally took a sip of her tea, then studying the contents of the mug for
another intolerably long moment before drawing her attention back to Kim.

“Hard to say,” she said with a shrug, her mannerisms
and tones seeming entirely unbefitting the magic of being a psychic. “But
Kennick’s right, in a way. There is
something
coming to you, soon. Something that will put you where you’d like to be,
even if it’s not entirely the way you’d like to end up there.”

Kim felt like she could have gotten just as much
insight from a fortune cookie, but Kennick nudged her and when she turned to
him, his smile was dazzling.

“Told you so,” he said, and Kim held back the instinct
to scoff. After all, she was a guest in Tula’s home, and she didn’t want to
appear ungrateful.

“I guess you did,” she said with a wan smile,
wondering if she’d gotten herself all heart-sore over a man who had a few
crossed wires in his head.
Who doesn’t
have a few eccentricities,
she told herself, melting under his gaze for the
thousandth time.
If he can put up with
mine….