Tainted Kiss (Tainted Knights 1)

He pressed his forehead against mine for a few seconds before exhaling harshly and continuing. “Then Kassa got pissed and Gray ran off after her. Some chick came up to Sin and told him she wanted to suck his cock, so he left me, too. Two guys from another band sat down across from me, and I was talking to them about you.” He kissed me again, soft as a butterfly’s wing across my lips. “I always talk about you, because you’re the only thing on my mind whenever I’m not on stage, and sometimes, even then you’re front and center.”

I was melting. He was saying all the right things, and I wanted to believe him. My heart demanded I believe him, but I couldn’t trust him, let alone myself right then. My heart wasn’t smart where this guy was concerned.

“Those chicks, they dropped down into my lap, pulled that stupid shit, and I couldn’t get them off me fast enough.” He sighed. “If you had seen my face, you would have known I didn’t want any part of those bitches.”

I pushed at his chest, needing space from him so I could think clearly. He backed up, but only a few inches.

“But I couldn’t see your face, Kale. Some blonde had her tongue in your mouth.” Fresh tears burned my eyes, and I tried to blink them away, yet a few spilled free.

A groan sounded like it was being torn from him as he kissed away my tears. “I can’t think straight when I see your tears. Please don’t cry.”

I hated crying, yet I couldn’t seem to stop.

Kale shifted me on the bed and slid in beside me. His arms felt like a safe haven as he wrapped them around me and pressed my head to his chest. I cried until my throat hurt, until my eyes were so swollen that I could barely keep them open. It drained me of what little energy I had.

I couldn’t fight him, not when this was what I had been dreaming of for so many weeks now.

The feel of his fingers in my hair, gently combing through the thick length while his other hand rubbed soothing circles on my back began to relax me. The beat of his heart under my ear became my lullaby.

“I love you,” I thought I heard him whisper against my ear before I gave in and let sleep take me.

TWENTY ONE

Kale

I held her until her tears dried on my shirt, until her breathing evened out and she relaxed against me completely. I held her when the nurse came in to change the medication that went into her IV. Angie and Jenna came in, but as soon as they saw that she was sleeping, they quickly turned around and left. I didn’t move, except to continue rub her back and comb my fingers through her hair. She slept peacefully, and for the first time in weeks, I felt alive again with her in my arms.

I wanted to protect her from the outside world, protect her from more shit like that stupid picture in the tabloid. I knew I couldn’t, not completely. She was going to have to trust me.

I understood why it had been so bad. We hadn’t been together long before I’d had to leave her. There hadn’t been time for me to show her what she meant to me, that she was the only one I wanted and loved. It was going to take work, but I hoped she would still want to be a part of my life.

Because if she did, I would make sure that she never doubted who my heart belonged to.

As the sun set and the room began to darken, I felt my own eyes begin to get heavy. I was about to give in, when the doctor knocked on the door and stepped inside.

Seeing me lying in bed with her, his brows lifted, but he didn’t comment on it. I had talked to the man several times over the last few days, so we weren’t exactly strangers.

“How has she been?” he asked as he looked down at the chart in his hands.

“She’s been sleeping most of the day.”

“Good, good.” He nodded. “The rest is the best thing for her right now.”

Santana stirred in my arms. Opening her eyes, she smiled up at me for a second before reality seemed to fall over her. She didn’t pull away from me until she saw the doctor standing at the foot of the bed, though.

“How are you feeling, Miss Palmer?” the doctor asked as he pulled his stethoscope from around his neck.

She fought back a yawn and shifted in my arms. “I’m feeling a lot better, actually.”

“Well, your vitals are looking good.” He took a minute to listen to her heart, lungs, and stomach. When he was done, he nodded. “Good, good. How about a little dinner?”

She made a face. “I’d rather not.”

“After what you’ve been through, I can understand why you would be reluctant to eat, but your body needs food.” He patted her on the arm. “We’ll go easy. I think some Jell-O and broth. Maybe even some pudding if you’re up to it. Tomorrow, if you can eat some breakfast and keep it down, I may release you.”

That perked her up. “I’d like that. I’m not a fan of hospitals.”

The doctor grinned. “I imagine not, but Mr. Conway here has you set up in the best suite we have, so your stay couldn’t be all that bad.”