I roll my lips in as I type Dahlia’s name into the search bar and check out her profile. Aside from her interactions with Jaxon, Dahlia has always kept to herself. Over the years, I’ve longed to reach out to her and become friends, but Jaxon scares the living shit out of me. Anytime I tried approaching Dahlia at school, he stood nearby and glared at me.
Dahlia’s profile pops onto the screen, and her recent post is a selfie with Jaxon behind her. His chin rests atop her bright-green hair, his arms curled over her shoulders and his hands resting in the middle of her chest. Dahlia’s huge smile crinklesthe corners of her eyes. Even Jaxon has a slight curl to his lips—something so at odds with his usual glower. His brown eyes are soft and more vulnerable than I’ve ever seen.
I slide to the next picture and suck in a sharp breath. Jaxon’s tattooed hand cups Dahlia’s throat, forcing her head back while he kisses her with a smile.
They’re half-siblings . . .
And they’re kissing.
I snoop through more of Dahlia’s recent pictures and discover her diamond wedding ring and necklace.
“Holy shit,” I whisper. “They’re married?”
A large body folds itself two feet away from me on the couch. I jump, and my phone flies out of my hands. I snatch the device from mid-air and juggle it before I catch it and place it onto my lap. Ryder doesn’t look at me as he stretches out his legs and stares at his phone. It’s hard to breathe with him so close to me. Not just because of what happened last night—though it’s a big reason—but because he’s still rocking grey sweatpants without a shirt. My attention zooms in on the distinct V and the sprinkle of hair disappearing beneath the waistband. I swallow hard at the little veins bulging from his taut skin.
“What are you doing?” I whisper. If I raise my voice any higher, I’m afraid our parents will walk in and find me ogling my older brother.
His thumb pauses on the screen, then resumes. “What does it look like?”
I squirm in my seat. “You have the kitchen to yourself to sit in and drink your coffee. Why are you in here with me?”
“Am I not allowed to sit where I want?”
My lips part, then clamp shut as I mull over what to say.
Ryder can sit wherever he pleases, but I don’t think I can be anywhere near him after what happened last night in hisbedroom. I’m scared he’ll somehow know I touched myself afterward. Or worse, that he starred in my sex dream.
Ryder peeks at me from the corner of his eye. He drags his gaze down my body as I shift in my seat and wince at the sting in my bottom. His icy exterior cracks as he smirks. “Don't let Jaxon know what you think about him being married to Dahlia.”
My back straightens, and I sit a little higher. “H-how did you know?”
“You’re not as quiet as you think you are.” He turns back to his phone, his smirk widening.
Heat creeps from my neck to my cheeks. I don’t want to analyze what he said, because it would lead to more questions about what he means. It’s already driving me mad, wondering why he got hard last night while spanking me.
I mentally swat away the thoughts. I’m getting off track here, and Ryder is finally talking to me.
“And you’re okay with that?” I ask.
He turns his head, and the same heated look from last night makes an appearance. “With you not being quiet?”
Fuck. I can’t breathe.
“That’s . . .” I shake my head and lean away to put more distance between us. It doesn’t clear my head as I had hoped it would, because Ryder’s lips curve into a knowing smile. He knows exactly what he did. I grind my teeth. “That’s not what I meant.”
Ryder raises an eyebrow, amusement still reflecting in his eyes.
“You’re okay with Jaxon and Dahlia being . . . together like that?” I say.
Ryder’s face falls, and he locks away his emotions as he turns back to his phone. I hate it when he does this. How he builds an icy wall to close the world out. “It’s not for me to decide.”
“They’re brother and sister,” I say.
Ryder cocks his head as he assesses me with the same perplexed look. “Doyouthink it’s wrong?”
My head rears back, and I try to force out the immediate answer.Yes, it’s not okay to date your sibling.When I part my lips, nothing comes out.
The corner of Ryder’s lip curves into a slight smirk as he goes back to his phone. He didn’t answer my question, though. He has to be okay with it because why else would he have spanked me likethatlast night? Thick with sexual tension. Squeezing my ass and playing with the butt plug. He got hard and didn’t try to hide it.
