Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 103918 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 520(@200wpm)___ 416(@250wpm)___ 346(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103918 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 520(@200wpm)___ 416(@250wpm)___ 346(@300wpm)
"King?" Lex repeated as he took a tentative step forward. His right hand was extended in front of him while his left was lower, like he was searching for any object he could use as a point of reference. But the room was in disarray because of my fight with his brother, so nothing was where he was used to it being. I stepped forward and grabbed his elbow to keep him from bumping into the overturned chair where I normally kept my clothes. Seeing my jeans and shirt scattered on the floor by the bed was a reminder that Lex and I were both naked, but I waited until Lex was clear of the chair and the path in front of him was debris free before I stepped to my dresser to grab a pair of sweats. My eyes stayed on King and Lex as I slipped the pants on.
King, for his part, stood in silence as he stared at his brother. I didn't know anything about the man except that he threw a mean punch.
But there was no mistaking the look of complete and utter disbelief on his face as his younger brother moved slowly toward him. I wanted to snap at the man to get over himself and put his arm out so Lex could find him, but I held my tongue. Clearly, King hadn't been expecting to see the advanced stages of his brother’s blindness. It made me wonder why that was. I remembered Lex mentioning that he’d told Grady about losing his sight before he’d told his brothers, but I’d just assumed he’d eventually told them. But what if he hadn’t? Either way, it was clear that King, at least, had had no clue how advanced his brother’s vision loss really was.
King finally put his arm out and then stepped forward to meet Lex. "I'm here," he said gruffly and then he pulled Lex into his arms. It was hard to see Lex being comforted by someone other than me. Especially considering how the events had played out. But it was just further proof that my feelings for Lex ran deeper than his did for me. Maybe his entire reaction to me admitting that I loved him had been his way of trying to tell me that he didn't love me back.
I felt sick to my stomach. In addition to the searing pain along my cheek and jaw, I felt lightheaded and dizzy.
"Come on, Brewer," I said quietly as I headed toward the door. I definitely needed to lick my wounds a bit before I could face Lex again. Hell, at the rate things were going, I wasn't sure I could face him at all. How had we gone from having such a strong connection in bed to being worlds apart again outside of it?
"Gideon, wait," Lex called from behind me.
"It's fine, Lex," I murmured without looking back. "Talk to your brother."
I was halfway out the door when Lex's seeking fingers landed on my back. "Gideon, please, please don't walk away."
I wanted to keep going. I really did. But as much as I wanted to escape, I wanted him more.
Lex pressed along the length of my back while his arms wrapped around me from behind. "Please, Gideon," he whispered.
I sighed and found myself turning around. Lex pushed into my embrace and all my efforts to resist him fell away. I tucked him against me and dropped a kiss to his head. It was Brewer growling that drew my attention back to King. The man was slowly approaching the two of us, his hard eyes on me. He had Lex's pants in his hand, so I called Brewer's name. The husky immediately fell quiet again, but he stayed by my side. Since Lex hadn’t moved, I held out my hand and took the pants from King.
"I'll be in the kitchen," he said stiffly as he moved past us.
I wanted to tell the fucker to get the hell out of my house, but I knew it would just upset Lex. I also had a sneaking suspicion that if King left, Lex could very well go with him and despite my frustration with the man in my arms, I didn't want him to leave.
Lex clung to me for several long seconds after his brother left. When he finally did put some space between us, it was only so he could seek out my face with his hands. I grabbed him gently by the wrists. When his face fell, I quickly said, "There's blood."
I'd only told him so he'd know why I'd stopped him from touching my face, but all he did was gasp and then his hands were on my cheeks anyway.
"Gideon," Lex said softly. I could hear the heartbreak in his voice.
"It’s not too bad," I said. "I need to go clean up, though." I reached up to touch the cut on his temple where he'd hit the headboard when he’d tried to flee. "You do too," I murmured.