Read Online Love & Decay, Episode 11 by Rachel Higginson - Free Book Online

chuckled against my temple and then let his nose and lips work their way down the side of my face and to my ear where he went back to work, tasting me, kissing me, loving me. “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to let you get away with teasing me.” His mouth dropped to my neck, at which point my eyes rolled to the back of my head and I lost my battle with regulated breathing.
                  “Yeah?” I whispered.
                  “I’m probably going to make you pay for all this emotional damage to my poor ego.” He tugged the collar of my flannel shirt open and continued wet, hot kisses along my collarbone. My stomach literally started quivering. His voice was low, growly and vibrating with lust and desire. “Later, behind closed doors…. in the dark.”
                  A throat cleared behind us.
                  Oops.
                  Hendrix dropped his forehead on my shoulder and groaned. “I hate other people.”
                  I laughed away the sexual tension and anxious energy buzzing inside of me and opened my eyes to meet Vaughan’s steady gaze.
                  “Sorry to interrupt,” he drawled.
                  “You should be,” Hendrix mumbled into my arm, his breath was hot through the fabric and as soon as it cooled, I shivered.
                  “I’d like to go over what happened, Reagan. I have this bad feeling Kane is going to make our lives as difficult as he can now that he’s back in his father’s company and I want to know as much about him as I can.” Vaughan looked exhausted standing there behind Hendrix. His shoulders sagged, his eyes were black and blue in the candlelight flickering from file cabinets and other tall, solid pieces of furniture that wouldn’t tip over and spill lit candles, his hair was more disheveled than usual and his beard longer. This was a man carrying a heavy burden and I started to realize that burden was me.
                  Vaughan was worried or had been worried about me.
                  My heart clenched inside my chest and I felt more grateful for this family than I ever had. Where would Haley and I be without them? What would have happened to us if we never would have walked into that department store?
                  Our journey  would have ended at Gary’s settlement. I knew that was true. Gary would have forced us into his brothel and stripped us of our dignity and souls.
                  Actually, we had like three bullets left when we wandered into that Missouri department store. Maybe we wouldn’t have even made it to Gary. Which in that scenario would have been a blessing.
                  Yikes.
                  I shook my head and banished those thoughts. Looking back at Vaughan, I said, “Let’s talk.”
                  He nodded and led the way over to a worn couch and wooden rocking chair that creaked with every movement whenever someone sat in it. Hendrix and I took the couch and Vaughan sat a little higher in the rocking chair.
                  “Start from the beginning,” he ordered gently.
                  So I did; mostly for Vaughan’s benefit since I had already filled Hendrix in on all the highlights. I went over the conversation with Gage and how I thought I could help with Kane without causing too much drama. I told them about Tyler and how she was upset and supposed to get Hendrix to come help me. They did confirm that she went right to him, but the Zombies had already attacked by the time Hendrix got down there. And then I told them about the fight for our lives, running through the forest and surviving the night in the bunker.
                  “So, he didn’t try anything with you?” Vaughan asked with soft eyes. He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees so we could meet each other