Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 35479 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 177(@200wpm)___ 142(@250wpm)___ 118(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 35479 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 177(@200wpm)___ 142(@250wpm)___ 118(@300wpm)
Rutledge stared at him for a moment.
“No one will treat them badly,” he said before leaning over, grabbing Shawn’s chin and covering Shawn’s lips with his.
Shawn frowned—it was neither the time nor the place—but Rutledge held his face firmly, his lips hard and hungry, his tongue delving deep into Shawn’s mouth, confident and proprietary, and soon enough, Shawn found himself completely overwhelmed by the intensity of the kiss. It went on, and on, and on—
“Shawn, are you hurt?”
With a gasp, he shoved Rutledge away and focused his gaze on Emily. “What? No!”
A furrow appeared between her small brows. “I thought you were hurt. You were making noises.”
His face warm, Shawn determinedly avoiding looking at Rutledge. “I wasn’t making noises.”
“You were!” Bee said, looking puzzled. “Lying is bad! You said so!”
Emily nodded. “And why did Mr. Rutledge put his tongue in your mouth?”
“Because your brother wanted something to suck on,” Rutledge commented, starting the engine.
Flushing, Shawn kicked him on the shin, but to his surprise, the twins seemed satisfied with the explanation and started talking about something else.
He settled back into his seat.
Shawn didn’t look at Rutledge. He couldn’t.
He was still warm all over, his skin tight and his breathing uneven.
Fuck. What was happening to him?
* * *
“So, what’s the deal with your dad?”
They had been driving for over an hour and the girls were asleep.
Rutledge’s eyes were fixed on the road ahead. “Since when is it your business?”
“I don’t know,” Shawn said, not without sarcasm. “You’re dragging me—and my family—to your father’s house, uninvited. Something tells me he won’t be happy to see us.”
“He won’t. But if it makes you feel better, he won’t be happy to see me, either.”
Shawn leaned back in his seat and studied his profile. “I thought he invited you.”
Rutledge chuckled. It was a chilling sound. “My father would never swallow his pride and invite me. Fifteen years ago, he said I would come crawling back when I ran out of money. He hates when he’s proven wrong.”
Shawn’s eyes widened. “You mean you haven’t been home in fifteen years?”
“And I’d gladly stay away for fifteen more years. I’m still not convinced my sister isn’t lying about his health. That old bastard will outlive us all.”
Shawn was a little disturbed. What did Rutledge’s father do to deserve such hatred from his own son?
“Um, did he beat you when you were a kid?”
The corner of Rutledge’s mouth twitched. “Joseph Rutledge would never do something so plebeian.”
“Ah.” Shawn hesitated. “Did he kick you out because of your sexuality?”
Rutledge’s fingers gripped the steering wheel tighter. “He never kicked me out. I left myself.”
Shawn could sense it was more complicated than that. If Rutledge’s father wanted his son to marry some woman, it meant he still hadn’t accepted his son’s sexuality; he probably thought it was something “curable.” However, since Shawn didn’t know Rutledge’s father, he could only speculate.
“What’s he like?”
Rutledge shrugged slightly. “Typical old money. Proud, high-handed and inflexible.”
“Hmm, he reminds me of someone, then.”
Rutledge visibly stiffened.
Shawn took in the tense set of his wide shoulders, the aggressive jut of his profile. The five o’clock shadow gave him a rugged, rougher look. Shawn’s eyes trailed down Rutledge’s arms, from his biceps straining beneath the sleeves of his shirt to the fingers gripping the steering wheel a little tighter than necessary. Shawn licked his dry lips, staring at Rutledge’s hands. He remembered them gripping his chin, his neck—
“You keep looking at me that way and you’ll end up with my dick in you before the trip is over.”
Shawn snapped his gaze to Rutledge’s face. Rutledge was looking at the road ahead.
His face hot, Shawn said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Rutledge just snorted.
Silence fell between them, thick, charged, tingling with awareness.
Finally, Shawn couldn’t stand it anymore. “What did you mean?”
“You know what I mean. Despite your poor grades, you are not completely stupid.”
“Wow, thanks. I’m going to mark this day in the calendar. ‘Professor Rutledge said I’m not completely stupid.’ I feel so special, you know.”
“Wyatt.” Rutledge still wouldn’t look at Shawn. “You are not as straight as you believe. To put it bluntly: you look at me like you want to suck my dick.”
Shawn opened his mouth but closed it without saying anything. Then he laughed. “You have a really high opinion of yourself.”
Rutledge sighed, pulled the car off the road and killed the engine. Without a word, he got out of the car, walked to the passenger seat, opened the door and dragged Shawn out.
“Hey!” Shawn said, glancing back at the twins, but they were still sound asleep.
Rutledge shut the door and dragged Shawn away from the car, towards the woods.
“Look—” Shawn started, but he was cut off when Rutledge pushed him against the wide trunk of a tree and put his hands by either side of Shawn’s face.