Entangled Chaos (Entangled Duet Book 1)

by C. M. Radcliff

  Ignoring my phone, I quickly fall back asleep, completely wrapped up in her.

  This is all that matters now.

  She is all that matters.

  Dahlia

  WARM RAYS OF SUN SHINES brightly through the window, casting its light across the bed. It’s warm on my flesh, but his skin against mine burns like the flame of a fire.

  With his mouth slightly parted, Kai breathes deeply as he sleeps. His chest rises and falls with ease and brushes against mine. Leaning on my elbow, I rest my head on my hand as I study his features.

  Brown wavy locks of hair fall across his forehead in a mess. His hardened expression is soft and shows his youth. His naturally tanned face is symmetrical except for a thin white scar that runs through his eyebrow and stops just above his right eye.

  After all these years, I remember that scar and how he got it. He got it defending me.

  “I can feel you staring at me,” he murmurs without moving an inch. His breathing follows the same steady pattern as if he were asleep.

  “I thought you were asleep,” I admit as I run my hand across his solid chest.

  His eyes open and meet mine as he raises an eyebrow. “So, that gives you permission to be a creep?”

  Trailing my hand up the side of his face, I stop when I reach his eyebrow and slowly trace the scar. “I’ll do whatever I please, with or without permission.”

  He chuckles and lightly shakes his head as he grabs my wrist. With one swift movement, he has me on my back with my wrists pinned above my head. Dipping his head down, he slowly runs his nose along the side of my neck.

  “I think you’ve forgotten who’s in charge here, bambolina,” he murmurs against my ear. A warmth spreads through my body as the sound of his voice makes me wet.

  Bucking my hips against him, I wiggle my arms as I try to break free. He squeezes my wrists tighter and presses the weight of his body on me.

  “I’m not above leaving my mark on you,” he purrs as he nips my earlobe.

  Slipping my legs out away from his, I drive my heel into the side of his thigh. Kai laughs against the tender skin across my throat.

  “Go ahead, bambolina. Fight me,” he challenges. “I’ll mark every fucking inch of your body until you and everyone else knows that you’re mine.”

  His lips reach mine and I moan into his mouth as he pushes his hips against me. My clit throbs as his hard cock rubs against it. Parting my lips, I let him in as he takes control.

  Kai takes both of my wrists in one hand as he lightly trails his fingers down the side of my body. He teases my skin as he steals the air from my lungs and stops when he reaches my hip. Digging his fingertips into my skin, his grip bites at my flesh as he grasps my thigh and pulls it upward. Instinctively, I wrap it around his waist just as he eases into me.

  He starts off slow and his tongue lazily tangles with mine as he takes his time with me.

  It’s a slow burn, as he teases me, and I’m ready to plunge headfirst into the fucking fire.

  Bucking my hips against him, he slips in deeper and the sounds of our moans mix together. Breaking away from my lips, he pushes himself up and he smirks.

  His body stills, mid-thrust, and he raises his eyebrows at me. “Impatient, are we?”

  Groaning in frustration, I move against him, searching for the pleasure he holds over me.

  Grabbing my hips, he pins them to the bed and shakes his head. “You’re forgetting who’s in charge here, bambolina.”

  “Fuck you,” I growl, narrowing my eyes at him.

  “As much as I would love that, that won’t be happening.”

  He inches out farther until just the tip is inside me. I wiggle my hips and body, needing him deep inside.

  “You’re such an asshole,” I breathe as I struggle to catch my breath.

  He smiles down at me with his eyes growing darker. “I know.” He drops his face down and pulls my nipple into his mouth. I can’t fight my moans as my back arches, and he sucks harder as he bites down.

  “Tell me what you want, bambolina,” he murmurs through his teeth. His words slide past my nipple and my insides clench around him.

  He wants me to beg.

  “Nothing,” I bite.

  Kai thrusts his hips hard and is deep inside me within an instant. And then he quickly withdraws, stopping when he’s just barely inside me.

  What the fuck?

  “I’m only going to ask one more time,” he warns in a low voice. “What do you want, bambolina?”

  “You,” I admit in a rush. “I want you.”

  He stares down at me before cocking his head to the side. “Wrong answer. You can’t want something you already have.”

  He slowly starts to move away from me and my body fills with panic. I’m frustrated and I need him.

  “Fuck me,” I demand. “I want you to fuck me.”

  “Are you sure that’s what you want?” he questions as his eyes dance playfully.

  “Yes, fuck,” I grumble impatiently. “Fuck me, Kai. I need you to fuck me.”

  He pulls out of me with a smirk as I glare up at him. He’s a tease, he knows that I’m pissed, and he thinks it’s a joke.

  This motherfucker...

  “Are you kid—” I start as he grabs my hips and quickly flips me onto my stomach. Lifting up my hips, he spreads my legs and slams into me. My words and my thoughts are lost as his fingertips dig into my ass cheeks as he pounds into me.

  He isn’t gentle as he fucks me hard, gripping my ass and pulling my hair. The buildup came with such force that he has me unraveled within minutes.

  Pounding deeper into me, he fills every inch of me until I’m completely shattered, plunging deep into the fire. We’re lost in the flames as we lose ourselves in each other.

  It’s late in the afternoon and we’re still in bed, tangled in the sheets together. The silence that fills the room is peaceful as I lie in Kai’s arms.

  Lazily dragging his fingertips across my back, he absentmindedly traces designs on my skin. “How did you end up working at the club?”

  His voice startles me as it interrupts the comfortable silence. His question is uncomfortable. So much time has passed for him to know my life. He never even knew my life before him.

  “Needed a job and it was quick, easy money,” I tell him indifferently. It’s not a lie, but this isn’t story time.

  “Bullshit,” he disagrees. “Well, actually, I don’t disagree with that, but that’s not why you’re there.”

  Pulling away from him, I cut my eyes at him and give him a hard stare. “What would you like to hear, Kai? You want to hear about how much I enjoy it? How much I get off on it?”

  He stares at me, his expression neutral as he waits for me to continue.

  “I make good money doing the one thing I’m good at.” I pause, giving him a snarky smile. “I guess I should be thanking you, since you were my teacher.”

  Kai’s face falls and his expression grows dark. “You’re welcome,” he seethes. “Based on your performance, I’d say I did a damn good job.”

  Fucking asshole.

  My smile doesn’t falter at his words. “I never get any complaints, especially when I come too.”

  He clenches his jaw and narrows his eyes at me. I’m under his skin, just like he is mine. He loves a challenge until he’s the underdog.

  He needs to run back to the puppy mill that he came from.

  “Cut the shit, Dahlia,” he barks. “It’s all about control. You were robbed of that years ago, so you crave the control.”

  “I was robbed of everything!” I yell at him, finally losing my cool. “I had a perfect fucking childhood and somehow ended up in a porn ring. You think there’s any coming back from that shit? You think that doesn’t change someone?”

  Kai puts his hands behind his head and stays relaxed, letting me get it out.

  “You wanna know how I ended up at the club? I ended up there because it’s the only place I fit in.

  “After the cops rai
ded the farm and I went home, I wasn’t the same girl from before. I was a stranger to my parents and I didn’t fit in in their world. I was cold and closed off. I shut them out because I had no need for them. They threw me into therapy, but it never stuck. I partied my fucking ass off, got wrapped up with the wrong crowd and had quite the reputation for being a slut. I even ended up getting kicked out of school for fucking one of the teachers.”

  I watch as Kai’s eyes widen at my admission, but he stays silent.

  “I ended up graduating early through online classes. I gave my parents that courtesy and one thing to be proud of before I split. My parents insisted on buying me an apartment, but I never stayed there. I bounced around until I ended up at the club. After I made enough money to get my own place, I sold the apartment my parents bought and sent them the money. That was five years ago and I haven’t spoken to them since.”

  An unknown weight lifts from my shoulders and I relax on the bed. No one else knew my secrets but Kai. I never told anyone any of this.

  This is what he does to me. He always manages to get whatever he wants out of me.

  “You don’t talk to them at all?” he questions curiously.

  I look over at him slightly confused and in disbelief. “I just told you everything and you want to know about my relationship with my parents?”

  “None of that changes anything,” he admits and reaches out for me. He grabs my arm and pulls me down into him. “We’re all fucked up in one way or another. All we can do is find the one whose demons dance with our own.”

  Laying my head back on his chest, he gently strokes my hair. “Sleep, bambolina,” he murmurs. “I’ll be here when you wake up.” His touch soothes me, and his warmth relaxes me. He knows my secrets and he doesn’t give a fuck.

  Feeling my breathing slowly even out, I slip into the darkness as our demons dance in perfect harmony.

  Rubbing my eyes, I’m slightly disoriented as I sit up. The room is dark, as the day got away from us. Something woke me up, but whatever it is, is gone now.

  Kai didn’t lie to me; his face is relaxed as he lightly snores in the bed beside me. A loud pounding echoes through the house and I jump.

  The pounding continues, so I quietly climb out of bed and slip into Kai’s shirt. I tiptoe through the room careful to not disturb Kai and slip into the hall. I leave the lights off as I quickly head downstairs without making a sound.

  Finding my purse by the door, I grab my pistol out of it and peer through the peephole. I can’t make out the person on the porch, so I flick on the light and slowly open the door with my gun ready to go.

  I’m met by an unfamiliar face. A young black-haired woman stares at me with bright blue eyes. She’s expensive and oozes perfection with her designer shoes and purse.

  “Where is he?” she demands, placing her hands on her hips.

  Gripping the door, I look at her innocently. “Where is who?”

  I don’t know this chick and the last thing I’m doing is saying a damn word about Kai.

  “Kai,” she says and crosses her arms over her chest.

  “I’m not sure who you—” I start but she abruptly cuts me off.

  “I know he’s here, I tracked his,” she scoffs. “Be a good whore and go tell him his fiancée is here.”

  Unintentionally, my guard falls and I’m suddenly an open book. All color drains from my face as my stomach rapidly falls to my feet.

  “Aww, sweetie,” she coos, mockingly as she steps closer to me. “He didn’t tell you, did he?”

  I can’t move. I can’t speak. She completely blindsided me and he played me like a fucking fool.

  What the fuck.

  “The wedding is next month.” She smiles a venomous smile. “You’re nothing but a cheap whore to him.”

  My body finally catches up and my mind kicks in overdrive and runs wild. In one swift movement, I have her inside the house and pressed against the wall with my pistol between her eyes.

  “Start talking, bitch,” I demand. “You’re not going to like it if I have to make you talk.”

  She gulps and swallows hard before opening her mouth. A bloodcurdling scream tears throughout the house and pierces my ears.

  My mouth falls open to tell her to shut the fuck up, when Kai’s voice replaces mine.

  “Aliana?”

  Kai

  DAHLIA’S EYES FLASH to mine as she holds the gun flush against Aliana’s forehead. Her bright green eyes are filled with wildfire as she stares at me in bewilderment.

  “Kai,” Aliana chirps. “Get this psychotic bitch off of me.”

  Dahlia spins back toward Aliana and presses the barrel of her pistol into Aliana’s skin.

  With a look of fear, Aliana watches me as I walk down the stairs and come up behind Dahlia. She flinches as I grab her shoulder, but she keeps her eyes trained on Aliana.

  “Dahlia,” I murmur in her ear. “Put down the gun... I got you.”

  “You got me?” She lets out a harsh laugh and drops her arm. Aliana quickly steps to the side as Dahlia turns to face me. “What you got, Kai, is a fucking fiancée.”

  The rage mixes with pain as it consumes every inch of her green eyes.

  “It’s not what you think, okay? Please, let me explain myself,” I plead, reaching for her. She jumps away from me before I can touch her.

  “Kai,” Aliana barks. “Get your shit and let’s go. I’m gone for two weeks and this is what you do to me, right before the wedding?” She shakes her head in disgust. “Let me guess, you were balls deep in her STD infested pussy when you forgot to send a goddamn car to pick me up from the airport.”

  “Fuck you,” I bark back. “You don’t talk about her like that and I am not going anywhere with you.”

  Dahlia stands off to the side of the foyer and watches our exchange.

  Aliana snorts as she rolls her eyes. “Don’t be foolish, Kai. Our future together determines our families’ future forever. You’re being ridiculous, throwing it all away for some cheap piece of ass you picked up on the corner.”

  Stepping closer to her, I stop as I tower over her and glare down, shooting daggers at her. “If you say one more fucking thing about her, you won’t have a future. And for the record, you’re the fool if you really believed we ever did.”

  Aliana narrows her eyes at me. “You’ll pay for this,” she threatens and pins her eyes on Dahlia. “Both of you will.”

  “Get the fuck out,” I roar, pointing at the front door. “Now.”

  Her eyes linger on Dahlia for a moment before cutting back at me. Straightening out her shoulders, she turns her nose up at me in disgust. She marches to the door on her own and pulls it open in a rush. I quickly follow behind her and grab the door as she steps through the doorway. She pauses on the front porch and glances over her shoulder.

  “You will both regret this,” Aliana sneers. “I can promise you that.”

  Without another word, I shove the door and it slams in her face with a loud bang. Aliana cackles and her heels click as she makes her way off the porch.

  Running my hands through my hair, I turn around and lean back against the door. My eyes find Dahlia who watches me with a blank stare. She’s only a few feet away at the base of the stairs, but her eyes look like she’s millions of miles away.

  Her expression is void of any emotion and she’s completely closed off. The coldness radiates from her shield of ice and penetrates my soul.

  An uneasy silence fills the room as the air is thick with tension. Standing across from each other, we’re caught in a stare down, except Dahlia isn’t here, not mentally at least. She’s drifted off somewhere else, to somewhere where I can’t reach her.

  Taking a step forward, I walk closer to her as her body grows rigid.

  “I don’t know how she got in here, but I intend on talking to the security here,” I say quietly as I stop in front of her. “I’m sorry she showed up here. I can explain it all to you if you’ll just give me a chance to.”

  Tilting
her head up, her face remains unresponsive as she stares at me with dead eyes. The silence becomes louder and my heart echoes in my ears as it begins to race.

  “Get out,” she demands. Her monotone voice is harsh, and her words slice through me.

  “Dahlia—” I start, reaching out to her. “Please, just let me explain.”

  “Get. The. Fuck. Out,” she orders, her voice louder. Each word slams into my chest and steals the air from my lungs.

  “No,” I retort. “Fuck that.”

  “Either you leave on your own accord or you’ll be leaving in a garbage bag,” she threatens, with her impassive expression.

  Lightly shaking my head, I chuckle. “I’ll take my chances.”

  Raising her arm, she presses her pistol against my chest and digs it into my skin.

  She wouldn’t dare.

  The look in her eyes tells me differently. She’s the girl she became years ago. Closed off, cold and numb.

  This isn’t who she is and if I push hard enough, she’s going to push me off the edge.

  Glancing down at the pistol, I quickly look back at her and nod. “I need my stuff.”

  Remaining silent, she lowers her arm and steps away, giving me room to go up the stairs.

  I quickly throw on my clothes and grab my keys before heading back downstairs. Dahlia is still rooted in the same place, with the same dead look on her face.

  “I’ll go because you asked, but this isn’t over,” I tell her as I walk out the front door. “I’ll be back for you whether you’re ready or not.”

  Slipping out the door, I close it behind me as I walk into the darkness of the night. I meant every word that I said to her. She’s got everything wrong, but that doesn’t change her response.

  She felt the betrayal and the pain, and she went to the safest place in her mind. The darkest place that leaves her dead inside.

  I can’t let her go back to that place, even if it means that I have to walk away.

  Dahlia

  FROZEN IN PLACE, I stare at the doorway that Kai just walked through in disbelief. He had me fooled this entire time and I was blinded and consumed by the familiar feelings that come along with him.