1
Wilder
The growl caughtlow in my throat — a deep, primal, animalistic sound that rumbled through my broad, muscled chest.
She waslate. And we’d been over this. Inthishouse, there were rules, and when rules were broken, there would bepunishment.
So far, I’d —we’d— been lax on that front, and that was what the root of this problem was. We’d allowed her insubordination and rebelliousness to grow, unchecked and unpunished.
Not anymore.
But then, this wasn’tjustabout “punishing” her, or keeping her in line, and I fucking knew it. Lincoln and Ibothknew it, even if at that point, we hadn’t spoken it out loud, even to each other.
This was aboutlust. This was about wanting her willing obedience and her sweet submission. This was about wanting toclaimand dominate every single square inch of her sweet young body. I’d been hiding it away since the day she’d fucking arrived, but no longer.
I couldn’t take anymore. I doubtedanyother red-blooded man could’ve taken what I’d held strong against for an entire month. No way. No man could resist temptation like that.
Not with Mackenzie.
Kenzie had arrived at my house a month before that day, dropped off by the Child Protective Services from two states over, even thought she’d already turned eighteen.Just. She had a full ride to the state school here — paid for in advance by a rich aunt or grandmother or, fuck, I don’t even know who, before they’d passed. And after CPS had taken her away from my deadbeat sister and Kenzie’s deadbeat father, they’d decided it was in her best interest to remain with family until she started school.
That’d beme.
Youcouldcall her my niece, but she wasn’t — not really at least. I wasn’treally“family” to her — not in the blood relations way, thank fucking God. Kenzie was my sister’s dipshit boyfriend’s kid. Her dad and my sister were never married, and she was his kid from some other chick anyways, before he and my dumbass sister had gotten together like a match made in hell. Those two were like Syd and fucking Nancy, without the rock music or the fame. They were junkies, and when they’d been busted a week before Kenzie’s eighteenth birthday trying to rob a pharmacy for Oxy, that’s when CPS had stepped in.
The dickbag boyfriend had no family, and the only family my sister had left was me. Since I also happened to be, for one,nota fucking junkie, and two,very verywealthy, I guess the state just made the decision that family or not, I was a far better choice than “the system” for Kenzie.
I’d said yes over the phone, glancing at the picture they’d emailed over of the gawky little ten year old I’d seen maybe twice, and probably not since the picture was taken.
Big. Fucking. Mistake.
Because if they’d sent a picture of her the way she wasnow? Yeah,hellno. I’d have taken one look at eighteen year old Kenzie Gates and seen howmonumentallystupid it would be to invite a girl likethatto live with a guy likeme.
Because Kenzie Gates hadgrown the fuck up.
Hard.
Because the girl who’d been standing on my front porch next to the social worker when I’d opened the door was five-foot nine inches and one-hundred and eleven pounds of pure. Fucking.Temptation.
Long, auburn hair, pouty, coy pink lips, and big, sultry blue eyes that screamed “bait.” All legs, small, perky tits, and a tight little ass that was begging for someone to take a bite out of it. Curvy hips, and a flat, supple little tummy that’d been peeking out from under a belly-shirt that first day and hadn’t actuallystoppedever since.
She’d been here for one month, four days, and eleven hours. And I’d beenhard as steelfor her for one month, four days, ten hours and fifty-nine and a half minutes.
Constantly.
I gritted my teeth and glanced at the Cartier watch on my wrist.
Late. I growled again, feeling the blood roaring like fire inside of me. I couldn’t take it anymore, and I couldn’tdenymyself any longer.Thatnight, I wouldn’t be denying myself any more.
I knew it was wrong — soverywrong — but I didn’t give a shit. Not anymore. Not after swallowing back the lust, andneed, and the raw desire to make herminefor so long. Her tight, hot little body made mecraveher, and the teasing, flippant,brattyway she sashayed her way around this house had had me living on edge for amonth.
And she fuckingknew it. This wasn’t some innocent girl who didn’t yet understand the effect she had on men.Nope. Kenzie was a grade-A, flirty, bratty, barely-legal little cock-tease, and she fuckingknew it.
And on top of all of this, it wasn't justmeshe was teasing…
Lincoln was my best friend in the world — a man closer to me than a brother. We’d served together way back. We’d startedHammer and Sparktogether afterwards, and when we’d sold the mercenary contractor outfit we’d built with our bare hands to another, bigger, company and cashed out, we’dbothgotten filthy rich together.
I’d bought my enormous house immediately, but Linc was in the middle of custom building his dream home. And since it was close to mine, and since my place was almost literally a castle, he’d spent the last few months living with me.