Sinful Pleasure | 18+

Chapter 43 - Kez

No... please... "No!" Jolting awake with panic, the water in the tub: almost filled to the top splashed everywhere, and I grabbed onto the edges of the tub to pull myself up, feeling Axel's hands quickly make contact with my body-bringing me back to reality. My breathing escalated and my chest heaved up and down so fast, it felt as though I couldn't breathe, but then I was turned to face Axel and he grabbed my hands. The touch of him somehow calmed me down.

I swore it was one second that I closed my eyes and the events of last night came rushing back to haunt me. It was scary, waking up in a panic, but only because it was new to me. The last time something similar happened it never came back to hurt me but for some reason, it was different this time around, and I only hoped it would go away.

"Hey, hey-" Axel lifted his arms and grabbed my face in his hands, gently brushing away the heap of hair falling in front of my face. "Look at me, Kez. It's okay, you're okay." A small smile tugged on his lips and he slowly nodded, wiping his thumb under my eye as a tear trickled down.

Swallowing down the dryness at the back of my throat, I sobbed but nodded as well and brought out my arms, wrapping them around his neck. He leaned his back off the tub and hugged me closer, causing a lot more tears to run down my cheeks. "I'm sorry," I whispered, my voice trembling.

Sitting between his legs, he shifted me closer and leaned his back onto the tub again, letting me rest against his chest. "Sorry? For what? You've done nothing." He wiped my tears as I looked at him, a sympathetic look in his eyes that showed how much he cared.

I hadn't really known what I was sorry for but all I knew was that I was just sorry.

"I yelled at you when I knew you'd probably be in a difficult position and wouldn't be able to get to me on time." I sniffled.

Gently pulling his brows into a furrow, his face sort of twisted, like he was confused about why I was sorry for it. He tucked my hair behind my ear and leaned down, placing a kiss on the top of my head-holding it and whispering, "I should've been there regardless, and I'm sorry I wasn't." Pulling back, he brought his index finger under my chin and tipped my head up, softly gliding his thumb across my bottom lip.

I slightly nodded, and then he grabbed my arm and placed a feathered kiss on my inner wrist, making me bite my bottom lip.

"You never talked about what happened." I swallowed the random lump caught in my throat and stared at his thumb as it caressed my skin, where he kissed my flesh. "What happened to Julio?"

They never mentioned what happened, from the time they let off those bombs to the moment they jumped up on stage to kill their father. I never asked then or on the way back home because I didn't have it in me to, but it didn't mean I wasn't curious. And it wasn't until twenty-four hours later that I'd ask.

Sucking in a short breath, he huffed out and put my arm over his shoulder. Axel wrapped his arms around my waist and looked off into his bedroom, slowly darting out his tongue and licking his lips. "He, uh...he got away-" he paused for a beat and pressed his lips together and then continued, "Roman thinks he might have known but." He stopped again and shook his head, half shrugging.

"Even if he didn't he does now." I opened my mouth, and he didn't miss a second to look at me, making me clench my jaw and unclench it in the process. "There is a possibility he saw me with Di- Diego. If he hasn't seen his loyal pet since last night then he knows."

Of course, this was where everything went up in flames. I was most likely seen leaving with Julio's right-hand man by Julio himself, and his lap dog would've ran to him right after if I had only knocked him unconscious, but it had been a full day and he hadn't shown up, I knew it. He was bound to know I killed him, and if he had no reason to come after me before then he did now.