Chapter 2: A Dangerous Kiss.

LEAH's POV.

Hardin drove me back to his apartment which was not far from the school campus.

I was too weak and wounded to contest but I had a feeling that even if I did, he wasn't going to let me go that easily.

"You're hurt, let me take you home." He offered and I only obliged because my other option was going back home to take care of my drunk father and I already had a rough night. He walked up his front porch and pulled the door open. A deep breath escaped my lips as I walked in. The room smelled unmistakably like him—clean, crisp, and undeniably masculine.

Cedarwood and pine lingered in the air, grounded by the faint bite of expensive cologne and the cool scent of ice that clung to his hockey gear in the corner.

I had only met Hardin once one of the days I snuck around with Ethan in their family house and we'd run into each other in the kitchen one night. It was a silent interaction, although with a few lingering glares which was why when I looked at him now, I knew he recognized me and he could tell I did too.

"So what were you doing all alone in the woods?" He walked me to his room and it wasn't until I sat on his bed that he asked. I cleared my dry throat. What do I even tell him?

"I was lost," I lied.

"On the night of the school dance?" Hardin scoffed, able to call my bluff. He threw a look over his shoulders. "Are you still seeing my brother?" His eyes were deep brown and masked some emotion in them. My posture was immediately restive and he could tell something was off.

Hardin drew closer to me with some meditation he rubbed over my wounds.

"Argh!" I exclaimed, my forearm stinging with pain. "I can do it myself," I reached for the antiseptic but he glanced up at me. "It's just a scratch." I rolled my eyes.

"So let me clean it." There was something impossibly calm about the way he said it, as though it wasn't a request. Hardin knelt in front of me, the movement so effortless it caught me off guard. I'd expected him to sit beside me, not that.

His bedside table separated us, but barely and he rested my arm gently in his hand, his fingers warm against my skin.

"Tell me if it hurts." He whispered.

"It won't." The cotton pad brushed over the scrape and I hissed.

"It definitely hurts." I let out a nervous laugh and he looked up at me again. "So I take the answer to my last question is a no then?" Hardin said. The question about Ethan and I.

"I had no idea you knew...why didn't you say anything?" I asked. I had no idea Hardin would even recognize me after seeing me that night. "Well what my brother does is not my business," He said flatly. I heaved a sigh, flashes from earlier flooding back into my head. The moment I caught Ethan kissing Julia.

"It doesn't matter now," I replied. "It's over. He's an asshole."

"Damn," Hardin said with a sly smirk. "You guys had a big fight?" I nodded. "I caught him kissing my best friend," Something about Hardin made it easy to trust him.

Maybe it was because I felt safe with him.

He shot me a glare and silence settled between us for a moment.

"I'm sorry about that," He then said. I couldn't resist rolling my eyes to the back of my head. "Don't act as if you care. I guess the apple didn't fall far from the tree." I muttered. I heard the stories, just like everyone else at Ashwood High about how Hardin slept with all the girls on campus, quickly discarding them afterward. He was the ultimate playboy and the face of one-night stands, never seeing a girl more than once.

He pulled away from me, pretending to be offended.

"I mean look, I won't be surprised if you do this often..." I said.

"What? Patch people up?" He asked.

"Bring girls back to your place," I reiterated. He bit down on his lips with regret.

"Maybe I should have left in the woods," He said. A slight chuckle escaped my lips for the first time that night. "It's just your reputation, everyone knows you're a player Hardin."

"So what if I am?" He finally confessed.

"I mean you followed me back here, didn't you?" When he was done, he pulled away from me, leaning against his closet with his arms folded. For a second, a sultry thought crossed my mind. My eyes drifted to him before I could stop them.

Hardin was standing against the wooden dresser, his sleeves pushed to his forearms. The first thing I noticed when he took off his hoodie was how muscled he was and also the vine tattoos that ran across his arms. He was about six feet tall, with broad shoulders and a chiseled physique. Hardin certainly looked the part of a player. With his midnight black hair that framed his cold, sharp face.

When his dark eyes met mine, I got up from the bed.

The room was dimly lit but I could make out his eyes and the way his lips curled into a smirk.

"What did you think was going to happen?" I inched closer to him. He spread his legs apart as his eyes dropped to my lips. After such a horrible night, I wanted to feel something. This was supposed to be my 18th birthday but maybe it didn't have to be completely ruined.

This whole time, I had planned to lose my virginity to Ethan tonight but look how that turned out. Now, I didn't care anymore and a part of me pulsed with revenge knowing his brother wanted me. In what world did Hardin West want me?

It felt unreal but in that moment, I wanted to kiss him. I wanted to do more than kiss him, granted we never spoke about it after tonight—It was a perfect plan in my head and the look on Hardin's face showed he was down for just anything.

"I don't know, you tell me..." He said with a deep, decadent voice.

My stomach tightened, in a way that never did with Ethan. When I stood inches away from his face, I couldn't believe my pulse was racing because of his older brother. Impatiently, Hardin pulled me towards him and our lips crashed into each other. Everything happened so fast and the kiss was hesitant for all of half a heartbeat.

Then every ounce of restraint vanished.

It wasn't frantic, it was hungry. Hardin lifted me in his arms and my fingers slid into his hair before carefully settling against his back. He tossed me on the bed and leaned into my ear.

"I thought my reputation scared you," He was breathing heavily, and so was I.

"Shut up." A moan escaped my lips as his fingers slipped inside my dress. I couldn't believe how wet I was already.

Hardin took off his shirt before kissing me again and I stared at his body, like that of a Greek god before kissing him back without hesitation. My hands ran along his back and then I cupped his neck, only to realize the fresh scratches that lined it.

Then he froze. A low, almost inaudible sound vibrated in his chest.

His grip on me tightened and I barely had time to move before a sharp sting bloomed where my neck met my shoulder. I could feel his teeth sink into the nape of my neck.

"Ow—" I gasped, jerking back.

Hardin pulled away so violently it was as if I'd burned him. His eyes were fixed on the spot he'd just bitten, his chest rising and falling in ragged breaths. "What..." I touched my neck, my fingertips coming away no blood thankfully. "You bit me." His face drained of color.

"I—" He took another step back and then another. His jaw was clenched so tightly I thought his teeth might crack. And then his eyes...something was wrong with his eyes.

The warm amber I'd noticed before had deepened into molten gold, bright enough to make my breath catch.

"Hardin?" He turned away from me, putting on his shirt. "It's not possible," I could hear him say under his breath. My brows arched.

"What happened?" I asked.

Confusion quickly gave way to hurt and when he turned back around, his eyes were normal again and he grabbed his keys.

"I'm sorry, we can't do this." He replied coldly.

"You were kissing me two seconds ago." My voice broke.

"I know."

"Then what the hell just happened?" I asked.

His shoulders rose with a slow and unsteady breath. "You won't understand." He said.

In that moment, I got up and grabbed my purse. But I halted right next to his shoulder before brushing past it. I looked up at him and his eyes seemed frightened. Not of me. For me.

"I'm sorry," Hardin muttered. "I'll drive you home."