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Like there was any other answer. “Yes.” She threw herself into his arms and kissed him with everything she had. Aubry pulled away enough to say, “I submitted my game.”
His eyes went wide. “What?”
“You’re right. I can’t spend my whole life hiding because I’m afraid of being hurt. Look at what you inspired me to do. I went to Deathcon. I got into one of those flying death traps without being tranquilized. I submitted my game.” She gave a tentative smile. “I couldn’t have done it without you. You make me want to be, if not a better person, at least one who’s slightly more higher functioning in the greater society.”
“I didn’t do that, peaches. You did.” He settled her against him. “I’m proud of you.”
“We’re an unstoppable partnership, that’s for damn sure.”
“You’re amazing.” He framed her face with his hands, his thumbs feathering over her cheekbones. “I have to say, that I’m pretty much in love with your contrary ass, Aubry Kaiser.”
Her entire heart lit up like the Fourth of July. “That’s good, because I’m head over heels for you.” She kissed him again. “I can’t believe you did all this for me.”
He rearranged her beneath his arm. “You have to admit, it’s pretty damn gorgeous out here.”
“I do, though I fully expect you to save my ass if mutant crocodiles show up.”
“Crocodiles, zombies, serial killers, and mutants of every variety.”
“If that’s not a declaration of love I can get behind, I don’t know what is.”EpilogueAubry couldn’t calm down, and she sure as hell couldn’t sit still. She felt like Jules must on a daily basis—too much energy for anyone’s health. She shot a nervous glance at the television that she’d jury-rigged to her computer. I can’t believe I’m doing this.
“Peaches?”
If anything, her tension ramped up a notch at the sound of Quinn’s voice, even as the rest of her went all melty. She even managed a smile as his big frame filled the doorway. “Hey.”
Quinn’s gaze slid over her in a move she could almost feel. “You look half a second from losing it. What’s going on?” He shifted, sliding one hand behind his back, and she zeroed in on him.
“What’s that?”
“Oh, no. You’re the one who’s been acting sneaky and underhanded for the last few days—you go first.” He stepped fully into the apartment and looked around. “I forgot how tiny everything is in here. It’s like stepping into a dollhouse.”
They hadn’t spent much time here in the last few months. It turned out that Quinn had a great setup for gaming and, beyond that, playing Deathmatch with him was even more fun than playing with the faceless people on the Internet. In turn, he’d drawn her out of her shell a little bit further with each month they were together.
She lifted her chin. “That’s just because everything in your house has to be fit for a giant or it will collapse under your immense weight.”
He laughed. “You like that I’m immense.”
Yeah, she really, really did. Aubry took a step back and motioned to the couch. It looked shabby compared to his most excellent leather one, but they weren’t going to be here for long. “Sit.”
“Is this the part where you strap that contraption from Clockwork Orange to my eyelids and try to convince me—again—to see that damn movie?”
“Power Rangers is going to be sublime, and I’ll thank you kindly to stop referring to it as ‘that damn movie.’” But she couldn’t help the smile that slipped through.
Quinn sat where she motioned to and took the Xbox controller she handed him. “How about a deal? I’ll go see that movie—without bitching and moaning about it—if you come riding with me.”
“Riding.” She narrowed her eyes. “You wouldn’t be trying to convince me to get on the back of one of those hellbeasts would you? Because those damn animals are out to get me.”
“Peaches, they’re horses, not hellbeasts.”
“I disagree. The Headless Horseman rides one—and so does the Wild Hunt. I could go on.” When he just watched her, an amused smile on his face, she sighed. “I’ll consider it.”
“Good enough.” He turned to look at the TV. “So, if you didn’t lure me here for nefarious purposes, why are we here?”
As if on cue, her nerves kicked up a notch, her stomach twisting. She took a breath, counting slowly in her head. The panic didn’t completely dissipate, but her voice sounded mostly normal when she spoke. “I have something to show you.”
It took far too little time to get things up and running, the screen clearing to display an armored knight with a sword almost as big as he was. She bit her lip. “You’ve gamed enough in the last few months to muddle through the controls.”
Quinn sent his character forward, moving around the room. She surveyed it with a critical eye. It could use another layer of detail. She knew she should have waited. “It’s not finished—”
