Page 80 of Flawed Revenge

Good news or bad?

“She’s making new blood cells,” Whitney exclaimed without preamble, a huge grin on her face.

If it wasn't for Leo wrapping his arms around her biceps, Kate knew she would have sunk to the floor as relief so powerful it almost stole her breath tore through her.

“She’s going to be okay?” she asked, needing to hear it said out loud.

“She has a way to go, but she’s improving. The transplant was successful,” Whitney replied, still grinning.

Kate was in Leo’s arms before she could process the other woman’s words. He ran with her across the grass to their daughter, then grabbed the little girl and hugged them both.

“Mom? Dad?” Ariella asked.

“You're going to get better, sweetie-pie. Daddy saved you,” Kate told her daughter as she clung to her man and her child, and allowed the sobs that had been building for days now finally run free.

Leo was crying, too, and Ariella’s cheeks were wet as she pressed her face against Kate’s neck. No moment in her life had been this perfect, not even when Ariella was born and placed in her arms for the first time, because she’d had to go through hell to get to this point.

“You saved me, too, Mommy, because you were always there for me,” Ariella whispered, and her daughter’s sweet words made her heart burst with love.

Chapter

Twenty-Three

May 1st

1:42 P.M.

“Let’s play hide and go seek,” Ariella said excitedly, bouncing from foot to foot in that energetic way only children could.

“Sure thing, Ari-Bear, your mom and I will play with you,” Lion agreed. Honestly, he couldn’t get enough of spending time with his girls. Whether it was playing games, watching movies, or eating meals altogether around the giant dining room table, he didn't really care. He just wanted to soak in these moments, make up for lost time, and build a lifetime of memories.

“No, I want everyone to play,” Ariella insisted, turning hopeful blue eyes on the others as they all worked together to clean up after lunch.

“I'm not sure everyone else wants to play hide and go seek with you, sweetie,” Kate piped up.

Thankfully, his girl had been doing better this last month at letting him in. Lion was pretty sure it wasn't just because Ariella seemed to be improving every single day, but also that Kate was putting her growing trust in him into practice. Now it wasn't just an abstract idea in her mind. Each time he showed up with words and actions, he could see another piece of her walls come crumbling down. She’d cried in his arms several times over the last few weeks, worried Ariella would relapse, that these improvements were too good to be true. That she was opening up and sharing her emotions with him instead of thinking she had to handle it all on her own, was slowly washing away his guilt from the past.

Those words he’d thrown at her a decade ago would always exist between them, but they no longer defined their relationship.

“Nah, we can swing a game for the squirt,” Thunder said with affection.

“Are you guys going to cheat?” Ariella asked, narrowing her eyes as her gaze roamed the men in the room.

“I don’t think being the strongest man in the world is going to help me at hide and go seek, squirt,” Steel told her, amusement sparking in his eyes.

Because Ariella was part of this now, she might even begin to develop her own enhanced skill, given that she’d taken a variation on the drug that had created them, they’d explained everything to her in as child-friendly a way as possible. Ariella wasn't just any kid, though. She was mature for her age, given everything she’d been through and the things she’d had to confront. Her correct assertion that while Kate hadn't donated bone marrow, she had played just as big a role in saving her as he had proved that, and she’d asked a lot of questions. The little girl was intrigued by all their skills and had asked them to demonstrate them several times this last month.

“Maybe yours won't help you cheat, but what about Dragon’s smell and Blade’s hearing. They can cheat. You can, too, Dad, with your sight. It’s no fun playing if people are cheating,” Ariella said, so seriously that Lion had to hide his smirk.

“Couldn’t agree with you more, Ari,” Rose agreed, grinning at the guys. “You heard the kid, no cheating.”

“Scouts honor,” Blade agreed. Dragon just smirked.

“Not making any promises,” Dragon said, making Cassandra swat at his shoulder. “Sorry, little rabbit, but it’s not like I can just chop off my nose for the game.”

“He won't cheat, Ari, I’ll make sure of it,” Cassandra assured the little girl.

“We playing outside or inside?” Indigo asked.