Page 96 of Cash

“Penny’s missing.”

Stella jolted, then went stone still. “You need to leave.”

“No.”

“Go, Cash. Your sister⁠—”

I tugged her hand, turned her to face me, and trapped our hands between our chests when I pulled her tight. “No, Stella. I’m not leaving.”

“Cash—”

“I promised Cara I wouldn’t leave her.”

Stella swallowed and her shoulders slumped. “She’s your sister.”

She wasn’t wrong.

“You and Cara are my family. Zane’s handling the rest.”

Stella didn’t look convinced.

“How’s Cara?”

“She’s…asleep.”

I gathered that or Stella would still be in the bedroom with her.

“That’s not what I was asking about, baby girl.”

Sadness and worry infused. “When she asked why you weren’t in bed with us, I told her you were waiting for the Snake to call. Then she asked me to tell her a story about the King and the Queen of Dragons.”

It fucking killed to leave them in the bedroom alone, especially after Cara was cuddled into Stella’s side, but I saw how much it had hurt her when Cara had clung to me in the car. Stella had wrongly assumed Cara preferred me. I knew it was simply because I had been the one holding her at that moment and she was clinging onto something that felt safe. My theory was proven correct when we’d made it into the safehouse and Cara practically launched herself into Stella’s arms and begged her to hold her. But still I wanted to give the two of them some alone time while I waited for Zane to call.

“Did you tell her how badass the Queen is? How she protected her King and the Warrior Princess by slaying the bad dragons.”

“Something like that.” Stella paused to blow out a breath. “I’m not sure it’s healthy or right to tell fiction and romanticize me killing bad guys in front of her.”

“You’re not idealizing killing anyone. But helping her process what happened is healthy. And tomorrow we’ll talk to her and get a feel for where she’s at and go from there.”

She nodded.

“I really think you should go⁠—”

I dropped my forehead to hers. “I’m not leaving. End of.”

Thankfully, she gave up on that topic. “Thank you for protecting Cara.”

“You never have to thank me for that. But I think you forget, all I did was drop and cover, while my badass woman handled business.”

She flinched. I waited for her to explain her reaction. When she didn’t, I prompted, “Stella?”

Still nothing.

“I can’t help if you don’t tell me what’s going through that pretty head of yours.”

Stella said nothing, just stood there staring at me with desolation drenching her eyes. I hated the sadness. I’d much rather see her anger. I didn’t know what to do with Stella’s misery. I didn’t know what to do with the feeling that clawed at my chest seeing her in emotional pain.

I gently slid my hand up over the thick material of her sweatshirt, ignoring the fact she was wearing it despite the warm weather seeing as she wasn’t wearing a bra under her t-shirt. Not even the knowledge of why she couldn’t put on a bra stopped me from wanting to yank her clothes off, feel her soft tits against my chest, exert the control I knew she needed to let go—overpower her body so her mind would settle. No thinking. Free to feel. Pleasure to take away the thoughts that constantly ran through her head.