Page 56 of Fall Before Her Throne

Leona: No, okay, look. Here’s what happened. We got into a big fight, we were yelling at each other, and then suddenly he kissed me

Willow: How was it?

Fallon: Damn, Willow. Wants all the juicy details

Willow: Of course I do! He’s the number one enemy!

I chewed my lip. He was the enemy. Or he used to be? I groaned and pressed my forehead to the cool marble. I didn’t fucking know what to think.

To be honest, it had been a long time since we felt like enemies.

Fallon: Was it good?

Leona: I guess! It was good until I asked him to tell me how he felt, and then he totally shut down, and so I told him I wasn’t going to chase him and I walked away

Willow: Good for you. You deserve better than that

Zoya: When exactly did the punching happen?

Leona: He was training with Wynn this morning and asked me to spar, so I sparred with him and I punched him in the face. For the record, I won the match

Fallon: I’m dying laughing right now. That’s too fucking funny

Willow: Why is he exercising instead of resting? His stitches can’t even be out yet

Zoya: Oh come on. We know all these men push themselves to the limit. They’re practically not human

Fallon: Maybe he wanted to be punished. Classic self-sabotaging behavior

Yeah, that was probably it. And you know what? He deserved it. I’d punch him again if he asked.

Fallon: Are you going to kiss him again? What did the rest of the guys think?

Leona: I don’t know. Feels like they’re not upset by it, or at least not upset with me, but it also feels like they’re pissed at him.

I was intentionally ignoring her question about kissing Max and instead focusing on the guys. For some reason, I had a feeling she could tell.

Zoya: I don’t blame them. Sounds like he’s being a dick

Fallon: By the way, how is the safe house? What’s going on up there?

Leona: So far, we’re still safe. We met with Piero Greco, and he demanded our loyalty, and I promptly told him to fuck off. We have some plans to hit them back

Fallon: Good on you

Fallon: Let us know if we can help

I took another drink of my coffee. If we called any of our allies, I knew they’d come to our aid, but I didn’t trust Greco, and if the shit was about to go down, I did not want Fallon to get caught in the middle of it. It felt likely that Greco already knew of our connection and was probably going to be watching her, or Philadelphia anyway. It was better that she stayed there, where she was safe. We could handle things up here—especially with the plans Obi was putting together.

Leona: I don’t want to drag you away from Philadelphia and into this. I’m not even sure what Greco is capable of yet. I’m hoping he’s terrified of how badass I am and runs back to Italy without bothering us again

Fallon: Yeah, let’s hope lol but if you need us, we’ll come

Zoya: I know I can’t speak for the Russians, but I know my brother will help as much as he can

Willow: I can’t offer an army, but if you ever need anything, I’m just a phone call away

Willow: You can call me for reasons other than someone’s immediate need for life-saving care lol