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He came back before she’d found the energy to move and settled them under the covers. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her face, her eyelids, her lips.
“When I was on my way here tonight, I never thought . . .” He stared at her, so close that he almost looked as though he had one eye. Kate moved her head back a fraction until he had two eyes again.
The wonder on his face made her feel important and special—as if she were the best thing that had ever happened to him. Maybe it wasn’t true, or maybe it was just the after-orgasm buzz, but for now, she’d take it. This close he was almost unbearably beautiful. The short dark hair and dark eyes usually made him seem dangerous, but the only danger from him right now was the way his lazy smile made her heart skip a beat.
But what would happen the next day? Were they actually together—a couple? Or was this just something he had to get out of his system? Asking for answers this minute seemed rude, but she had to know. It seemed like they were on the same page, but what if they weren’t?
Relax, Kate. Enjoy the afterglow. There’ll be time to interrogate him tomorrow.
“We seem to have this problem where we keep ending up in bed together.” She smiled shyly.
His brows drew together. “It’s a problem for you?”
“As long as we never have to um . . . do that again . . . then no.” She held her breath, wondering if that would be a deal breaker for him.
“Never?” How did a guy manage to look dominant while lying on his side and cuddling?
Something stirred inside her, responding, wanting to please him. He smelled like sweat and sex and still faintly of leather, and even though she was sore, her body was trying to convince her that maybe some quiet, vanilla sex could be doable. Did he even do vanilla?
“W-well. If it was a hard limit, would you give me away again?”
“No, absolutely not.” He pulled her tighter.
They stared at each other. Banner seemed to be on the verge of saying something, but he only played with a lock of her hair. Eventually, he just kissed her—sweetly, like they were sixteen and on their first date.
“There’s a lot we need to talk about, but maybe we should wait until we’re not in a house full of people.” His words rumbled in his chest, the vibration feeling sexy under her hand.
Was “having a lot to talk about” good or bad? Not knowing what he meant was making her stomach twist.
“Okay.” She laid her head on his shoulder and snuggled in. The first hint of sleepiness tried to steal over her. As she began to drift off, she had a vivid recollection of Ambrose and Konstantin applauding. “Oh fuck. I can’t believe you made me scream like that!” She buried her face in his neck.
“What? What? I can’t hear you,” he said loudly, then grinned. “There’s some sort of weird ringing in my ears.”
She laughed and smacked him.
He quickly rem
inded her why smacking a Dominant was a bad idea.
Chapter 18
The obnoxious preprogrammed ringtone dragged him out of a deep, almost drugged sleep. Lost, he tried to follow the noise, then realized it was the only thing glowing in the dark room. He stubbed his toe on something but managed to grab the phone and hit ANSWER before it went to voice mail.
“Hello.”
“Banner?” Meadow? Was he late for school? He blinked, trying to get his bearings. Her voice was weird, as if she’d been crying. Meadow didn’t cry.
Shit. Mom?
“It’s me. What’s the matter?”
The other end went silent and terror leached through him. Then his brain took a step back, watching things unfold dispassionately. He remembered the gurney. His father’s waxy skin. Abruptly, he sat down on the floor and realized he was in a room with carpeting. Not home. Where the fuck was he?
“Meadow?”
“It’s . . . it’s . . .”
Mom. Hell, how were they going to go on without her? They were too young to be orphans. Such a weird word, “orphans.” It conjured images of lockets and mangy dogs. She’d overdosed. They’d known it was coming.
