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Well, there were no words for it. But she felt all warm and fuzzy inside.
She felt cared for.
It was such a foreign feeling that she almost wasn’t sure what to do with it, but she was going to bask in it for as long as he was still around. And she’d treasure it long after he was gone.
The thought that there was a limit on their time together made her stomach drop, and she forced herself to focus on the conversation, and convincing him that they needed to go back.
“I know not immediately following after Justin is tearing you up inside,” she said softly. “Don’t try to deny it, because I can see it in your eyes. You’re sure they were going to come back for me to silence me, and I agree with you. Going back is the perfect plan. They’ll see me and it’ll draw them out, and you’ll get them before they get me. Then you can finally
get your cousin back, and I know that means everything to you.”
Colton stared at Katia, unable to find words to reply just yet. He’d known she was beautiful, charming, and strong—but now he had to add brave to the list. She was willing to put herself right in the path of danger so he could rescue Justin, and she didn’t even know his cousin.
He searched her light blue eyes, searching for any clue as to her motivation. Maybe he was misreading it, but he swore he saw a little gleam of affection and warmth for him. Was she willing to go back into such a dangerous situation for him?
It fit with what she said about seeing the worry in his eyes, and that she knew getting Justin back meant everything to him. But it was still hard to wrap his mind around.
He snorted to himself, wondering when he became so arrogant. Maybe that was part of her reasoning, but he was sure it wasn’t all of it, or even half of it. She was a hell of a woman, and he didn’t think she ever put herself first. If she did, she would have taken her uncle up on his offer to pay her tuition and get her an apartment the moment he made the offer.
She wasn’t the type of person to be content with letting her own safety be put in front of someone else’s. He wasn’t sure why he was so certain that was the case, but he was, and it fit everything he’d learned about who she was since they met.
Didn’t mean he was going to take her up on her offer though, no matter how much he burned with the need to find Justin and get him to safety.
“Colt?”
Blinking, he surfaced from his thoughts to find her staring at him with an arched eyebrow and a question in her beautiful eyes. “You’re right, of course. I do want to find him and make sure he’s okay. I want it with every fiber of my being, Katia. But just as much as I want that, I want to keep you safe. I need to. Your safety’s just as important to me as Justin’s, and I’m not willing to risk it. Besides, your plan has a major flaw. I don’t even know what the men look like, so I’d have no idea when they were approaching you.”
She gazed at him with wide eyes, looking like she wasn’t even breathing. She slowly shook her head, but he thought it was more in disbelief than denial. Clearing her throat, she glanced away as she inhaled deeply, and then looked at him with a wry smile.
“I appreciate that you value my safety so much, Colt. I can’t even put into words how much, and I’m incredibly thankful that you’re trying to look out for me. You’re wrong about one thing, though.”
“Oh, yeah? What’s that?” he asked, cocking an eyebrow.
Katia didn’t reply as she reached for her backpack. Opening it, she pulled out her sketchpad and flipped through the pages, handing it to him silently. Curious to finally see her work, he took it from her, surprise filling him as he looked at the drawing.
A man’s face filled the page, all the detail in the image making it look so lifelike, it felt more like he was looking at a picture taken with a camera than a drawing.
“Katia, this is amazing,” he said softly, glancing up quickly before he went back to studying it.
“Thanks. Turn the page and look at the other one.”
He did as she suggested, finding another man and taking in all the details in the drawing that was just as good as the first. Eyes narrowing as he noticed how cold the man’s eyes were, he flipped back to the other one and saw he had the same hard gaze.
“What are these?” he asked slowly, flipping back and forth between them.
“Those are the men who had your cousin. So you see, we do know what they look like.”
He looked up to meet her eyes, his blood turning to ice in his veins. “These are them?”
She nodded. “Down to the last detail, from the mole on creep one’s cheek to the scar on creep two’s chin. I tried to ignore them as much as possible, but I got a few good looks in, and I never forget a face. I think it’s the artist in me. I always notice all the details so I can recreate the things I see in my drawings.”
Nodding, he glanced back down, studying each drawing closely again, committing the faces to his memory. It was helpful to know what they looked like, so he didn’t accidentally kill the wrong people when the time came.
And we will definitely kill these sons of bitches, his dragon hissed, practically breathing fire inside him.
Bet your ass we will.
“Thanks for drawing these. Knowing what they look like is definitely helpful.”
