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They could return.
If they do, there’s no more hand-to-hand shit. It’s death if they try to hurt my Jennifer again.
Jennifer’s standing in the corner, staring wide-eyed at the door, Lucifer braced to her chest with one hand, holding a gun in her other hand.
I stride over to her, knowing I shouldn’t indulge this now. But there’s so much warmth exploding in me, just to see her, to know she’s safe.
“I’m sorry,” I tell her, wrapping my arm around her shoulder.
I turn us sideways, so I’m facing the door, my gun ready, but I squeeze her tightly with my other hand.
“I’m so fucking sorry. I knew it was bad intel. I had a feeling, Jennifer. Right in my gut. But it was Peggy and….”
“It’s okay,” she whispers, looking down at the gun like she can’t remember picking it up.
I take it from her, lay it on the bed, then hug her closer.
Lucifer’s between us, but then he squirms, and I take him, quickly putting him down.
I should be watching the door, but I can’t stop myself from kissing her.
She fiercely kisses me back like she knows exactly what it is to feel this, the need for each other on a fundamentally primal level.
Like animals without a choice.
But if I had one, I’d choose her every single time.
Our tongues find each other, but then I have to stop.
My body is roaring at me.
It’s like because there’s been a battle, now I need my prize. My woman.
Our future.
“What happened?” Jennifer says. “Where’s Kelly? Did Peggy…the connection was bad…”
“My brother’s going after Kelly now,” I tell her.
“Your—what?”
“I know,” I nod grimly. “I’ll explain in the car.”
“Where are we going?”
I take her hand, guiding her toward the door, then peek out at the yard. “Stay close to me.”
“Always,” she whispers, giving me the sweetest look, making me want to kiss her again.
“Did you hear what I said?” I ask. “Before?”
“About me being… your woman?”
She up-tics at the end, her beautiful hair falling across her forehead.
“Yes,” I say firmly, reaching over and brushing her bangs away, then cradling her cheek. “My woman. I meant it. With all the stuff that’s happening, Jennifer. You need to know that. I want you…I want to be with you.”
“Really.”
I smirk. “Or am I crazy?”
“Nope,” she says, grabbing my shirt and pulling herself close.
I force myself to scan the yard quickly, then look down at her, the glistening in her eyes. “I want the same, to be with you. I want to be your woman… but….”
Kelly.
“It’s not my place to tell you what happened with Kelly and me,” I say. “But there are certain things you need to know. I can’t not tell you, even if it means breaking my word a little. But not here. We have to leave. Now.”
I drive out of the city, keeping just at the speed limit, my mind spinning over as I curse myself.
I didn’t establish a way to communicate with Matt. I didn’t even think about it, just Jennifer, just making sure she’s safe.
Looking over at her now, I can tell she’s struggling with it all.
“So Matt has been a prisoner all this time,” she whispers, her hands worrying in her lap.
I take in the beauty of her, her kind eyes, the twist of sassy bravery in her lips. The way she was holding that gun, she would’ve used it if she had to.
She’s going to be the best mama bear.
I ache for those days, wishing they were now, but at the same time, I want to savor every last moment with her.
“Yeah. It turns out the Andersons are even more fucked up than we thought. They don’t just want to flood the streets with their shit. They don’t just want to corrupt everybody and everything. They keep prisoners and make a sport out of torturing them.”
I’m twisting my hands around the steering wheel, struggling not to tear it off as I think of him, my brother.
“I should’ve looked harder. Fuck. What’s my excuse? I could’ve found him if I’d….”
“Didn’t you look?” she asks gently.
“I looked. I tried. For a year.”
“You can’t blame yourself.”
I laugh dryly. “Right now, I just need to get you safe. I’ve got a rendezvous point with Matt, that’s it. Not even a way to talk to him.”
“Well….”
She pauses, glancing behind her, making sure the dogs are okay. I can’t help but smile, despite everything.
“If Matt gets Kelly, maybe she’ll be able to turn her cell phone on?”
“I doubt it,” I say. “Even Junior would’ve known to ditch the phone the second they took her. It might even be in your apartment. It’s not like we checked. Does Kelly know your number from memory?”
“Yes,” Jennifer says. “Definitely.”
“Okay.” I sigh, nodding. “And you’ve got your….”
She shakes her head, letting out a groan. “No, I haven’t. So it doesn’t matter.”
“It’s okay.” Reaching over, I touch her hand as gently as possible, even with the never-ending desire whelming inside me. “Matt will bring her to us. I know he will.”
