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I accepted his world and everything in it.
I didn’t care what he did for a living or how his family made their legacy.
I didn’t care that his solution to most problems was to make the problem disappear.
Maybe that made me a terrible person.
Maybe that meant my moral compass was broken.
It didn’t matter because even if he wasn’t in my life, I had no choice but to accept all those things. My sisters were equally as dangerous, if not more so. If I rejected him for all the things that made him Darius Medlock, I would have to reject the Deluches and the Trevils. I would have to reject everyone I ever cared about.
I wasn’t going to do that.
Not for anyone.
I chose a light, wraparound sundress in mint green and pulled my white, two-piece swimsuit on underneath. I kept my hair down but strapped an elastic around my wrist. With my sandals dangling from my fingertips, I padded downstairs to meet the others, stopping only briefly in the sitting room to check on the sofa in case of stains I would need to clean before the others noticed — or worse, Marcella Medlock noticed on her next trip up to the lodge. That woman could spot a blemish from a mile away and she would definitely have questions I was not ready to answer.
The room was spotless, the wine glasses, snack bags, pillows and throws cleared away. The coffee table was returned to the center of the room, polished clean. Even all evidence of mynight with Darius was absent from the white colored cushion. It was only when I touched the slightly damp patch that I realized Darius must have come back after tucking me into bed and tidied up. It brought a tiny grin to my face as I turned and made the rest of the way to the kitchen.
Kas looked up from the bowl of oatmeal she was preparing at the island. “Took you long enough,” she said. “We’ve been waiting for actual hours.”
I struggled to maintain a cool expression, a normal face that didn’t allude to why I’d fallen into a temporary coma. “I was up late reading.”
Kas pursed her lips and gave a roll of her eyes. “Of course, you were. We’re out on the deck.”
I nodded and gestured to the toaster. “I’m just going to grab some toast.”
Licking a chunk of sliced banana off her thumb, she bobbed her head a few times before scooping up her bowl, spoon, and orange juice. “See you outside.”
With that, she shuffled her way out to the back patio doors, leaving me alone in the kitchen to make my way to the bread box. I pulled the bundle out and popped two slices into the toast. I found jam in the fridge along with a carton of grape juice. I set everything on the counter and waited.
“I can’t get last night out of my head.”
I spun to face the voice in the doorway, the man watching me with dark, hungry eyes that made my toes curl into the linoleum. He stood with his hands tucked casually in the pockets of his black sweats. His dark locks freshly washed glistened in the soft morning light spilling from the kitchen windows. A damp coil hung over his brow, a threat to my senses. All it made me want to do was run my fingers through all that thick, silky mass and cup the back of his head and lower his mouth to mine, but I stayed with my feet planted and my back against the island.
“Morning,” I murmured instead.
He moved into the room, his every stride measured. He didn’t stop until he was a powerful force looming over me, his gaze roaming down the front of my dress all the way to my toes.
“Morning.” A hand lifted and lightly skimmed a strip of hair off my temple. “How are you feeling?”
Exhausted.
Sore.
Tender.
Unacceptably ready for another round.
“How are you?” I asked instead.
An eyebrow lifted. “That wasn’t my question.” He slid his fingers deeper into my damp curls and forced my face up to his. “Did I hurt you?”
I shook my head.
His head dropped and my lungs hitched. My lips parted with my gasp and stayed open for his kiss. My eyes almost closed.
“Are you lying to me, kitten?”
