Opposition

I was still for maybe five seconds, and then I sprang from the bed, found my thankfully still private stash, grabbed the small package, and was back on the bed in front of her in a heartbeat. “I can do that for you.”

We stared at each other for another second, and then she straightened slightly, reaching down and lifting the shirt over her head.

I forgot how to breathe.

With just the tips of my fingers, I followed the map of her curves. “You’re so beautiful.” I kissed the tiny hollow between her collarbones. “You’re stronger than you realize.” Another kiss to the spot behind her ear. “You’re perfect for me.”

I put everything I felt into the gesture I’d never take for granted when it came to her.

Pressing her down onto her back and settling between her legs, I helped her hold the darkness back so that the only thing she felt was my hands, my skin, and everything I felt for her.

Showered and changed, we headed downstairs just in time to eat leftover bacon and eggs. The food was cold and Archer and my sister were staring at us like they knew exactly why it took us so long to come downstairs, but I didn’t care. There was an edge of sadness to the soft smile Kat wore as she watched them, but she was smiling, and I had given her what she wanted when she needed it.

After she finished eating, she excused herself and stood. From behind my chair, she leaned over and kissed my cheek. “I’m going to step outside for a few. Okay?”

I started to follow her but realized that she probably wanted a few minutes alone and told myself to keep my ass in my chair. As she turned, though, I caught her arm and tugged her down until I could capture her mouth in a deep, scorching kiss that probably sent her mind back to what went down between us in the bedroom.

Archer coughed. “We’re not standing here or anything.”

“Whatever,” I murmured as I let Kat go, and she surveyed the room with a red face. Giving an awkward wave, she turned and hurried out of the kitchen. I leaned back in my chair, shooting Archer a look that said, Shut up.

He raised his hands as he backed away from the table and then grabbed the trash, going right to where the can was under the sink, in the cabinet. I frowned. “You’re awful familiar with my kitchen.”

Archer snorted.

“How is she?” Dee asked as she sat beside me.

I sighed. “As can be expected.”

Sympathy poured into her eyes. “I didn’t know Ethan had her mom killed. I swear. I would’ve said something if I did.”

“I know.” I patted her arm. “Kat knows that, too.”

“Totally sucks,” Archer said, closing the cabinet door and straightening. “Probably good to get away from here.”

“Yeah,” I murmured, hoping she’d open up soon about what she was feeling. I knew from personal experience how that kind of pain and hurt could tear someone up. “I’ll see—”

Archer’s cell phone went off in his pocket. Frowning, he pulled it out and quickly answered. “What’s up, Luc?” he asked as he turned back to the sink and grabbed a dish towel.

Who knew Archer was so domesticated? I looked at my sister, and she was grinning at him like he was the second coming of something great.

“What?” Archer turned to us slowly, frowning. “No. Not at all.”

I sat up straight, on alert.

His eyes met mine. “Yeah, I know what you planned to do. It’ll still happen.” There was a pause, and sudden unease formed in my gut. “I’ll call you if anything comes up here.”

I was standing, and so was Dee by the time he disconnected the call. “What’s going on?”’

He slipped his phone into his pocket. “Nancy was sighted.”

“What?” The question boomed out of me. “A little more detail.”

Archer walked over to the table and gripped the back of a chair. “Luc doesn’t know the exact time frame. Sometime yesterday evening. With everything going on, word just got back to him. It was near Georgia. Maybe she was looking for us.”

“Shit,” I said, not liking the sound of that and knowing that this . . . this shit really wasn’t over. Not with her. . . .

“He’s ticked off. He planned on killing her.”

“What?”

“You heard me correctly. Once this was all over, he wanted to take her out himself. He never had any intentions of releasing the Origins back to her.”

There wasn’t a single part of me that was unhappy to hear about those plans, and I didn’t care how bad that made me look.

Archer scrubbed his jaw. “God, that woman could literally be anywhere and I’ll tell you what, she’s a loose cannon—” He cut himself off as he whirled around and looked at the clock on the wall. “Georgia . . . it didn’t take us that long to make the trip— Oh, shit.” He whipped around.

I was already racing toward the front door. There had been more than enough time for Nancy to make her way here, but I couldn’t imagine that woman would be stupid enough to try to seek vengeance on us. I threw the door open and rushed out onto the front porch, scanning the yard. A burst of air left me as I spotted Kat in front of her house. She was on her knees, her hair up in a knot, pulling the weeds out of the flower box. Frankly, she was ripping them out.

She looked up as I jogged over to where she was. Without saying a word, I reached down and hauled her up, pulling her into my arms and squeezing the ever-loving daylights out of her.