And I’m going to adore every moment of it.
She hums as I keep going, her hands slipping around my waist as she tries to get closer.
“Here.” I drop my hands and lift her until she’s wrapped around me like a pretzel, her legs nestled on either side of my waist. When I go back to her neck, I frown.
She’s warm again. Too warm.
Claws prick against my sides. Slipping beneath my sweatshirt. Two soft palms slide up my bare skin, scraping over my chest. I feel my own cheeks flush as she presses against me. “Kenny, wait.”
This is unchartered territory. On every front. I swallow hard, my eyes flicking to the mirror. “Ken. Baby.No.”
She flinches, and it’s cold water thrown over my senses.
I catch her wrists as she scrambles back, keeping hold of her as I duck to see her face. Shit – her eyes are wet. I don’t let her move, my voice dropping. “Not like this. You comeback, Kennedy.”
That’s a line none of us will cross.
She snarls, half-hearted and… hurt. My hand slides around to her throat, brushing it, holding her chin and lifting as Kenny squirms to get away, her eyes dropping.
“Look at me,” I breathe. “No more running, Ken. Okay? I’m yours. Your mate. Always yours. But I need your words, love. I need to know it’syou. You come first.”
She blinks, and something close to a tortured groan sounds in my throat as her tears spill over. “Don’t cry. Please, Kenny.”
I can’t watch it. Can’t cope with the sight of her tears. Not when it feels like we’re soclose.
I still have one hand in mine. Turning it, I press my lips to her palm. “There’s a whole life here, waiting for you. But not without you. You have to come back to us. Comehome.”
Her eyes flicker again. My breath catches. “Ken—,”
But the scrape of the door opening sends her tumbling back, her wrists slipping from my grasp as she scrabbles off the bed and backs away.
I twist to glare over my shoulder. Abrams offers an apologetic wince from the doorway. “I’m so sorry – the window was dark, we couldn’t see. I need to check her vitals. Thought it would be worth trying while she’s awake, if you don’t mind.”
God fucking damn it. “Give me a minute.”
Kenny doesn’t look at me as I step up to her. My hands cradle her face, nudging it up. “Let Abrams take a look at you, okay? You know him. We need you to be healthy, baby.”
I can feel the resistance in the tightness of her jaw. “I’ll be right here.”
We were so fucking close. Both of us know it.
Her hands grip my sweatshirt again. Eyeing her, I reach for the back of my neck and tug the clothing over my head before bundling her into it. Her head pops out, staring at me as I thread her arms through the holes.
It swamps her. Almost to her knees. “You keep that, okay?”
Nodding at Abrams, I back away a few steps to let him through. Kenny wavers, her eyes darting between us.
He looks nervous too. “She won’t hurt you, Doc.”
There’s an edge of steel in my tone. Kenny sniffs, looking away.
You’re definitely in there, baby.
This is the end game. I can feel it.
And we’re playing to win.
Day 365 – Jake
