At least, I hope it is.
“I can’t believe you did that,” Kat murmurs while she tosses another dirty alcohol wipe aside, her voice strained but soft. “You’re reckless…and insane.”
I smirk faintly, but my face still hurts from the blows Yuri landed earlier. “Insane, but still breathing.”
Kat pulls back just enough to look at me. Immediately, there’s a tangle of relief, worry, anger, and something softer in her eyes.
She doesn’t slap me like I half expect her to, thankfully. Instead, she cups the side of my face gently, careful of the bruising. Her fingers tremble slightly, and I lean into her touch.
"You shouldn’t have done that," she says softly, not fully committing to anger. "You didn’t have to fight him."
"I did,” I say simply, leaving no room for doubt.
“Sergey—"
"He took you, Kat. Yuri wanted to hurt the one person I care about most, and he wanted to use you like a bargainingchip. That’s not something I can let slide, and I never will,” I insist, keeping my voice quiet despite how I mean it.
She watches me for a beat, lips slightly parted while she tries to stick to her guns. “They weren’t going to follow the rules Yuri laid out, Sergey…you could’ve died.”
“I know, but I’d do it a hundred times over if it meant keeping you safe," I say honestly, my voice turning more hoarse with fatigue. “Everything between us wasn’t supposed to happen this way, but now that we’re here, I’d do it again. Every time. Even if it means risking my life.”
Kat’s eyes glisten, and I see the conflict in her. The part of her that wants to hate me, to cling to her independence, and the part that’s slowly surrendering regardless.
Eventually, she sighs and drops it. Instead, she focuses on her work, trying to keep every touch light.
While the bedroom falls quiet again, the adrenaline wears off and pain takes its place, but I keep as many pained sounds in as I can manage.
I watch her disinfect the last of my cuts before bandaging the bigger ones. Her hands are gentle despite the tension still lingering between us. Even with everyone else in the past, there are still things left unspoken.
Eventually, I can’t help but fill the silence. “You don’t have to do this.”
But knowing her, Kat doesn’t take no for an answer. “Let me take care of you."
"I’m fine."
She gives me a look, one of those sharp, unimpressed ones, and she pauses only then. "You’re bleeding."
“It’s just a little blood and a few bruises. I’ve nearly bled out before…this is nothing.”
It’s a lame attempt at levity, but at least I tried.
Kat scoffs. “Yeah, and I wasn’t there to patch you up. But now I am. So shut up and deal with it.”
“I’m glad to know you haven’t softened up too much,” I say with a subtle grin.
She shakes her head, but I catch the subtle smile that pulls on her lips.
“I have to stay sharp around you,” she murmurs. When her fingers brush against the final bandage on my jaw, she lowers her gaze. “I’m still annoyed you put yourself in harm’s way, even if I understand I…I couldn’t stand the idea of you getting hurt.”
I lift a vaguely amused brow at her, watching as she moves to stand in front of me while I remain on the end of the bed. “So you need me, do you?”
“I didn’t want to need anyone before. Especially not someone like you."
Now that catches my attention.
"Someone like me?"
"Dangerous…complicated. Involved in everything I wanted to avoid. But..."
