Maybe I can’t just say fuck the past and get over a decade of trauma in a few moments.
Kade notices. He slows, gentles the kiss, pulls back just enough to press his forehead against mine. My chest is heaving like I’ve just sprinted the length of the Strip.
“There is no rush, Willow,” he says. His words are rough, shaking, but filled with sincerity. I meet his green eyes, only a breath away. The man is about ready to detonate. His whole body is trembling with wild heat and ragged lust. But I see self-control in his eyes. I see conviction. “I don’t want to fuck this up. I want you. All of you. And I’ll take my time, Willow. However long it takes. I’m not going anywhere. So please, don’t feel rushed even one second faster than you want to go.”
My eyes sting. The relief that floods me is almost violent. My body loosens in his hold. I think something in my nervous system rewires just a little.
“You mean that?” I ask, even though I canseeit in every inch of him that he does.
“Every word,” he says, flames practically burning in his eyes.
And for the first time in years, I believe someone. He brushes his thumb over my cheekbone, soft and reverent, like he can’t believe I’m real. I actually smile, feeling my body relax as the wicked adrenaline burning me alive dissipates.
And then my phone vibrates from my back pocket.
A chuckle pulls from Kade at the same time I groan against him, forehead pressed to his. “If that’s a spam call about my car warranty?—”
He laughs, the thing low in his throat. “What if it’s something important?”
I groan again as I pull my phone from my pocket and see Opal’s name. I slide off his lap, feeling bereft the second I’m not touching him, and swipe the call.
Opal’s voice is chaos incarnate. “Wiiiillooooow. Oh, my Hecate. The street isbreathing. Did you know that streets could breathe? And the sounds! The palm trees are singing. I think this one just whispered that I have a great ass.”
My eyes widen, and I sit up straighter. “Opal. What did you take?”
“I don’t knooow, but Iris left out some jars, and they didn’t have labels. I wanted some tea, so I just mixed some up. But I’m fine. Totally fine. Except my shoes ran away. And my friends ditched me because I tried to explain to them that we’re all just vibration in mother divine’s salad bowl. Can you come pick me up?”
I pinch the bridge of my nose. Iris’s teas. Fantastic. She must’ve grabbed one of the shroom-infused batches. Opal is tripping. Hard.
“I’ll be there,” I sigh. I don’t ask for her address; I have her location in Find My. “Stay put, Opal.”
“Okayyy, thank you, love you, bye!” she sing-songs happily, and the line goes dead.
Not-Kade is watching me with a smirk. “Let me guess. Drunk?”
“Worse. Fungal enlightenment.”
His laugh is warm, filling the sterile apartment with something alive. He stands, extending a hand to me, and pulls me up to my feet. “Let me drive you. Or go with you. No way you’re handling that circus solo.”
Tempting. So damn tempting. But I shake my head, gathering my scattered resolve. “No, I… I need a minute to cool off. I’ve been thirsting over Saint Shade for months, and I just put my tongue down his throat. And he grabbed my ass while making me pant like a dog in heat.” My entire face flushes red at my own words, but I say them anyway, being brave once more. “I’ll take an Uber.”
“Fuck, Dagger Kitten,” he groans, his eyes going dark. “You test every inch of my resolve.” He smirks, and I grin back, wildly thrilled that he wants me just as bad as I want him. He doesn’t tease me further though. He just steps closer, slow and deliberate, until he’s right in front of me again. “You cool off. But I’m not letting you walk out of here without this.”
His hand comes up, fingers grazing under my chin, tilting my face to his. The kiss he gives me this time is brief, softer than the first—but somehow it guts me more.
When he pulls back, his voice is rough. “See me again tomorrow.” Not a question. A promise.
“Okay.” My mind is spinning too much for me to even think. I have no idea what the hell I have going on tomorrow. Hope I’m free.
We stand there for another beat, suspended in something fragile and electric. Then I tear myself away, heading for the door before my body does something stupid like tackle him back onto the couch.
He leans on the doorframe of his penthouse as I press the elevator button, grinning like a maniac. “Goodnight, Dagger Kitten.”
The elevator dings, and the doors slide open. I step inside and turn back around to face him. “Thanks for the perfect night, not-Kade.”
chapter ten
NOT-KADE
