“Just the hall, kitchen and living room but no one can access them. Just you and whoever you share the pin with.”
“So, you can’t?” I narrow my eyes. I don’t quite believe him.
“Why?” He teases, “Something you don’t want us to see?”
“Well,” I cross my arms, remembering the many times Killian has fucked me in these spaces, on the kitchen table or against the wall, “I would like some semblance of privacy.”
He chuckles, “Cross my heart, I can’t access unless you give me access.”
“And the truth?” I press with a cocked brow.
He laughs, “If I wanted in, I could get in, but I promise, your privacy is safe with me.”
“He won’t access your cameras,” Killian grumbles.
When I glance over, the intensity of his stare almost burns me to my core. It goes on long enough that Dean notices the tension that begins to crackle in the air.
“Everything good?” He shuts his laptop firmly, startling me from my stare off with Killian.
“What?” I scoff, “Of course.”
A knot forms between his brows as he contemplates my answer but then he just shrugs and gets up, taking his gear with him. “I’m out, you coming?” He asks his brother, “The meeting is in an hour.”
“Yeah,” Killian replies gruffly and follows his brother out, not sparing me another glance.
A single fracture cracks across my heart.
In the minutes that follow, silence settles on the house. A clock ticks behind me, every second passing like a beating drum. I listen to the sound of his engine as he starts it and then the roar as he accelerates away, leaving me here entirely alone without even a look.
My cell buzzes against my leg.
Killian: I’m sorry.
I want to be understanding and most parts of me did understand why he wouldn’t show me any sort of affection in front of people but that doesn’t mean it hurts less. This is a secret but that just makes me feel dirty.
I close down the thread without replying and open the email from Dean, so I don’t dwell on it. But setting up the security system barely takes any time at all so the distraction is fleeting.
With nothing left to do and the knowledge that he won’t be back any time soon, I text Sloane to tell her that I’m coming over, quickly change out of the sweats I was lounging in and head out, setting my new alarm system as I go.
Chapter Twenty-eight
Hiding what I feel for Savannah is torture. Not touching her, not kissing her feels like razors on my skin but I also know it’s a necessity to keep what little I have. I want it all and if I am not careful it’ll turn to sand and slip through my fingers.
She didn’t respond to my text message, and I saw the hurt on her face when I walked out with not even a glance in her direction. My brother is perceptive, he’s already suspicious if the conversation we had when we got to Malakai’s was anything to go by.
“Is there something you’re not telling me?”He’d said before we’d even entered the house for the council meeting.
“The fuck are you talking about?”I’d scoffed like he was going mad. But he’s not the first either, Sebastian has noticed too.
“Something is up,”His eyes had narrowed behind his glasses, a tell for me that he’s been struggling with his sleep. He only wears them when he doesn’t sleep.“I’m your brother, I know this shit.”
I rolled my eyes, patted him on the shoulder while my gut had rolled and churned, threatening to bring up the toast I’d had for breakfast.“I’m good. Let’s go, we’ll be late.”
He’d let it drop but not for one second do I believe that’ll be the end of it.
When the council meeting is over, I purposely stick around, relaxing into the chair around the coffee table in Malakai’s office while Bast shows off pictures of his new daughter Hope and Malakai responds with pictures of his own of Olivia’s pregnancy scans. This time last year none of this was happening, it was just the four of us and an empire beneath us built on blood and money.
There’s still blood and there’s still money but now they have something to fight for, to protect and go home to.
