Kamon caught her expression and smirked, leaning in just enough for her to hear.“Careful,waan jai.Keep saying things like that and we’ll have to prove we can outdo Jacob and Mason.”
Klarissa’s eyes widened, her blush deepening as Rune chuckled at her expense.She swatted at Kamon’s arm, but the smile tugging at her lips betrayed her.“You two are impossible.”
“Impossible, maybe,” Rune said smoothly, “but worth it.”Kamon swept forward then, opening the apartment door as if he couldn’t wait another second.As soon as they were inside, Rune moved forward to pull open the balcony door for her.
Rune watched Klarissa step onto the balcony, her eyes widening as she took in the scene.The small space had been transformed.Candles glowed in hurricane lamps, casting warm light across the table they had set for three.Beyond the railing, the city stretched out in glittering waves of light.It wasn’t fancy, but it was theirs.And it had been worth every hour they’d spent setting it up.
He caught her expression and felt pride burn through his chest.“Suuway,” he said softly, gesturing toward the table.“Have a seat, dinner will be served shortly.”
Kamon pulled out her chair, as Rune went in to load the trolley with their dinner and bought it out to the table.He then placed everything on the table and lifted the lids from the covered dishes, letting the fragrant steam curl upward.“Traditional Thai,” Rune explained.“From home.We thought ...maybe you’d like a taste, something to bring back those memories of your time in our home.”
Klarissa lowered into her seat, eyes shimmering as she leaned forward.“You cooked this?”
“Every bite,” Kamon said, settling beside her.“With only a few near-disasters along the way.”
Rune shot him a grin.“Speak for yourself.My curry was perfect.”
Klarissa laughed softly, the sound fragile but real.Rune served the first dish—Pad Kra Pao, fragrant basil chicken with rice.
“Spicy,” he warned, “but not enough to kill you.”
She took a bite and closed her eyes, a small moan escaping her.“God, that’s ...that’s incredible.The flavor—fresh basil, chili, garlic.It tastes like ...like Bangkok streets at night.Noise, scooters, smoke, and spice in the air.”
Rune’s chest tightened as he watched her, the way memory softened her features.“Tell us,” he said gently.“Tell us about being there.”
Her gaze flickered between them, then dropped to her plate.“You want just the good times?Or the good, the bad, and the downright ugly?”
Rune shot a glance at his brother.Somehow he knew they were not going to like this.“All of it,suuway.”
Klarissa took a deep breath and started to talk.“It was almost six years ago.I’d been on the run for nearly ten months, managing to stay ahead of my father and his goons.I thought if I could just disappear in the chaos of Bangkok, my father wouldn’t find me.I managed to secure a passport, changed my hair, rented a tiny flat above a noodle shop.”She gave a wry laugh.“Thought I was clever.But my hacking skills weren’t as subtle as I believed.They traced me.Took me from my apartment to a safe house.Then it was the usual routine.Beatings, healings, intimidation.Threats.Always the same goal—finish the formula.”
Rune’s hand tightened on his fork until his knuckles ached.He forced himself to ease it, sliding his hand over hers instead.“Suuway...”
She shook her head.“I survived.That’s all that matters.”
They ate for a while, losing themselves in the food, and processing what she had shared.
Then, Kamon’s voice, quiet, steady, asked a question Rune had been wondering for a while.“What about your mother?”
The question hung heavy, and the expression on their mate’s beautiful face had him instantly regretting even thinking about it.But Klarissa lifted her gaze, pain and steel warring in her eyes.“I watched him kill her.My father.He said she was weak, that she had failed him.And he made me watch.”Her voice cracked.“She was the reason I started all of this—to try and save her.And he ended her like she was nothing.”
Silence pressed in around them, broken only by the hum of the city below.Rune’s tiger prowled inside him, furious and helpless.“I’m sorry,” he murmured, though the words felt useless.
Klarissa drew in a shaking breath.“Don’t be.He lost whatever leverage he could have possibly had over me in that moment.Just help me make sure he doesn’t do it to anyone else.”
Kamon reached for her other hand.“You have our word.”
Rune cleared his throat, forcing the heaviness away as he uncovered the next dish.“Som Tum.Green papaya salad.Sweet, spicy, sour.My mother made this every weekend.Said it was the taste of family.”
Klarissa took a bite, her lips curving faintly.“It’s ...alive.Sharp.Like sunshine and fire all at once.”She blinked rapidly.“It tastes like love.Like something that was missing for so long I forgot what it felt like.”
Kamon swallowed hard, his voice rough.“Our parents loved each other like that.Deeply.Fiercely.They taught us what loyalty looks like.”His jaw tightened.“And then we lost our sister, Boonsri.”
Rune’s chest clenched.“She was taken from school.Poisoned.We never found out who did it.”
Klarissa froze, her eyes widening.“Poisoned?Do you know with what?”
Rune shook his head.“No.We were never told.Only that it was quick.”
