The face that stared back at me from the mirror was a stranger. My eyes were dark, shadowed, but there was a light in them that hadn’t been there yesterday, a light that looked suspiciously like hope. My lips were swollen, my skin flushed, a faint, purpling bruise blooming on my shoulder where Roman’s mouth had been. I was marked. Claimedin a way.
A treacherous part of me reveled in it.
I turned on the shower, creating a welcome distraction from the chaos in my head. As I stepped under the hot spray, the water washed away the evidence of last night, but it couldn’t wash away the feeling of belonging to them that had lodged itself inside me.
I leaned my head against the cool tiles, the water cascading down my back. I had spent my life running, hiding, fighting for a freedom that had always been just out of reach. And now I was here, in the enemy’s fortress, and for the first time, I wasn’t running.
I had chosen this. Chosenthem.
When I stepped out of the shower, a towel wrapped securely around me, I found Roman leaning against the doorframe, amug of coffee in his hand. He was already dressed in dark trousers and a crisp white shirt, the top buttons undone, exposing the strong, corded lines of his neck.
“Morning,” he said, his voice adeliciouslyhusky rumble. He held out the mug. “Thought you could use this.”
I took it with a smile, the ceramic warm against my fingertips. “Thank you.”
He watched me, his gazesweeping down my body in a waythat made my skin tingle. “You look…”
“Like I was thoroughly fucked by two brothers?” I snarked the words as a bold, reckless challenge.
A slow smile spread across his face. “I was going to say radiant, but that works too.”
I rolled my eyes, but a flush crept up my neck. “You’re terrible.”
“You love it.” His confident, teasing purr made me smile wider.
I took a sip of the coffee, the rich, bitter taste a welcome jolt to my system. “Where’s Dmitri?”
“Making calls. He’s working on the Lev problem.” Roman’s expression sobered, the playful mask slipping to reveal the hard, determined man beneath. “And I have an idea.”
“An idea?” I asked, my curiosity piqued.
“A way to get Lev back,” he said. “And to give ARCHEON what they want. Or at least, what they think they want.”
I set the mug down on the counter, my attention fully on him. “I’m listening.”
He stepped into the bathroom, his presence filling the small space. He crowded me against the counter, his hands resting on the marble on either side of me, caging me in.
“We’re going to giveyouto them,” he explained softly.
I flinched almost at once. “What?”
“Just for a little while,” he corrected quickly, bringing his hands up to cup my face, his touch gentle. “You’ll be our Trojan horse, Kara. They want you? We’ll let them have you. But you’ll be the one to bring down their walls from the inside.”
I stared at him, my mind racing, trying to put the pieces together.
“And how, exactly, am I supposed to do that?” I asked, my voice laced with skepticism.
“You’re Kara Lennox,” he said, his thumbs stroking my cheeks. “You’re a master of deception. You’ll figure it out. We’ll be right nearby you every step of the way. We’ll give you a comms unit, a tracker, a failsafe. You’ll be our eyes and ears. And when the time is right, you’ll be our secret weapon.”
I looked into his eyes, at the unwavering conviction I saw there.
He believed in me. He trusted me. And that was more intoxicating than any kiss, more thrilling than any touch.
“What if they hurt me?” I asked, the whispered question revealing a soft vulnerability I wasn’t entirely comfortable with them knowing.
“They won’t,” he said confidently. “Because we will burn their world down to the ground if they touch a single hair on your head.”
He leaned in, his mouth claiming mine in a soft, tender kiss. When he pulled back, his forehead rested against mine. “Say yes, Kara,” he murmured. “Let’s do this together.”
