Inside the clubhouse, noise and warmth swallowed us whole.Casey greeted us at the door, eyes bright.“You alive?”
“Barely,” Jade shot back.“He handed me a murder stick and told me to aim.”
“And you aimed,” I added.
“And I did,” she said, pride sneaking in.
Lunch passed in a blur.We sorted paperwork while kids ran around laughing.Jade seemed to find her place, slipping between moments in a world she no longer feared quite so much.
The sky darkened as night fell again.
When we reached my house, she went to the bedroom and changed.I found her waiting in the doorway, her bare legs beneath my shirt hanging loose on her frame.I caught a flicker of uncertainty cross her face before she spoke.
“Can you just hold me tonight?”
“Yeah,” I answered without pause.
We stretched out side by side on top of the covers.The lamp threw soft light across the room as her fingers drew lazy circles on my chest.Her breath grew steady.Sleep stole over her quietly while I remained awake.
Beyond these walls, danger lurked.Roth continued to breathe somewhere out there.A stranger in an SUV probably watched my house even now.
Inside, Jade slept pressed close, trusting me with her fear, her safety, her future.
Tomorrow would bring plans and orders and consequences.
Tonight, I wrapped my arm around her and held the line.
Whatever came next, I wouldn’t step back.
Chapter Six
Kane
Jade’s hair brushed my chin with every breath.One bare leg hooked over my thigh, warm and heavy against my skin.She’d anchored her hand flat on my chest, right over my heart, while we slept.
I woke without my pulse racing or ghosts clawing out of sleep.No gunshots echoed in my head.No old scenes replayed behind my eyes.The steady rise and fall of her breathing filled the room instead, peaceful in a house where the memory of violence hadn’t yet visited this morning.
I lay still and watched dust drift through the light.My palm rested against the small of her back under the blanket, fingers spread, feeling cotton and heat -- proof she hadn’t vanished while I slept.
She shifted with a soft sound, then burrowed closer.Her nose brushed my throat.Muscles went tight for half a second, breath catching, then eased when awareness settled in.
“Morning,” I murmured.
She tilted her head enough to meet my gaze.Strands of hair cascaded across my arm while sleep softened her eyes, lashes clumped together.The bruise on her cheek had lightened but remained ugly, a mark I couldn’t help noticing.
“You sleep okay?”I asked.
A slow nod followed.“No nightmares.First time in months.”
Relief crashed through me alongside something close to pride.“Good.This house scares off monsters pretty damn well.”
Her mouth curved.“This house has you.”
“Same thing.”
A snort escaped her before she winced and shifted her leg.“Everything hurts in a weird way.Not bruised.Just sore.Like I used muscles I forgot existed.”
“Range yesterday,” I reminded her.“Adrenaline wears off.Tension lets go.”
