“But it doesn’t feel like it is.”
His expression changed. “How does it feel?”
I hesitated. Unaware of how to explain it without sounding like I was losing it.
“I guess I feel like everything has changed, and there’s no going back to what we were before.”
“What we were before wasn’t any place I want to be.”
The certainty in his voice should have scared me, but it didn’t. It helped me.
“Kitty, I decided a long time ago I wasn’t walking away from you.”
“And this?” I questioned. “What we did…?”
His gaze didn’t waver. “It doesn’t change anything about how much I love you. If anything, it added to it.”
My breath caught. Footsteps sounded behind us as the weight of Julius’s presence loomed over us.
I could feel his stare on us, on me. It was obvious he was trying to figure it out without having to ask the question out loud.
“Coffee?” Julius offered, breaking the tension.
I turned, glancing up at him. “Please.”
His eyes lingered on me for a second longer than necessary before he turned back toward the kitchen.
Kraven didn’t move, and when Julius came back, he didn’t hand me the cup right away. Again, he just stood there until I reached for the mug, my fingers brushing his.
“Sit.” I smiled.
Julius’s eyebrows lifted, playfully responding, “You telling me what to do now?”
“Maybe,” I challenged, holding his gaze.
And suddenly, I was between them again. It was just like before, only this time…
We weren’t pretending it didn’t mean anything.
CHAPTER
TWENTY-EIGHT
ISLA
My pulse quickened,but it wasn’t from fear. It was from awareness. Julius leaned back slightly, his arm resting along the back of the couch behind me. He wasn’t touching me, though he was close.
Kraven stayed where he was. Solid. Steady.
After what felt like forever, Julius nodded toward me. “You’re quiet.”
I eyed him. “I could say the same about you.”
He cleared his throat. “Yeah, well… I’m trying not to say the wrong thing.”
Kraven scoffed with a smile. “That must feel like fire on your skin.”
Julius smiled back. “Don’t fuck with me.”
