A decision I had not regretted for a single second. Kali was the one who had changed everything, who had also shown me the way to Zion.
Though, to be frank, the truth was that he had reeled me in long ago, even without my knowledge. There had to be a reason why rest would evade me whenever Zion had participated in our smuggling operations. Why sleep would allow me to enter its realm only after he had returned.
But the instinct to protect him had turned me into a fool. Ilasall was going to target us either way, whether I had him in my bed or not.
“I want unlimited pancakes,” she declared, and waved at the bottle laying in the middle of the blanket. “And whatever is in that thermos.”
Such a peculiar mind. Demanding an item when you had no clue what it contained. No wonder I had succumbed to her spell.
“I will accept your terms.” I pulled the transparent container from behind me. “But on one condition—youtalkin addition to having breakfast with Zion and me.”
I loved that she made me work for her forgiveness. That instead of turning away, she had issued me a challenge. A duel. Not of fists or words, but of actions.
I could play such a game. Win it. Starting with claiming our first match’s points by foreseeing her next move and obliterating the loopholes in our deal.
She tilted her head in thought. “Fine.”
Handing her the box, I grabbed a couple of pancakes off the top, smirking at her displeasure. She would have made me sell my soul for them.
Better did she know, I would have scoured hell for the gates back to the living realm. I had no doubt the so-called heaven would sooner relocate to another universe than grant me entrance.
Shifting to make myself more comfortable, I pulled on the blanket. The open thermos teetered, toppling?—
Zion seized the insulated bottle. “If we’re making deals, then I want one too. I told you a boner story. I want one in return.” He tapped the rim. “For this.”
Kali snorted. “Abonerstory?”
He nodded. “Yeah. When we were teenagers, during a sleepover at Gedeon’s, I got a hard-on. So in the morning, I jerked off in their bathroom. I couldn’t look at his parents afterward.”
NowIsnorted. “It didn’t stop you from staying for breakfast.”
Kali rolled her lips to mask the bubble of amusement boiling inside her. But it burst, and her giggles burrowed into my veins. Like a drug, the sound of it loosened my muscles and sent my brain on vacation.
I had developed an addiction to her laughter, especially when mixed with Zion’s.
“You had maple syrup. Of course I wasn’t going anywhere.” Zion offered the thermos to me. “So, what will it be?”
Wracking my mind for asafememory, I poured the coffee concoction into a cup for Kali and topped off Zion. Steam rose from the light-colored liquid, blending with the earthy scent lingering from last night’s storm. The aroma tickled my nose, as pleasant as the fragrance of a basil plant Kali had once hauled to our bedroom.
“Well?” She took a sip and immediately went for another one.
“Remember when we moved here, and you came into my study to help me unload all the books?” I asked Zion.
He plucked a pancake out of the box on Kali’s lap. “Your father’s collection.”
“You had just finished carrying the boxes up to Ava’s apartment and were wearing those blue shorts…” I trailed off as I rubbed my face. In hindsight, I had missed so many signs my own body was screaming. “The way dirt and grime clung to you… I mixed up half the books on the shelves and had to reorganize them after you left because I couldn’t stop looking at you.”
“I told you I’m pretty. You can’t deny it anymore.” His feet swayed in the air as he stuffed half the round cake into his mouth.
“That you are,” I confessed. “So much that sometimes I wonder how I have lasted this long away from you.”
Munching on the fluffy goodness, he grinned. “So I’m the reason for how many of your hard-ons again?”
I traced the rim of the thermos. “Too many, Zion. Too many.”
28
GEDEON
