“If anything happens to Carina’s boy toys-” Stone shudders in mock horror “- Khalida is thelastplace any of us want to be.”
ChapterEleven
RAIDEN
“I’ll be down at the lake if you need anything,” Dominic says, leaving us on the porch of a guest cabin. “Feel free to drop in and join us if you’re feeling up to it.”
He disappears, and Kodiak wastes no time opening the door, checking the space first on the off chance it’s a trap. After fielding so many ambushes recently, we can’t be too cautious, allied territory or not. It’s a careful dance though, needing to be on high alert at all times, but appearing confidently at ease for Amara’s sake. She’s worried enough as it is, we don’t need to stress her out further.
“Will you two quit groping our girlfriend for five minutes so she can check the place out?” Kodi strolls back into the main room, sighing dramatically like he’s the only adult among us.
Subtly inclining my head to him in appreciation for how perfectly he delivered the all clear, I lead Amara into the cabin. Without work occupying any space in my brain, Amara receives the brunt of my obsessive attention, shared only with our legion and surroundings. I’m keenly aware of every minute shift in body language, so as soon as she steps foot over the threshold and releases a soft sigh of relief under her breath, I have her up and in my arms.
“It’s three rooms, Kodi, a tour can wait. The shitty patrols we witnessed, on the other hand, cannot. While you run the perimeter and see if there’s anything else we should be aware of, it’s Stone’s turn to hunt down something to eat.”
Toying with his lip piercing, he narrows his eyes. “Maybe you should run the perimeter, bossman. I can stay here with Amara.”
Already halfway across the room, I switch my hold to free up a hand and open the bathroom door. “Should have thought of that before you forced me to be legionhead. We all have our assignments, Kodiak. Mine just happens to be the best one for a change.” I shoot him a smirk over my shoulder, savoring his annoyed expression as I shut the door in his face.
Amara slides to her feet, shoulders shaking with silent laughter. “That was mean.”
“Hardly,” I snort. “He stole you for most of the afternoon; it’s my turn to hold you. I was just smart enough to wait and claim my time when there was a shower on hand.”
“Is that what we’re doing now? Shared custody?” she teases, not sounding annoyed, but there’s the slightest edge to her tone that I might have missed a week ago.
“Not at all. It’ll always be your choice who you spend your time with, but that doesn’t mean we won’t fight to reclaim your attention.” Hooking my finger in the hem of her shirt, I tug her closer. “Weneedto touch you to keep ourselves sane; now more than ever. I don’t think you understand the power you have over us,solas mo shaol.When I call you the light of my life, I truly mean it.”
Kissing her softly, reverently, we stand there until steam begins to fill the bathroom and she reluctantly pulls away. “Who knows how long the hot water will last, so we better move this conversation into the shower.”
“Lucky thing you have your own personal heater then, isn’t it?” Still, I pull her shirt over her head.
She smiles with a shake of her head. “What was the point of getting dressed if you were going to get me naked ten minutes later?”
Hooking my fingers in the waistband of her leggings, I slowly drag them down. “Because stripping your clothes off is one of my favorite pastimes.”
When she enters the shower, disappearing behind the curtain, my heart lurches, a flare of panic spiking through my veins. Quickly stepping out of my borrowed shorts, I follow her in. Having her back in my line of sight instantly settles the beast trying to claw its way out of me to find her again.
She’s only barely finished wetting her hair before I have a bottle of shampoo in my hands, pouring an excessive amount into my palms. Almost as if she knows that I need to do this, Amara doesn’t utter a single protest as I meticulously clean every lingering drop of blood and dirt still clinging to the strands of her hair. I work in concentrated silence, but it’s a companionable one that offers us both a chance to wade through our thoughts.
She moans softly as my nails gently rake across her scalp, the tension bleeding out of her with every circular motion, and I practically purr in satisfaction.
“So, walk me through this. How are you planning on removing your mark?”
“It’s not my secret to tell,” she says, tossing my earlier words back in my face.
With a low hum of acceptance, I carry on massaging her head, buying myself a little more time to think. Mentally combing through the list of residents I can remember off the top of my head, I can’t come up with anyone that would have the ability to pull something like this off, let alone who she would have run into between the gym, cafe, and the-
Terra.
She’s the only resident in Khalida that I don’t know what kind of shifter she is, and she lives at the transition center Amara visited. Satisfied, I shift gears.
“Can I at least ask about what happens after? Are we returning to a celibate lifestyle then?”
Amara goes stock-still, like she hadn’t considered that flaw in her plan. “Honestly? I haven’t gotten that far yet, but it’s a good point. We’ll have to test the touching theory while she’s still there to remove it again if necessary, and can go from there.”
She. Definitely Terra then.
It’s a good thing that she’s facing away from me, because it’s impossible to fight the smirk curving the corner of my lips.
