Page 67 of Cops and Robbers

Shit. Did I say the wrong thing?

She grabbed his hands, chilly fingers grasping his. The lump in his stomach fell another notch.

“I’m glad I make you feel that way, but I…” Her voice shook. “I hope one day I can be worthy of you.”

“What?”

A high-pitched whistle cut into the air behind him, Lewis rounding them up.

Kate tugged him. “Let’s head back.”

“Kate…”

“I have a lot to atone for, hot rod.” She shrugged and stared up at the sky. “Just don’t give up on me.”

Never. But something in her dark expression whispered doubt through him. What did you do, Kate? From her behavior, it was something she couldn’t forgive herself for either. And that terrified him.

The crackling fire warded off the chilly sea breeze as Raz sat on the lawn chair between Sid and Kate. Many rounds of hot chocolate and s’mores later, Raz still couldn’t enjoy the night. Kate’s words weighed on him. What did she have to atone for? And what would she have to do to accomplish it?

“I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen you with this much facial hair,” Lewis said to Raz.

Raz scratched the thick hair on his face. He’d only grown out his beard for his part in the mission. “I don’t think I’ve had this much hair since Navy bootcamp.”

“What made you guys decide to join the Navy SEALs, anyway?” Kate asked.

Raz chuckled. “We needed a challenge. And it’s excellent training in the end.”

“More like torture for Rogues,” Sid muttered.

“Oh, yeah?” Kate murmured.

Raz said, “With a beast with a superiority complex, authority figures telling you what to do…not such a good mix. But we needed the experience to help us become a cohesive unit.”

“Fewer dominance feuds,” Lewis said, trailing off with, “Though I’m wondering if we need to send Raz back.”

Kate chuckled along with the others, bathing him in a moment of familiar serenity.

“Do you remember when Raz ate a grenade and shifted to a dragon when it blew up?” Sid asked.

“What?” Kate leaned forward. “Seriously?”

“Stop it, you shit.” Raz kicked sand at him. “We both know the Venezuelan gang members never pulled the pin correctly, and I only jumped on it.”

“I’m trying to make it sound better than you being a fucking suicidal idiot for covering it.”

Kate laughed. “Sounds more like a hero you need to thank.”

Sid grumbled but gave Raz his fist in a thank-you gesture. He bumped it, chest inflating with warmth. He wanted Kate to have this night with his team. She needed to know whose lives were in her hands, because tomorrow he was giving her the reins, as fucking much as it scorched a fearful fire in his gut. The last time he’d trusted someone like this, it had severely backfired.

“Okay. I have to ask,” Kate said, gazing at Caige. “Why do you always Illusion your appearance? Don’t you get tired?”

The air grew tense. Not even his group would bring up that discussion as it was the bane of Caige’s existence.

Caige sighed, his eyes trained on the pit. “Every damn day. But when you can do what I do…most of the dragon community wants you dead.”

Raz’s heart bled both at his admission and at the truth behind it. He met Lewis’s gaze across the flames, and his surprise mirrored Raz’s. Sometimes these outings loosened Caige up, but his opening up spoke of his trust in Kate. Something must have happened between the two of them for him to trust her. As much as this had been about Kate bonding with his team, it was a weight off his shoulders to see how well they also bonded with her.

“What can you do?” Kate asked.