Page 102 of House of Crimson Cloak and Silver Teeth

I stop that thought before it goes anywhere dangerous.

“Rainer himself?” I ask instead. “What’s he like?”

“Drunk, usually. But he can hold conversations and make decisions even three bottles deep.” Shade pours wine into the glasses Kitty’s arranged. “He cares about his nieces very much. Talks about them constantly. Shows me paintings of them as children and tells me stories about their mother.”

Shade refills our glasses. “He mentioned your employer, Wolf. Lord Rainer says the young Lord Clayborne is dangerous.”

“Garrett’s not—” I stop, realizing too late that I’m defending him.

Kitty’s eyes go wide.

“Wow… wait. What? Garrett?” she repeats, grinning like a cat who’s found the cream. “First name basis with the golden prince? My, my.”

I immediately regret opening my mouth.

She leans forward, eyes sparkling with mischief. “Spill. What’s he really like? And I want details. Is he as perfect as everyone says?”

I think about Garrett in the dungeon covered in blood. Garrett laughing in the tavern with village folk. Garrett’s hand on my knee checking my scars. Garrett breaking in my arms after killing five knights.

“He’s complicated,” I settle on carefully.

“Complicated enough that his father hired a Grimsbane for his protection?” Shade observes quietly.

“He must really love his son,” Kitty mutters, attacking the roasted fowl. She tears off a piece of meat with her fingers, eschewing the fancy utensils Shade brought. “Gods, this is good. I haven’t eaten this well since... ever, actually.”

I smile. Her kill orders usually pay well but not ‘gold-leaf pastry’ well. The fae wine is extraordinary, smooth and rich with hints of cherry and oak.

“How’s your assignment going?” Shade asks after Kitty washes her hands in the basin near the wall.

“Finished. Clean and quiet.” She examines her nails like they’re fascinating. “Bought me a month free of the brothel.”

“Just a month?” I ask before I can stop myself.

“My rates are high. Freedom is expensive.” Her voice stays light, but I hear the edge underneath. The carefully controlled anger.

She can’t fail. Not ever. One mistake, one missed contract, she’s back in silk and chains serving people who think they own her.

“Wolf?” Kitty’s voice pulls me back to the present. “You alive in there?”

I blink, focusing on her concerned face. “Yeah. Just... remembering how we first met.”

“You still have the scars,” Kitty says, looking at Shade.

“Yeah,” he mutters.

“They remind me that you’re an idiot,” she quickly says, but there’s warmth in it.

She crosses to where Shade sits and wraps her arms around his neck. “Thank you. For that night. For every night since. For giving me a different kind of life.”

Shade tilts his head, confused.

She stops, something vulnerable crossing her face. “You’re the first person who ever saw me as more than something to use.”

Kitty kisses his cheek, quick and soft. I’ve watched her do this dance many times. She’s been dropping hints to Shade for years, touching his arm whenever she passes. Sometimes she steals his clothes and pretends it’s an accident. She lights up whenever he walks into a room.

Shade notices none of it.

Or maybe he notices and simply doesn’t understand what he’s seeing.