Total pages in book: 52
Estimated words: 47615 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 238(@200wpm)___ 190(@250wpm)___ 159(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 47615 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 238(@200wpm)___ 190(@250wpm)___ 159(@300wpm)
“Uh, honey?” I didn’t want to ruin the moment, but this needed to be addressed.
“Hmm?” She had her cheek against my shoulder, face pressed against my neck. Her legs were still locked at the ankle around my hips. If we were in bed, I had no doubt she’d be asleep already.
“I, uh, didn’t use a condom.”
She didn’t move. Didn’t stiffen. Didn’t acknowledge me. I was afraid maybe she had gone to sleep. “Ada?”
“I know,” she said in a sing-song voice. “I was waiting to see if I panicked.”
“I… what?”
“I was waiting to see if I panicked at the thought you came inside me. I mean, you told me you had to be tested before you were released.”
“Yes. I’m clean.”
“I’ve got an implant to prevent pregnancy, and my last physical was six months ago. I was clean then and haven’t had a partner since.” She smiled up at me. “At least until now.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t even think.”
“Well, clearly I didn’t either.” Her smile wasn’t dimmed in the least. “And I don’t regret it.”
I leaned in and kissed her, a long, lingering pressing of our lips. I could kiss her all day. Or just hold her in bed. For hours.
“We should probably get dressed,” she eventually whispered against my ear, though she made no move to disentangle herself.
Reality slowly seeped back in. I kissed her once more before carefully setting her down, making sure her feet were steady on the pool floor before releasing her.
We climbed out, water streaming from our bodies onto the concrete. Our discarded clothes clung uncomfortably as we dressed, the fabric sticking to still-wet skin.
Ada wrinkled her nose as she pulled her shirt over her head. “Next time we’ll bring extra clothes,” she laughed as she attempted to wring water from her hair. “Didn’t think this one all the way through.”
“Next time?” I raised an eyebrow, fighting a smile.
She grinned, unrepentant. “Definitely next time.” She reached for my hand. “Come on. Let’s get going. We’ll shower, then see if we can get dirty again.”
As we headed for the door, I cast one last glance around the pool area. Nothing seemed out of place, but now the sexual fog had lifted a little, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was watching us from the shadows.
I tightened my grip on Ada’s hand as we stepped outside, water dripping in places from our clothes as we made our way back toward our building.
The night air felt cool against my wet clothes as we walked across the compound. Ada’s hand was warm in mine. She was talking about some book she’d been reading, her voice soft in the darkness, and for once, I wasn’t scanning shadows. I was just listening to her voice, feeling almost normal. That’s when the explosion hit. A deep, concussive BOOM that shook the ground beneath our feet.
The blast knocked Ada off her feet. I was already moving before my brain had fully processed what was happening. I threw myself over her, covering her body with mine, one arm cradling her head while my other hand reached instinctively for a weapon I wasn’t carrying.
“Stay down,” I growled.
A plume of dust and smoke billowed about fifty yards away. I couldn’t see anything around the area other than where the base of the explosion had been. If there was shrapnel from the blast, it wasn’t immediately identifiable.
“Jag,” Ada’s voice came from beneath me, steady despite everything. “I’m okay. Let me up.”
I eased back slightly but kept my body over hers as a shield. All around us, doors burst open as Kiss of Death members poured out of buildings, most armed, moving to defensive positions around the perimeter. The soft glow of the pool house suddenly felt like a lifetime ago.
“What the hell was that?” Ada whispered, pushing herself to a sitting position. Her wet hair hung in ropes around her face, but her eyes were clear, focused. No sign of panic, though she shook her head as if to clear it. Knight’s sister through and through.
“Dunno,” I muttered, helping her to her feet but keeping her tucked against my side. My gaze never stopped moving, checking rooftops, doorways, shadows. If this was an attack, the explosion could be just the beginning. Or a distraction to draw us out into the open.
A figure emerged from the shadows to our right. I tensed, pushing Ada slightly behind me before recognizing Gunnar’s big frame. The club’s new VP had a rifle slung across his chest and moved with the careful precision of someone who knew exactly what they were doing. His gaze, like mine, never stopped scanning as he approached us.
“You two hurt?” he asked, voice clipped.
I shook my head. “What got hit?”
“Nothing.” Gunnar’s expression was perplexed. “If I were guessing, given the fine powder and really loud boom, I’d say someone threw a canister filled with Tannerite into the yard, then moved off a distance and waited to shoot it until they were ready for it to explode. Knight’s getting a drone ready to look closer at the blast site before anyone gets near it. Fucker loves playin’ with his gadgets.”