Page 171 of Cain

I can’t lie; it looks like some kind of macho parade. One lean and brooding, the other broad and ass-smug as fuck. Two very loud and dramatic fuckers I’d love to toss into a river and drown.

I step back and let them continue their stupid brawl, glancing at Katerina. She’s still quiet. Changed.

The church behind us explodes, but I don’t turn to look. I see it reflected in her frost-hued eyes as they flare orange with sparks. Police sirens echo through the silence, and that’s when we know it’s our time to bail.

“So.” I scratch my brow. “This was fun.”

“Yeah, I mean, maybe we can do it again one day.” Adam rubs the nape of his neck, his brown eyes searching the ground.

“Don’t look at me. I have a lot to do after I confess my sins.”

I chuckle and walk towards my bike, pulling Katerina behind me. I grab her by the waist, lift her, and place her on the pillion. After ensuring my helmet is secure on her, I climb on and start the engine.

Her arms circle my body and hold me tightly.

Adam and Judas are still there, looking at me like I’m about to ride off with the princess right before my horse rears like in a shitty Western.

I bring my fingers to my temple in a salute. They mirror my movement, both pressing their lips together.

“Until next time, boys.”

I twist the throttle and ride off.

We didn’t go home right away.We went to the beach, still stained and shaking, and walked straight into the water. The salt burned where the blood had dried, but we didn’t care. We fucked in the sea, out on the shore, in the sea again, and so on. Her nails dug into my backso roughly that blood ran from the scratches, and her teeth on my neck left hickeys like we were fucking teens.

But after all that, and while I was fucking her on the shore, something changed. I slowed down. I looked at her differently. I kissed her in a way I hadn’t kissed her before. I moved inside her like it meant something else. And for a minute or two, I swear she was there with me. I made love to her. Slow fucking love that eats you alive and consumes your body and soul.

And that’s what fucked me up.

Because that was the only part that wasn’t about control. That moment when she let me in was real.

She didn’t say a word, but I saw it in her eyes.

Then, we returned home, tossed our clothes in the washer like it was a typical day, took a shower, fucked in it again, and crashed on the couch.

Grayson had indeed cleaned up the carnage. He called in a few of his so-called “pest control” friends. You know, the ones who don’t ask questions and don’t leave traces. Then he disappeared into his bedroom to stitch himself up without a word.

The man knows how to survive hell and how to make it feel routine.

“It’s so quiet,” she whispers, leaning into my arms.

“You know I hate unnecessary chit-chat,” I say with a smirk, smoke curling from my lips. “So, the massacre did me a favor. They finally shut the fuck up.”

Her fingertips trail across my torso. “Don’t you think you were a bit too much, though?”

“Nope. I was too gentle.”

She exhales through her nostrils, trying to come up with something to answer, but she knows I’m right.

“And now what? You need new staff.”

I inhale my cigarette. “That’s the last thing I care about.”

“What else?”

The doorbell goes off. Once. Twice. Persistently, pissing me off.

Katerina jumps in the air. I guess after everything that happened not so long ago, she’s right to be cautious and alert.