Page 98 of Fractured Future

“You still take sugar?” Warner asks, keeping his tone neutral.

“Uh, no. Black is fine.”

“Sweet enough as you are?”

“You know it,” I reply sarcastically.

Wincing at the awkward silence while he fixes my coffee, I search for the right words. I feel far guiltier for scaring Warner than anyone else. He risked himself to come after me, diving straight into enemy territory.

After all this time, he’s still loyal to a fault. That sweet boy who played secret agents and astronauts with me grew into a devoted man who would do anything for those he cares about. Then I went ahead and scared the shit out of him.

“Look,” I eventually break the silence. “While I’m not sorry for attempting to communicate with Blaine, I am sorry that I worried you. It was unfair and careless.”

Palm braced on the counter, he slides my coffee over to me. “Worried me?”

“Erm… terrified you? Made you prematurely age? Dragged you into the middle of nowhere to rescue me? Shall I list more?”

“Sure. Keep going.”

I fight a smile. “Nah, I think you get the picture.”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Warner drags in a breath. “I don’t know whether to yell at you for taking such a risk or thank you for trying to corner Blaine.”

“I’ll be here when you figure it out.” I gratefully accept the steaming mug then sip. “Take your time.”

“You’re a pain in my ass.”

“But you still love me, right?”

Warner shakes his head in mock-outrage. “Damn you, Em.”

Rounding the corner, he yanks me into a hard, fast hug. Luckily, I’ve placed the coffee back down so I don’t end up spilling the steaming liquid all over him.

Since we reach the same height, I can tuck my face into his collarbone. A fragrant forest welcomes me, the invisible arms of an ever-present woodland pulling me into its safety.

“Don’t scare me like that again.”

“Sorry?” I hedge.

“You’re not. So don’t lie.”

While Warner’s familiar heat steadies me, it also soothes the constant undercurrent of fear and anxiety that I’ve been keeping buried. Luckily for me, he doesn’t need to know how scared I am to show me compassion.

“I have enough grey hairs without you making things worse,” he mumbles against my hair. “That’s why you’re going to train with us.”

My head lifts so I can peer into his bottomless baby blues. “Are you serious?”

“I want to destroy the business model that allows people like you to get hurt. What do you want?”

“The same.”

His frame vibrates with a long exhale. “Then help me do it.”

When he tucks an auburn strand behind my ear, I feel my entire body clench in a way it never has around him before. Not with Warner. The unexpected sizzle of tension is immediate and intense.

His fingers brush the outer edge of my earlobe then move to trace my cheek. With each subtle stroke, fiery pinpricks explode in their wake.

“If keeping you safe means teaching you to use all that fighting power… then so be it.” He seems to catch himself, quickly lowering his hand. “That’s what we’ll do.”