Page 7 of Kingston (Angels Halo MC Next Gen #14)

Chapter Seven

Kingston

Grabbing the coffeepot, I groggily poured myself a mug.

Shoving it back on the warmer, I rubbed sleep from my eyes with the palm of my free hand and opened the refrigerator door.

I’d slept like shit on the couch. It was comfortable enough, but my head wouldn’t shut the fuck up so I could get some rest.

All I could think about was Demi and Iris. Where had they been the last few weeks since leaving the Lively house? What were they doing to get by during that time?

And who the hell was the bastard who had caused Demi to fear being touched?

Every time she flinched when I got too close or moved too fast or even changed how I was breathing because something frustrated me, I felt like I’d taken a kick straight to the chest. When I found out who the motherfucker was who had hurt my girl, I was going to be their angel of death.

Pouring cream into my cup, I left the container on the counter in case Demi wanted some. I’d heard her moving around in the bedroom earlier and had finally given up on trying to get any rest. As loudly as my stomach was growling, I figured my new roommates would be hungry too.

Placing the bacon in the oven, I started on the pancake batter.

I was flipping the second batch when I heard little feet slapping against the floor.

Turning my head, I watched as Iris ran into the kitchen.

Her hair was a tangle of wild curls, a small crease in her forehead as she glanced around the room with wide eyes.

Wiping my hands on a towel, I bent down, hoping she would come over to me. With a happy little noise, that crease smoothed out.

Iris didn’t hesitate before launching herself toward me, causing my heart to give a happy squeeze when her tiny arms wrapped around me in a hug. “You!”

Grinning, I returned her hug. She’d mostly slept in my arms at the hospital the night before, but the few times she’d woken up, she’d called me “you” every time. We needed to fix that.

Instead of releasing me from her stranglehold hug, she tightened her arms around my neck. Lifting her, I arranged her in my arms so she didn’t risk getting hurt while I finished cooking breakfast. “Are you hungry, princess?”

She lifted her head from where she’d buried her face in my neck to look at the stack of pancakes already waiting. “Hungry,” she said with a nod.

“Let’s get you fed then, munchkin.” Transferring two pancakes to another plate, I carried it over to the kitchen table and set it down before placing Iris in the chair. “You like syrup?”

“Dip, dip, dip.”

“I gotcha, girlie,” I assured her, pouring a little syrup into a small container that I used for ketchup and other condiments when I had to pack my lunch for club runs.

As soon as everything was in place, Iris picked up one of the pancakes and rolled it up.

Dipping one end into the syrup, she took a small bite.

Going back to the fridge, I extracted a gallon of milk and a pint of orange juice.

Wanting her to have options, I poured one small cup of each and set them on the table close enough for her to reach on her own when she wanted them.

While she ate, I finished the rest of the pancakes.

By the time I heard Demi leaving the bedroom, the bacon was done, and Iris was on her second pancake.

“Morning, babe,” I called without looking at her, wanting to give her a moment to get settled and hoping like hell that I didn’t scare her away.

Having her in my house, under my roof, sleeping in my bed, had soothed something in the beast she’d awakened when I first met her weeks before.

He’d been clawing away at my sanity, desperate to find her, be near her, feel her.

But after I’d seen her flinch away from me so many times, it had caused this newly obsessive monster to get twitchy.

It was a struggle to contain him when all I wanted to do was hold on to her, tie her and her adorable little girl to me in any and every way possible.

Keeping my back to her, I pointed with my spatula. “Coffee’s fresh. Cream’s on the counter, and the sugar is in the cupboard above the pot. We have pancakes and crispy bacon, but would you like eggs as well? I wasn’t sure how you preferred them cooked, so I was waiting before I started on them.”

“Um…” Hearing the hesitation in her voice caused the wildness inside me to whimper.

No, no, no. She should never be scared. For any reason.

Fucking ever. Her ex’s death was going to be slow and painful.

“I’m not very hungry, so I’ll pass on the eggs.

The pancakes and bacon are more than enough. Thank you for cooking.”

Needing to see her, I angled my body so I could watch her cross to the table, already fussing over Iris. “Cuddle bug, you should have waited for Mommy before you left the bedroom.” Sitting down on the chair beside her daughter, Demi reorganized a few things on the table.

“You helped-ed me, Mommy,” Iris told her, sucking syrup off the piece of pancake in her hand before dipping it again.

“Kingston,” I corrected. “Kingston helped you, princess.”

Iris frowned at me. “You.”

“Kingston,” I repeated, even as that obsessed monster living in my head now whispered another name. Daddy. I want to be her daddy. Squashing that down, locking it away— just for now, buddy —I gave the kid a smile. “You can call me Kingston.”

“Kingsting,” she tried to repeat.

“Close enough,” I said with a laugh.

That crease returned to Iris’s forehead. Dropping her food back on her plate, she tugged on her right ear. “Hurts.”

Demi’s face paled, her eyes going straight to me with fear in those pretty eyes. I swallowed hard, my heart giving a squeeze that she’d looked at me when she was frightened. She might have been unconsciously scared of human contact, but at least she trusted me when she was afraid for her baby girl.

Iris’s right ear was the one that had an infection in it so bad her eardrum had ruptured.

That was going to take a while to heal, and the emergency department doctor had explained she would have hearing loss for a while.

I wasn’t sure what would happen if she developed an infection in the left ear and the same thing happened.

Her ability to hear was already cut in half until she healed.

“It’s going to be okay, babe,” I promised, keeping my voice calm while I was fighting my own panic. “We’re going to give the princess her antibiotics and some pain reliever. You’re going to eat, and I’m going to make a few calls.”

“Kingston—”

“Shush,” I said firmly, stopping whatever protest she was about to spout. “Eat. I’ll be right back.”

Walking into the bedroom, I grabbed the bottle of children’s pain reliever and the antibiotics that the ER nurse had given us before Iris was discharged.

Taking them back to the kitchen, I started measuring out the dosages for each.

Iris gave me an adorable glower when I approached her with the oral syringes for her medications.

“No,” she said with a stubborn huff, covering her mouth with both of her hands. “No take.”

“Iris, if you want to feel better, you need to take your meds like a good girl,” Demi said firmly.

Shaking her blond head, Iris glared from me to her mom, then straight back to me.

I’d also seen River struggle with her son, Rocco, to get him to take his medication when he was younger.

It was like watching my cousin wrestle a crocodile, and not even his dad could get him to hold still back then.

I got it, though. The liquid medication tasted bad, and I wouldn’t want to put that shit in my mouth either.

Thinking fast, I grabbed the can of whipped cream out of the fridge. Popping the top, I squirted a little into my mouth. Iris’s eyes grew wide. Smirking, I swallowed the sweet treat, then squirted a little more. “You want some?” I asked.

Still covering her mouth, she nodded, but she was a smart kid. Suspicion darkened her face.

“Here’s the deal. You get one squirt of whipped cream, and then you take the medicine. If you swallow it like a good girl, I’ll give you another little squirt.”

Those intelligent eyes flickered over my face for a long moment before she finally nodded, and she slowly dropped her hands into her lap.

“That’s my girl.” Relieved, I approached her with the can of whipped cream and the two oral syringes. Tipping her head back, she opened her mouth wide. I gave her a tiny taste of the whipped cream. She swallowed it quickly, smacking her lips together as she savored the sweet cream.

Not giving her time to back out of our deal, I gave her the two syringes, letting her dose herself.

Fighting this precious baby the way River used to do with Rocco was not something I wanted to experience.

I refused to give either of my girls a reason to be scared of me, and struggling to force medicine down Iris’s throat would only traumatize us both.

As soon as she pushed the plunger on the second syringe, I had the can of whipped cream at the ready. After she swallowed the pain reliever, I filled her mouth full then put a little on her nose. Laughing, she gulped down her reward, her chubby fingers swiping at her nose.

During the entire process, Demi had sat there practically holding her breath as she watched the exchange between her daughter and me. When I looked at her, she was nibbling on her bottom lip, but I saw the smile she was fighting.

“Does Mommy want a little cream too?” I teased.

“Yes!” Iris cheered, clapping her hands together. “Mommy, eat. Eat.”

Hesitation filled her face, but she still tipped her head back, her mouth opening just enough for me to get the tip of the nozzle inside.

My cock went rock hard. I could picture how hot she would look with my cock shoved into her mouth, those lips wet and swollen from sucking me so fucking greedily.

Squirting her a little cream inside, I pulled back quickly before I did something stupid.

Like grab her and kiss her. That would only scare her, and I would never willingly do anything to make this woman fear me.

But because I was a glutton for pain, I smeared a little of the cream on her bottom lip.

Her tongue licked it away, and I couldn’t mask my groan. Pink filled her cheeks, something hot flashing in her eyes. Lowering her lashes, she tried to hide what she was thinking from me, but I’d already seen it.

She wanted me just as much as I wanted her.

Iris clapped her hands in glee. “It’s good, huh, Mommy? You likeded it?”

“So good,” Demi agreed, a pretty pink flooding her cheeks as she licked her lips. Blinking, she shook her head. “Yeah, Iris. Mommy likes the whipped cream.”

Clearing my throat, I set the can on the table. “You two keep eating, babe. I’m going to make those calls. We’re going to get our princess’s ears better in no time.”

“Kingston.” She caught my hand, her fingers squeezing mine. “Thank you.”

Fuck, I wanted to kiss her so damn badly. Unable to stop myself, I lifted her hand to my lips, needing a tiny taste. “Anything for my girls.”