Page 22 of Romancing His Heart

When she’s steady and facing me, she shouts, “You scared the shit out of me, you asshole.”

“Me? I’m not the one creeping around bedrooms at midnight.”What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her.“What the hell are you doing in that chair?” Preston’s words about not sleeping alone crash into me as I scan her face. Even in the dark, her green eyes sparkle.

“I thought I heard you, ah, make a noise, so I thought I’d sleep in here in case you had a seizure or something.” Rubbing her eyes, I can tell they’ve adjusted to the dark, but they dart around the room, anyway.

“And you plan to sleep sitting up in that chair?” I ask skeptically.

“Of course. Where do you think I’ve slept for the last couple of weeks?” She sounds a little pissed off, and I guess I would too if I had spent weeks sleeping in a chair.

“Red— What? You slept there every night?”

“Well, most nights,” she says into her blankets.

“Where else did you sleep?”

“Um …”

“Where, Red?” Her hesitancy has me smiling, and for the life of me, I can’t figure out why I like her so much.

“The first two nights, you wouldn’t stay calm unless I was right next to you. Preston and Ash had to slide in to take my place when I had to pee.” Warily, she glances up through her lashes as if nervous about my response.

The memory of vanilla enters my conscious, and I vaguely remember pulling her into my side.

“What do you remember?” she asks, crossing her legs in the chair and leaning forward, waiting for my secret.

“What makes you think I remembered something?”

In slow motion, she closes the distance between us. Using the tip of her finger, she smooths the space between my eyebrows.

“You get the tiniest line, right here,” she whispers, her breath tickling the scruff that’s grown along my jaw. “Your face is otherwise neutral, but this one line appears when something doesn’t sit right with you. I saw it the first night when you didn’t know who I was. As soon as I mentioned Preston’s name, it formed. I saw it again when you were with Emory. You remembered something, right?”

As if realizing she is still cradling my face in a dark room while I lie in bed, she pulls back suddenly. The movement pushes a wave of vanilla my way.

She smells like vanilla and summer rain.

“Yeah, but nothing useful,” I admit. Running a hand through my hair roughly, I slide to the other side of the bed and pull open the blankets. “Come on, you’re not sleeping in that chair, and I’m sure as hell not sleeping on the couch. We can be adults about this.”

“Adults, huh? I’ve never been accused of that before.” Cheekily, she smiles but jumps into bed and adjusts the blankets. With her back to me, I almost miss the whispered, “Thanks, Loki.”

* * *

I lastedtwenty-four hours before I had to go behind Emory’s back. I’ve spent too many years with life or death as my only constants. I don’t have time to wait until Ifeelbetter. If there’s a threat, I’m figuring it out. Now.

“She’s going to kill you. You know that, right? And I’ll be next,” Red mutters as we exit the elevator into the penthouse where Preston and Emory live.

“I’m not worried, Red,” I say with a grin that falters when I see Emory marching straight for me.

“I told you,” Sloane whispers before spinning in place and taking off toward the kitchen.

“Loki Kane. What did I tell you? Wait, is something wrong?” Emory is at my side and already preparing to examine me.

“No, sorry. Everything’s fine. I’m fine. I have to talk with Ash and Seth. I’m sorry, this can’t wait, not with my job and what I do.”

“Loki—”

“Ems, he won’t give in on this, and he’s right. If he’s in danger, just sitting here could put us all in danger,” Ashton says, coming up behind me.

Throwing her head back, she stares at the ceiling for a long time before speaking. I chance a sideways glance at Ash, and he just shrugs. Apparently, neither of us dare to talk until she’s made some sort of move.