Page 92 of Vengeance and Vipers

I nod. ‘It’s a hellhole, but it is a supe prison. It’s not supposed to be a vacation.’

‘I didn’t even know it existed until the guys were sent there. I didn’t grow up around supes. But you said before that you’ve been in the supe world a long time?’

‘Yeah,’ I say without bitterness. ‘I grew up in Supeland pretty much the only way a human can grow up around supes. Fast.’

‘Yeah, their world is a different one, that’s for sure.’

I relax, liking that she doesn’t ask me about the specifics. Some people are so nosy, but Jane isn’t at all.

She shifts in her chair with a groan.

‘Still hating pregnancy?’ I ask.

She grimaces. ‘With a passion! Everyone always says what a magical time it is and how you’ll glow and blah blah blah.’ She waves a hand. ‘One day, you’ll get what I mean.’

Something about Jane’s artlessness makes me smile. ‘Actually, I won’t.’

‘No?’ She looks unconvinced.

‘I was in an accident when I was a kid. Got a piece of shrapnel lodged in my gut. Scar tissue.’

‘Shit. I’m sorry.’ She grimaces. ‘I didn’t realize.’

‘It’s ok.’

‘No,’ she mutters. ‘It’s not. I suck at reading people, and I put my foot in my mouth all the time. I’m so sorry.’

I give her a smile and shrug. ‘It’s really fine. I’ve known it wasn’t going to be possible for me all my life, so it’s not a big deal. I’m happy for you. Are you excited for the birth?’

She quirks a brow. ‘I’m excited to have a baby,’ she corrects. ‘For the actual birth part, I’ve already told Theo I want all the drugs and whatever else he can do!’

‘Will he listen to you?’

‘He fucking better!’ she laughs.

‘Do you like being their mate?’ I ask abruptly and then hope she doesn’t think I’m trying to be rude.

‘Yeah,’ she says without hesitation. ‘They’re a little rough around the edges sometimes, but they love me, and I love them.’

‘But … you’re human.’ That is the only thing I can think to say.

She doesn’t say anything for a minute, and I get the impression she’s not sure what I’m saying.

‘I mean … actually, I don’t know what I mean.’

‘We started off a little rocky, but we’ve been through a lot together. I trust them,’ she says. ‘They’re mine, and I’m theirs, and the baby is ours.’

She grins at me. ‘Oh, you thought I was a human surrogate, didn’t you?’

I nod hesitantly. ‘I’m sorry, I—’

‘No, it’s ok, I get it. Things are changing, but most humans are still contracted to supes. I started out that way.’ She shakes her head as she chuckles. ‘Look, I gotta go. My guys are waiting for me, but don’t worry, I don’t need a woman’s shelter or anything like that.’

She gives me a wink, and I swear I see her eyes change, but it happens so fast I’m not surewhatI saw. She leaves quickly, closing the door behind her, and I sit back in the chair, wondering about Jane’s relationship with the Iron I’s. I mean, it’s none of my business, and she’s not unhappy. It’s clear she doesn’t need rescuing from the big, bad monsters.

I hear the door again, and this time it’s Maddox. He’s wearing a black tux, and though I tell my eyes to stop undressing him, they ignore me completely. I remember how he looked when he came out of the lake, the broadness of his shoulders, the rippling muscles. The tattoo. He looked powerful and predatorial then, but somehow, in the suit, he looks even more so.

I don’t make a sound, not letting him know I’m there so I can observe him freely for a little while. He takes a link key out of his jacket and looks at it for a moment before he slips it back into his pocket. Then, he checks his phone and goes to the windows to look out at the dark, wet terrace.