Page 50 of We The Depraved

Carefully, I wrap up in a warm blanket. The coldness in the air is licking at the sweat all over my body. Her phone goes landing with a thump on the floor of the tent but she doesn’t care. Instead, she does something I never thought she would do.

Sage snuggles in closer to me and almost seems to mew.

“That was so fucking good,” she murmurs.

I chuckle, and lay a kiss on her head. “Yeah, I’m getting old though. My hamstring wanted to give the fuck out three pumps in.”

“God,” she says. “How old are you?”

“Not old enough to be your daddy, but old enough to know better,” he says.

I nearly wince at mentioning her father.

She doesn’t let it faze her.

“And what do you know better, Niki?” she says.

Her fingers are threading themselves over my chest, and the wiry hairs there. The moment she discovers the owl tattoo, I know. Her breath hitches and her fingers trace over it.

I capture her hand.

“Never noticed this before,” she angles her head to stare me in the eyes.

Sage wants the story on the tattoo. My brothers and I all have an owl tattoo brazenly etched into our skin.

“Sleep, Sage.”

She huffs. “Tell me.”

“Nothing to tell,” I assure her.

“It’s sinister looking.”

It’s my turn to huff. “It’s something to remind us of Russia, Kitten.”

“Like a blood oath or some shit?”

“Exactly, now rest.”

A yawn escapes her lips. Eventually, everything goes quiet and for the first time in a long time, I fall asleep with a woman in my arms. The smell of Sage surrounds me offering some sort of comfort.

CHAPTER15

Sage

The ringing had filled my ears and for a few moments I had thought I was dreaming. My fingers were dancing out into the chilly air of the tent searching but I couldn’t find my phone. Finally, I sat up untangling myself from Niki Safaryan. He was softly snoring away, and in the light from the still glowing lanterns, he looked a little less sinister and a little more handsome.

The ringing restarted and finally I dared to get out of bed.

It was five a.m. and Silver was calling.

“Bitch, what?”

“You need to get here,” she said.

“Where? The club?”

“No, your house. It’s on fire.”