Setting my glass down, I cupped my chin thoughtfully. “I think I have the perfect idea.” It was the right combination of practical and exciting, something Kite and I hadn't done in awhile.
It'd also let her shake her muscles out. Considering how much better we felt after our spar, Marina could benefit from a similar situation.
All that lovely girl had to do was say yes.
So far, we were good at getting her to agree to our ideas.
- Chapter 25 -
Marina
––––––––
In the bathroom mirror, I ran my fingers over my neck. Both sides advertised the scars of my bad decisions.
One faded bruise from Kite.
One vibrant set of indents from Jacob.
Together, these killers had marked me. I belonged to them.
It was a bizarre notion. My head battled with my heart, making my thoughts struggle to come to life. What we'd done... it shouldn't have meant anything. It was just sex.
Scorching, wild, addicting sex.
Fuck.
Gripping the sink, I ran the water and splashed myself. I'd done this four times already. I'd been in the bathroom since Kite had gone to his bedroom, changed clothes, and slipped out the front door with a brisk goodbye.
His exit had done two things. One, it had allowed me to try and think about what we'd all done last night. And two...
It had made me painfully aware of his absence.
Right in my chest, a hollow ache had begun. Kite had sat with me before the sun had fully risen, listened to me spill my raw terror as my eyes dripped with tears. He'd comforted me in a way I didn't think was possible.
And, if he was telling the truth, he'd promised more of that in the future.
The idea that he meant it, that he'd let me sleep near him, not caring about my night terrors or my stupid whimpers, it had me losing balance.
I walked on floating feet, numb in my body because my mind was using everything I had to make sense of this situation.
Kite was a murderer. His best friend was no different.
How had I let them break me down and slip inside of me?
Thinking of their hands, their steamy whispers, had me shivering. I didn't like the part of me they were building. It was soft, and fragile, and reckless. It made me want to seek them out. To feel their arms and never let go.
Smacking myself, I watched the red mark bloom. If I'm not crazy already, I'm going to snap before this is over.
Over. What a thought.
We still hadn't found the man I was hunting. His photo was locked away in my purse, I wished capturing him was just as easy.
Again, I felt that flicker of doubt. You're going to get hurt, I told myself. They're tricking you. Last night meant nothing. You were just a plaything for them.
But hadn't it been amazing?
“Stop,” I said to no one. I certainly wasn't listening, apparently. Glaring at my reflection, I wiped the water away and left the bathroom. Alone as I was, I found myself wandering aimlessly.
Kite had carved his name in my skull. My desire to be close to him took me to his empty room. Standing on the cusp, I peered inside. He'd left the lights on, the sign of a man who didn't care about an electricity bill.
His floor was still cluttered, but to my baffling relief, I didn't see those fucking black panties. I didn't ever ask who they'd belonged to. I never wanted to know.
You're being possessive of a man who's sharing you with his friend, I scolded myself. The words did nothing. I'd already come to terms with the agreement.
Last night, beyond a flicker of competitiveness and greed, I hadn't sensed that either of them was frustrated with the situation. There'd been no obvious jealousy.
It was almost too good to be true.
Lord, I wanted it to be true.
Stepping around the bed, I smiled slyly. Bending down, settling on the springs, I pushed my cheek into the pillows. They smelled just like Kite; that heady, feral scent that left me tingling.
Rocking on the blankets, amused by my own actions, I stretched my arms out. I made a snow angel, then pretended to be a kitten high on catnip. I might as well have been an animal, the way I was behaving.
Breathing through my nose, I rolled on my belly and kicked a pillow off accidentally. Kite was messy, but I didn't want him to know I'd been doing this. I didn't need to give him more ammo to use against me, he turned me into butter easily enough.
Reaching down to grab the pillow, my eyes caught something near my cheek. Maybe I was perceptive—they certainly kept saying as much—or maybe it was luck. I didn't care to debate the why.
Under my nose, a secret had been revealed.
The crack that ran up the side of his bed frame was thin, but obvious if you were looking. I knew about hidden things, I'd adored treasure maps and puzzles as a kid. Hide and seek, too, I reminded myself bitterly.
Kneeling on the rug, I tugged at the wood with my nails. It took a few seconds, then the panel slid off. Crude, but effective. The insides made my heart pulse.
Closing my fingers on the Ruger, then the stacks of cash, I shook my head. If I was honest, I'd noticed he'd retrieved his gun from here several times, as well as the money for my rent.