Total pages in book: 158
Estimated words: 144908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 725(@200wpm)___ 580(@250wpm)___ 483(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 725(@200wpm)___ 580(@250wpm)___ 483(@300wpm)
“My mother.”
The whisper was so soft that even in the silence of the room, Master nearly missed the admission. He stood facing the man like an idiot, without a word to say, his mind blank, unable to comprehend what that even meant. Ambrielle slipped her hand up his back, under his jacket, along his shirt, fingers bunching, making that fist she did in the small of his back, connecting them.
“Maybe it would be a good idea if Reese came into the other room, where he’d be more comfortable, and had some coffee or tea and told Tyra and you about his mother.” Ambrie’s voice was gentle but carried an authority, as if she was part of Master and Ink’s team.
Reese nodded. “Yeah. I need to get out of this room. I can’t breathe in here.”
Master immediately stepped out of the way. Tyra still leaned against the doorjamb, her gaze jumping to her husband’s face. As he approached her, he hesitated and then swept his arm around her. She curled into him immediately and they went to the sofa together, where she settled very close.
Master breathed a sigh of relief. “Thanks, princess. I was caught off guard.” He bent down and brushed a kiss on top of her head.
Ink came up behind them. “I’ll help Ambrie make coffee. I know where everything is. Maybe open the front door, but get that gun out of here first. I’ve got a bad feeling about that gun. If he gets raided and they find that, he’s in trouble.”
Master nodded and went back to Reese and Tyra. “You two lovebirds relax for a minute. Ink and Ambrie are taking care of things in the kitchen. Who knows, they might be inclined to clean up a bit in the den if you’re making up in here when they come back. I’m going to see to it that if you get visitors looking to find anything wrong, nothing can possibly be found. It will take a few minutes, so just relax. Do you want the door left open for air? It’s pretty cool outside this time of night.”
Ink paused in the doorway of the kitchen, turning to look back at him, a puzzled look flitting across his face, making Master aware he was talking too much. Making a damn fool of himself. That was why he preferred not to talk. Never to engage. Not to ever be part of this kind of shit. He was a fixer, not a soother. He didn’t do what Ink did. Ink saved people. Master cut them down. He turned and shoved open the door, escaping into the night.
Cool night air hit his face. Soft drops of rain felt good on his skin. What the fuck was he thinking marrying a woman? A good woman at that. A woman with a father and mother who actually loved her? She knew about family. She knew about love. She knew about mothers. What they were like. What they were supposed to be to a child.
He walked to the truck, set the gun out and took pictures of it from every angle and sent them to Code, zooming in to ensure he was able to get any markings he could. He carefully broke it down and then made his way into the forest with long strides. His property was large, nearly forty acres, surrounded by close to a thousand acres of state forest land. He needed the time away from everyone to sort out his emotions.
Shit. He was stone. He didn’t have emotions. He didn’t let things shake him. What the fuck was wrong with him? So, Reese had mommy issues. Ink could deal with that problem. That was Ink’s wheelhouse. He dug a hole deep in the roots of a pine tree and buried the first small piece of the gun he’d broken up. He was careful to cover the ground with pine needles and vegetation, so it looked as if it had never been disturbed.
He heard her, although she walked softly. It was just that he would always be aware of her. Always. Like the photograph of her he’d been inexplicably drawn to. There was no explanation, but he knew irrevocably he belonged to Ambrielle Moore Vasiliev.
“Kir?”
He closed his eyes. That voice. The way she said his name. “Right here, princess. I ought to spank your ass for coming out here in the rain barefoot.” His voice, that low register, managed to sound like a growl. Annoyed even, when he wanted to gather her into his arms. It didn’t work. He should have known.
She laughed softly and came right to him, putting her hand on his hip. “My feet are all muddy now. I should spank your ass for getting out of my sight. We had a deal. In any case, I could tell you were upset.”