Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 138274 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 691(@200wpm)___ 553(@250wpm)___ 461(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 138274 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 691(@200wpm)___ 553(@250wpm)___ 461(@300wpm)
“Really?”
“Well, other than my adoptive mother.”
“I’m honored.” She smiled and tried not to dwell on how happy she was becoming—as if the buzzy rush was a bubble that might burst if she focused on it too much. “And by the way, I really do like it here.”
“I like you here.”
“Aren’t we a matched set.”
“We are.” He brushed her nose. Touched her mouth with his thumb. “Nalla, I didn’t expect this.”
“Neither did I.” She kissed his fingertips one by one. “And man, I’m glad I went to the club instead of stayed home that night.”
“I hadn’t seen you out in a long time. Not that I’m a Shuli type.”
She thought about her love life. “Yeah, I’m not a big partier—or dater. I’ve only had two lovers, and neither lasted long. The first one I tried to like, I really did. But you can’t fake what you feel, even if you’re trying to put yourself out there.”
“Is it okay if I hate him,” came the growl.
Nalla chuckled. “He can’t compete with you. No way.”
“Okay, that’s what I want to hear. And in another twenty minutes, I’ll make sure you remember why.” Nate kissed her mouth. “What about the second one? And FYI, no matter what you say about him, I’m going to hate him also.”
“Duly noted, and that one… I think I’m going to let you hate him. He was just doing it on a bet, as it turned out.”
Nate’s brows got good and low. “A bet?”
“You must have heard it before. Like at Bathe the other night? A bunch of males trying to one-up themselves playing chicken with my father—and using me as the bait.”
That heavy jaw worked like Nate was trying to turn his molars into powder. “I shoulda shut that down instead of just not playing that stupid game.”
“Those males asked you to join in the fun, huh.”
Nate nodded, his face going downright nasty. “Just so we’re clear, that’s not right. You don’t deserve to be some fucked-up trophy.”
“I agree, and when it comes to number two, I was also the goal line. He scored, and then never called me again. I thought it was because I was a bad lay.” Even though the sex she’d just had with the very naked, very tattooed fighter next to her proved that was not the case—as long as she had the right partner. “But the next time I saw him, he was looking ashamed of himself as his buddies all high-fived him and tried to pretend they weren’t. I knew what had gone down then.”
“What’s his name.”
At the nasty rush of words, she shook her head. “I think it’s best for everybody that I keep that to myself. He was young and stupid, so was I. But I learned my lesson and there’s been no one since then—until you.”
Nate ran his forefinger up and down her collarbone. “Yeah, probably better I don’t know who it is.”
“It’s not anybody in Shuli’s group, don’t worry. How about you? Have you ever been in love?”
The mask he sometimes wore came down quick as a blink. “No, I haven’t.”
That’s it? she thought as he didn’t say anything else.
“And as for sex, it’s been a long time for me, too,” he tacked on. “I don’t connect with people real well.”
She had to smile. “You’ve done just fine with me.”
“You’re… different.”
As she looked at his face, and the dark shadow of hair that was coming in over his head… then let her eyes go down, to the skull with its vines and snakes and clouds flowing outward… and lower still, to his heavy, tattooed sex that lay on his thigh, another clarity came to her, and this time, she ached from it in a profound way.
They were starting something here, in this bed, in their hearts, in their lives. There was much ahead, much to meld, but he was right, there was a future to be had for them both, and she wanted it. She wanted to make her own family.
But she couldn’t escape one ringing truth that was going to destroy her in a way.
Loving Nate… was going to cost her her father.
Forever.
* * *
Lying in his bed with Nalla cozied up to his chest, Nate still kept thinking he was going to wake up. The idea that this female was here, with him, in between his Target sheets, under his God-only-knew-from-where blankets, was the kind of thing he was convinced he’d cooked up behind closed lids.
And yet… she was here.
He could do without her questions, though. Not because he was hiding anything—okay, fine. He was hiding shit. But he didn’t know what to say about Rahvyn, on so many levels, especially because there was no way he could talk about that female and not come clean about his plan for leaving the planet.
Which suddenly wasn’t looking like the get-outta-jail card he’d been thinking it was.