Page 46 of A Spark in the Ash

So, I'm frozen when Jaxon crosses back over to me and presses a kiss to my forehead. And then he's gone, following after the rest of the Gray family.

It's suddenly very quiet in the penthouse. Where before, there was so much tension in the air it was charged, waiting for everything to explode, now, it's just me. It's silent. I'm alone with my shock.

Jaxon went with them.

I always said that he was neither black nor white.

He is the gatekeeper. He is an ultralight.

Jaxon is a good man. But tonight, he might be the one to end the life of his brother’s killer.

As I close the door that they all left open, I know that I'm not going to judge him for this.

I pull my phone out and make the call.

“Jaxon has to go out with his family,” I say when Sybil answers. “It’s the whole crew, so keep your heads down. But tail them, make sure he stays safe.”

“Got it,” she says simply, and hangs up.

Chapter Fourteen

I’m antsy all day.I counter it by getting lunch in the casino. Then I return to the penthouse. Finally, I go to Jaxon’s room to wait.

I paid attention both times he’d entered the code, so now I have access to either space.

Dinnertime comes, and none of the Grays have returned. I order room service, and they don’t even ask what room. Twenty minutes later, a beautiful meal is left at my door.

I eat alone.

Eight o’clock rolls around, and they’re still not back.

I take a shower.

I realize now that I didn’t pack any clothes to bring with us on this excursion. I wander into Jaxon’s closet and find a black t-shirt of his and pull it on.

This isn’t one of those cases where it floods my body. Jaxon is no three-hundred-pound man. It’s loose on my form, but it only covers half of my butt.

I don’t care that half of my black underwear is visible. Heck, I’m alone right now.

With damp hair, I crawl into Jaxon’s bed, and audibly sigh.

Oh, wow. Maybe it’s worth being a crime lord if the job comes with a bed like this. Seriously, his bed is amazing.

I roll over and reach for my phone. I log into our system and pull up the ultralight map.

The two resident ultralights are at the far south end of the Strip. The Kindred are still in Sacramento, so that’s a relief.

I find Jaxon. He’s roughly in the area where AJ got shot. I can’t remember the location exactly, but it’s not a good part of Vegas.

Why is this taking so long?

With an impatient sigh, I set my phone down and pull the covers up over me.

The bed smells like Jaxon. Even though he hasn’t slept in it since we met, it smells like him. A smile pulls at my lips as I roll over, the smell intensifying as I press my cheek into his pillow.

And it calms me. My breathing slows. My anxiety ebbs a bit. I think about our nights at the club.

And finally, I slip into the dark.

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