Page 103 of King

“Is she ever gonna wake up again?” Joey’s voice broke into his thoughts as if he had been thinking the same exact thing.

King glanced at him, noting the way he avoided looking at him directly instead focusing on the broom, pushing dust around instead of actually sweeping.

“Daniel said this is normal,” King replied, tossing more debris out the door.

“Nothing about going to Hell is normal.” Joey snorted, shaking his head.

King sighed, leaning against the doorframe. Kid had a point. “It wasn’t Hell...Hell.”

Joey cocked his eyebrow. “Hell...Hell?”

“It was a Realm of Hell.” King tried to explain but was obviously sucking at it.

“And you guys were gone for a long time,” Joey continued, pausing his sweeping to frown at him. “But you tell me you were only gone for a few hours. Make that make sense.”

King ran a hand down his face. Here we go.

“Time works differently in the Realm. An hour down there is like a week up here,” he explained, but Joey just turned to look at him with an expression that screamed,try again, asshole.

“I know that much. Mira and Kira explained that to me.” Joey threw his arms out. “I mean, how is that even possible? The more I ask, the less it makes sense.”

King let out a short laugh. “Yeah, it’s pretty fucked up.”

“All the Warriors came in all bloody,” Joey went on, shaking his head. “Steve said Daniel took out a whole field of mutant, ugly-as-fuck creatures that would eat your face off. And the ones that didn’t die, you guys kicked their asses and sent them back to Hell.” He paused. “I thought you were already in Hell, so yeah, that didn’t make sense either. But with your expert explanation I now understand you weren’t in Hell...Hell. Steve gets pretty animated when he’s telling stuff.”

King snorted. “Yeah, that sounds about right. And Steve’s not wrong, they were ugly as fuck.” Then he gave Joey a sideways glare. “And don’t be a smartass.”

Joey let out a short laugh. “Steve’s a funny guy.”

“That he is.” The sudden blare of King’s phone alarm cut through the quiet. He pulled it from his pocket, checking the notification. Daniel. He’d called earlier, saying he wanted to stop by. “Hey, go let Daniel in, would ya?”

“Yep.” Joey dropped the broom and headed for the front door.

"What happened to the kitchen?" Amara’s voice had King turning from the pile of broken table legs and shattered wood. She stood just inside the kitchen, her frown deepening as she took in the destruction.

Damn. Her hair was a messy halo around her face, her oversized flannel shirt hanging loose over cutoff shorts that left her curvy legs bare. Even disheveled, she was the most beautiful damn thing he’d ever seen. He was one lucky son of a bitch.

“Ah,” King cleared his throat, his eyes flicking around the room like the damage might magically disappear. Yeah, he hadn’t exactly brought her on a tour of the place when they got home.He’d taken her straight upstairs, making sure she ate and slept, barely leaving her side. She hadn’t come down once until now.

“You know what?” She held up a hand before he could answer. “Don’t want to know.”

King grinned, but it vanished the second she reached for the broom Joey had left leaning against the wall to help. The fuck she was. His gaze dropped to her bare feet.

Without thinking, he lunged forward, grabbing the broom with one hand and lifting her off the damn ground with the other.

“Oh my God, King!” she yelped, hands flying to his shoulders as he carried her to one of the stools. “Put me down!”

“I made the mess, I’ll clean the mess. There’s wood splinters and glass on the floor.” He set her down, stepping back only when he was sure she wouldn’t try to get up again.

Amara huffed, but her gaze flicked to the gaping hole in the wall near the counter. “And fix the mess?” she added softly.

King chuckled, leaning in to press a quick, lingering kiss to her lips. “Yes, and fix the mess.”

Amara smiled against his mouth, then pulled back with a look that had him narrowing his eyes. She was up to something. “I’m kidding,” she said, grinning. “I’ll go get my shoes on and help. All that sleep I’ve had I feel ready to do something. I’m tired of laying around.”

King studied her, his grin slipping just a little. “You feel okay?”

The question burned in his throat. He knew it would never stop. The worry. The fear. That deep, gnawing need to make sure she was safe.

---