Page 94 of Heir

Fuck.

* * *

We foundJude’s hand floating in the Sacramento River three days later.

Aunt Jenny blamed Dad for what happened and moved to New Zealand.

She never said, but fuck, I wondered if she blamed me, too.

That would have been fair.

After all, it was my fucking fault.

15

GEMMA

By the timeI woke up from my nap, the sky was dark, but a small lamp was on in the room.

I wondered if Kai hated the dark.

My eyes focused on the lamp. It wasn’t as bright, so it didn’t hurt my eyes.

There was a heavy arm wrapped around my middle, and my back was pressed closely against a hard front.

I took in a deep breath, letting my fingers gently skim his forearms, remembering the realistic feather tattoo there. His tattoos were something I wouldn’t soon forget. I could be in my old age, with dementia, and his ink would be brightly etched in my mind.

I shifted a little in his arms, and he tightened his hold.

I turned and met clear blue eyes. I doubted Kai had taken a nap with me. But he was in bed with me, and I didn’t know how long he had been here.

He was bare-chested. His face was soft, and his hair mussed.

There was something different about his face. Something almost… sad.

I wouldn’t have noticed it if it wasn’t such a deviation from his normal expression.

“Are you okay?” I asked, my voice still tinged with sleep.

He blinked, and the expression was gone. “Yeah, pretty girl. I’m okay.”

I wasn’t sure I believed him, but… I could be wrong. After all, I wasn’t the best at noticing things like that.

I ran my hand over his jaw, loving the way the stubble tickled my skin.

He focused his gaze on my lips. He looked like he wanted to kiss me again, and part of me wished he would.

Then I remembered I had just woken up from a nap, and I wondered if my breath stank.

I wiggled against him.

“Where are you going, pretty girl?” he asked.

“Bathroom,” I muttered, moving out from under his arms.

I tried to pull the blanket along with me. He gripped it tightly. “What are you doing?”

It was hard to miss the amusement in his voice.

---