Page 98 of Reaper's Rival

“Sleep is a luxury.” And that was downplaying it. “I think I’ve had one good night sleep in over a month. And that was only because I was sleeping with Kade.”

“Well, I’m sure I can order my VP to go to bed with you for an afternoon.”

I smiled. The first real smile in I didn’t know how long. “I think I’ll manage without him.”

“Have you been?”

Had I been managing without Kade? Every day I thought of him. Every day I was reminded of what I lost. Every night I'd find myself dwelling on how I had lost him. All the things I'd take back to get him back. The answer was so easy it just slipped from my lips.

“No.”

Dad smiled at me. “Come on. You're going to bed. You want to eat before or after?”

“I'm really not hungry.” But I would kill for sleep.

Dad held the study door open for me, and immediately I felt the tension in the air. Looks like everyone had been waiting for World War Three, not expecting Dad to be a softie. He gave me a kiss on the head and pushed me in the direction of the stairs.

I was so tired I just let my feet guide me to my room. I was on autopilot. I heard Dad bark at them, asking what they were looking at, when I was halfway up the stairs. I smiled again. No one was expecting Dad to go soft. But from the way I heard him start barking at them and ordering a beer, I knew he wasn't showing them the side I had just seen.

I opened my bedroom door and went to my bed, dropping the packed bags on the floor. It's funny, all I could focus on this morning was running. Now, well, now I didn't know what I was running from.

Was I running from the baby?

From Kade?

From the gang?

I knew the real answer – I was trying to run from my past. I grabbed a long tee shirt from my wardrobe and kicked off my jeans and top and threaded the long top on.

Sleep. I could do that, couldn't I?

My body needed it. It was basically shutting down from exhaustion.

There was a knock on my door and I opened it.

Kade.

“I didn't hear any yelling, so I'm guessing it went alright?” He stood in the doorway with a warm smile on his face.

That smile melted any walls I had up. I nodded my head. “Dad was actually calm about it all. But he has ordered me to sleep.”

“That's why I'm here.” Kade walked in, closing the door behind him and kicking off his boots. My eyes went wide. Dad had been joking about ordering his VP to sleep with me, wasn't he?

“You're not seriously going to spend the afternoon watching me sleep, are you?”

“Couldn't think of a better way to spend my day.”

“Kade, you have more important things to do than watch me sleep!”

“Will you sleep if I'm not here?”

I pursed my lips. Why the hell did he already know the answer to that question?

“No.”

“Then I’m not leaving.”

“I don't expect you to do this.” I put my hands on my hips. “I don't expect anything from you.”

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