Page 5 of Painless
“Oh, I careimmensely,” he played along, breath hitching at my touch. “Do you know about the law of mandatory morning blowjobs?”
“Who came up with that bullshit?” I laughed.
“A very wise lawmaker.” He pulled me back to him when I tried to roll away, tickling my sides until I was breathless.
“Really, though,” I panted. “Did they get married before or after the Collapse?”
Divorcewasmade illegal in some jurisdictions before the Collapse. But afterward, because no recognized government bodies remained, marriages weren’t legally binding. A couple couldn’t get divorced if they weren’t married in the first place.
“After,” Reaper admitted. I knew he was following my logic. “I’ll think about what you’re saying, sugar, but I’m not sure separating them is the best option. You have to realize being with him protects her, too. No one here will hurt her, but if some of the guys see that she’s free, they’ll try what they can with her. It’ll be harmless, but may be more trouble than she needs.”
“That’s true,” I sighed. “Plus, there’s no guarantee she’ll actually want to leave him if it comes down to it.”
He stroked a finger down my cheek before kissing me there. “If she or the boys were in danger, there would be no question of stepping in and getting them away from him. I mean that.”
“I know you do.” My palm cupped his handsome face. I never got tired of looking at him. “Thank you for telling me that.”
A few more kisses and protests later, I finally rolled out of bed and started getting dressed. Freyja stopped playing with Hades and darted over to me to rub my ankles. Much like the other two animals with their humans, she followed me everywhere. Right after finding her, I tried locking her in the bedroom to no avail. Eventually I just gave up.
She was like a furry potato, with legs she could barely use, yet she still figured out how to turn doorknobs and squeeze through tiny gaps. No matter what, she wanted to be at my side. At first I could fit her in the pocket of my scrubs, but she was getting too big for them already. Balancing on my shoulders was a work in progress. She was daring and adventurous, butdamnthose little claws were sharp, and she was still getting the hang of balancing.
So, for the most part, she was happy to follow me down the street.
“What do you have going on today?” I asked Reaper as I pulled a brush through my hair.
“Besides admiring your ass from right here?” he grinned. “The scouting team is coming back today. I hope we get some good fuckin’ news.”
“Has Gunner seen anything about the drone?”
“No,” he bit out, his jaw working with annoyance. “Even with Horus’s eyes, he hasn’t seen a damn thing.”
While most of the club was at the traveling market, Shadow and a skeleton crew stayed back to guard Sheol. Their day was far less eventful than ours, except for Shadow shooting down a drone with a camera that flew dangerously close to the club.
The drone had to be controlled from a relatively close location, so Reaper sent teams out to comb the surrounding desert in search of whoever sent it out. Gunner also used his ability to see through Horus to scout high cliffs, mountains, and any other places motorcycles couldn’t reach. The fact that he didn’t find anything after two weeks didn’t bode well.
I leaned over the bed to kiss Reaper again for reassurance. “Your guys are the best. They’ll find something. And if they don’t, it means there wasn’t anything to find.”
“God, I hope you’re right, sugar,” he sighed. “I hate feeling like I’ve got Tash’s fucking eyeballs looming over my home.”
“I know.” I kissed his forehead. “I also know what kind of president you are. You’ll find who’s out there and make them regret ever playing with stupid toy planes.”
He laughed and leaned his forehead against mine. “Damn, I fuckin’ love you.” His voice grew low and growly. His hands reached for me, and I stopped them with mine.
“I love you too, but I really have to go.” Our lips collided for one finalfinaltime. “I’ll come back here tonight so you can tell me how it went.”
“Bring Jandro with you.” He finally released me and delivered a walloping smack on my ass. Freyja arched and hissed at the loud noise. “Oh, you calm down, rodent,” he scolded her. “Your human likes it. You’ll see.”
“Hm, some times more than others,” I muttered, rubbing the sting on my right cheek. “Okay, I’ll see you tonight.”
“Ah, sugar.”
“Yeah?” I spun around in the doorway to find Reaper sitting at the edge of the bed.
He looked thoughtful. Maybe even nervous, as his gaze slid to the walk-in closet.
“Uh, nothing.” He shot me a sheepish grin. “I’ll tell you later. I hope everything goes well with Tessa.”
I hesitated. “You sure?”
