Page 41 of Harmless
“Oh yes, I love bridal make up! I’ve never done a look on a real bride before, just practiced, but I’d enjoy that very much.”
“My twin brother is getting married in six months. And I’m pretty sure his bride doesn’t have a makeup artist for the wedding yet. Would you be interested?”
Paige’s mouth dropped open with nothing coming out for a long while. “You mean that?”
“Of course I do. I’ll have to check with Lily, but I don’t see her saying no. It’d be one less task for her to do.”
“Oh my God, I would be honored! Please yes, check with her first, and if she’s already found someone, that’s fine. But if not, I would be thrilled to.”
“I’ll give her a call later and let you know.” I squeezed her shoulder as I got up for a second cup of coffee.
Carter was right on my heels, leaning in close to speak quietly. “Thought you should know that Nella has been refusing food and water since we arrived. Anything you want done about it?”
“No.” I refilled my cup and stirred in some sugar. “Let that bitch starve if she wants to.”
“Roger the fuck that,” he answered, amusement lighting up his eyes.
“How’s everyone else?” I turned my back to the table, keeping my voice low. “Is there any friction or is everyone getting along?”
“Getting along pretty good for the most part. Couple little scuffles here and there, but nothing we can’t handle. My people are keeping an eye out, so is Chasing Death.”
“Scuffles between who?”
Carter paused to take a long sip of coffee. “The one who calls himself the Saint seems to think he’s in charge.”
“Keep an eye on him. It’s not that I getbadfeelings about him, but I don’t get good ones either.”
“You got it, Pres.”
I punched his bicep, not enough to hurt but just enough to threaten spilling his coffee. “Stop calling me that. People will start to believe it.”
“And?”
I gave him an exasperated look. “It’s misleading. I’m not the pres of anything.”
“You could be.” When I went to punch him again, Carter caught my fist in his palm. “I know I give you shit, Ror, but truth be told, you’re handling this whole thing extremely well. You’re a natural leader, and people want to follow you. On top of that, you care. You follow through on your promises and show that you can be trusted. I’ve seen a lot of presidents who have one or the other but rarely both. The last one I saw who had a backbone and a heart like yours was Reaper.”
My throat tightened at the mention of my father’s name, choking off any response I had. God damn, I missed him. All of them.
“My old man would have followed your dad to the deepest pit in hell without even a moment’s hesitation. I guess he did, back in their day. And you know what?” Carter dropped my fist to point his index finger at my chest. “I know for a fact that Torr and Santos would do the same for you, and not just ‘cause you’re their woman.”
I brushed that off with a wave of my hand. “Santos doesn’t know how to ride.”
“So? He can learn, he’s devoted to you, and he’s a deadly fucking fighter. Shit, if that Ghost guy comes with him, you’ll have a better weapons combo than the Steel Demons ever did.”
I opened my mouth to say that was impossible, then quickly shut it. All of my dads had been good fighters, but none had the otherworldly accuracy, speed, and skill as Gunner and Shadow. I heard countless stories of them hitting impossible targets with deadly aim. Thinking about it now, it would be fun to see Santos and Devin compete against those two.
“What about you?” I scoffed, changing the subject. “You’re talking me up like I’m pres material, but wouldyouride into hell with me?”
Carter gave me a crooked smile as he put his coffee down in the sink. “I’ll ride with you at every opportunity, but the Valkyrie Network is where I’ve pledged my loyalty. This fight you have?” He circled his index finger in the air. “I respect it, but it’s notmyfight.”
“I get it. I was just messing with you.”
“Think about what I’m saying. This is only the beginning for you. You’re going to need to get organized and have a group you can trust.”
I shook my head. “I barely know what I’m doing here, Carter.”
“Well, you’re faking it pretty well. Just think about it.” He coughed and leaned one hip against the counter, then in a louder voice said, “So how long you want to have these folks here gettin’ some R&R?”
