Page 49 of Gideon
“It’s complicated,” she huffed.
“The information you have will only be used to help us take down Zion. Isn’t that what you want?” I asked her seriously.
“I know,” she all but whined. “But, it’s complicated. I need…” she trailed off with a sigh of frustration.
“What do you need? Tell me and I’ll do my best to give it to you,” I reassured her, rubbing the tip of my nose along the back of her shoulder and pulling her more tightly against me to comfort her.
“I need more time. What I told you tonight was no small thing,” she explained. I stayed quiet, nodding my head as I ran my thumb along her linen covered stomach soothingly.
“I need to process the fact that I even told you. That I’m even considering trusting you,” she huffed out with a small laugh.
“The fact that you’re trusting me as much as you are, even now, is not lost on me, Naomi,” I reassured her.
“I just want to sit with this for a minute. I want to process it. And I want to talk with you more, before bringing everyone into it. That feels…” she trailed off, searching for words.
“Like a lot,” I agreed with her, finishing the statement she was unable to.
“Yeah,” she agreed. I felt her relax in my embrace again.
“Plus, Levi will undoubtedly have a million questions he’ll bombard you with. He’s an ass like that,” I muttered. She erupted into giggles, her body shaking against mine as I joined her in laughter. After the heaviness of our conversation, I could tell she was finding it difficult to regulate her emotional responses, almost like being in shock.
“Levi doesn’t exactly strike me as an ass,” she muttered through her giggles.
“Oh, he is. No doubt about that,” I muttered.
“And what of the rest of them?” she asked, snuggling closer still.
“Malachi is an asshole. Straight forward and no doubt about it. He’s grumbly and cranky,” I sighed, turning onto my back and tugging her shoulder so she would follow suit. She curled up into my side, her head laid against my shoulder as her arm wrapped around my midsection.
“And Bartholomew?” she asked, and I grimaced.
“What a fucking name. Who names their kid Bartholomew?” I questioned aloud.
“The same people who named their eldest Leviticus. What a shit name,” she muttered against my chest as we laughed together.
“True enough. Ollie is an asshat. Always quick with a joke, but half of them are tasteless. I’m the real funny one of the family. It’s all about timing. A well-timed quip will always serve better than idiotic ramblings like Ollie prefers.” I turned my head into her hair, breathing in her scent as we lay there talking.
“Ezekiel is the only one left. What kind ofassis he?” she asked, her leg coming up and twining around my own.
“Zeke…” I sighed heavily. “Zeke is the only one of us who isn’t an ass. He’s a complicated one, but he’s not an ass. Not at all.”
“That just leaves you, but I already know the answer to that one,” she scoffed. I could feel her smile against my chest.
“Oh, is that so? Well, then please enlighten the classroom, Mrs. Temple,” I teased, resisting the urge to tickle her side.
“You’re just a pain in the ass,” she quipped. I could resist the urge no longer. My fingers found her side and tickled her mercilessly as her giggles rang out, echoing in the small bedroom.
“I’ll show you a pain in the ass,” I teased, flipping her on to her back and tickling her with renewed fervor.
“Stop! No!” she laughed, her knees coming up quickly and almost catching me right in the balls.
We carried on that way for a short while; me tickling her while she giggled incessantly. She even managed to retaliate, getting in a few tickles herself to my more sensitive places. The little vixen even found that I was ticklish on my neck.
Finally, we settled into the bed once more, both of us breathless and smiling.
“Thank you for telling me,” I muttered into her hair once more as she settled against me, curling up into me.
“Thank you for hearing me,” she muttered into my skin, her voice low and heavy with impending sleep. Her body was relaxed and soft against mine, my arm around her as we both sought comfort in one another.
