Page 45 of Alive and Kicking
“I just don’t want anything to happen to you,” Zane says, finally.
I try not to get mad at him. “You leave the house all the time by yourself.”
“That’s different! I’m not…”
I cut him off before he can finish that, “If you say, a woman, Iwillstab you.”
He grins at me but it falls away quickly. “I was going to say that I’m not the one the mafia will want to kill.”
I scoff at that. “We talked about this already. You’re in just as much danger as I am. You’ve been seen with me. I publicly claimed you in front of the capo’s of the family.”
Zane’s mouth opens and then closes. His shoulders fall just a little and he looks away. “Okay, fine. I’m just worried about you.”
My anger subsides. “I understand that, but I’m not going to hide behind you guys. This is my life and I plan to live it to the fullest. I was raised by the mafia for fuck’s sake. My life will always be in danger. All worrying about me will do is give you an ulcer. So the best you can do is to be by my side when I need the back-up. All I can promise is that if I’m going to do something dangerous I’ll give you a heads up and you can tag along for the ride if you want, and you can do the same?”
Zane looks more relieved than anything else when he looks up into my eyes. “That’s fair.” He gives me a small grin and looks away. “In the spirit of our new agreement, I should tell you that I’m tracking a ring of child predators and it could get dangerous. But not yet. I’ll let you know before I move in.”
I blink at him. Of course he’s already doing something dangerous. “Thank you for letting me know. Just be careful.”
All I get is a nod. He takes the few steps to me, leaning down and pressing a kiss to my lips before pausing to run hisfingers through Psycho’s fur. “I’ll be back in a few hours. Are you planning to sleep in your room tonight… or…?” He trails off, looking over at Nox.
He sighs, making eye contact with me. “I had you to myself last night. I guess it’s only fair if I leave you to the two stooges tonight.”
“Can’t I just like order a giant bed to fit you all in? The more books I read that Zane’s picked out, the more it seems like a tempting idea.” I tap my lip as I consider it.
Nox shrugs. “I mean, I wouldn’t hate that. We can all still have our own room if you ever need some space.”
I grin at that, already trying to figure out the logistics. I’d need to do some calculations to figure out if I have the funds to get a custom mattress to fit against an entire wall of my bedroom.
How the hell am I going to convince Cain to sleep in it when he’s still trying to tell himself that I’m just his student?
He’s into bondage. I could convince Zane to help me tie him up for the first few nights until he gets used to it. And the mental image I get of Zane and I lugging Cain up the stairs to keep him hostage in my bed is magnificent.
“What are you thinking about? Should we be worried? You only smile like that when you’re talking about something highly illegal.” Nox actually looks anxious, which only makes me smile wider.
Shaking my head, I manage to let the smile fall for the most part. “Just considering logistics on how to make the bed happen.” Which isn’t a lie, and isn’t even stretching the truth.
“I’ve got to get going. I’ll be back tonight. Don’t kill anyone without me.” Zane presses another kiss to my lips before he leaves.
Nox reaches over and starts petting Psycho, who purrs and rolls around in my lap. When he peeks one eye open and realizesthat it’s Nox petting him and not me, he starts to hiss at him. Scrambling up from his relaxed position, his claws dig into my thighs as he growls at Nox.
“See, I told you that he just hates me!” Nox throws his hands into the air.
I shush Psycho while petting him, and he calms down, but doesn’t get comfortable, keeping his eyes on Nox like he’s about to attack. I roll my lips in. It’s true, Psycho really does hate Nox. Which is really sad, because Nox is one of the best people in the world.
I frown down at the cat. “He’ll get used to you. Just give him more time.”
Nox huffs and changes the topic, so I’m not sure if he thinks that plan will work or not. “I came up here to talk about you throwing me under the bus to Cain and wanted to warn you that he’s recruiting people to his side, but I think you’ll be okay. Even if he convinces Sloane, you’ve got Zane and I agreeing with you. You need your freedom and we won’t let him be an ass about it. Just be prepared. Cain is not above stalking you.”
The irony of Cain Price stalking me is almost laughable. It’s also slightly flattering. I’m very insecure about my place with Cain, so the thought he might care enough to follow me around feels nice. Because I question whether or not he actually likes me all the time. I glance over at Nox again. “Thanks for the warning.”
He gives me a nod. “I’ve got some files I need to go through before bed, so I’ll leave you to your books.”
He looks at the pile of textbooks on the coffee table that I haven’t been able to bring myself to open yet. When he leans in to kiss me, I melt into him. Psycho gives out a yowl at Nox’s close proximity and jumps off my lap.
See, progress. He didn’t even try to scratch Nox’s eyes out.
The warmth of Nox’s palm curls around the side of my neck, his thumb pressing in ever so slightly to hold me still as he deepens the kiss. All too soon he’s pulling away from me, and I would pout and whine about him leaving if I wasn’t a full-blown adult. The grin on Nox’s face tells me I haven’t completely kept the pout from my face though.
