Page 131 of Kane's Awakening
Devon:Ever heard of Google?
Me:Ever heard of kiss my fucking ass?
Devon:The only ass I want is Max’s. Sorry.
I smirked. The first time I’d officially met Max was while I was in the hospital, and it hadn’t been that great at first.
When Max had walked into the room, my heart monitor had spiked and everyone heard just how much his presence affected me. Well, it was more so the memory that Ryker had had a temporarythingwith him and then actuallyseeinghim and his fucking attractive dark complexion and eyelashes so long and dark it looked like he was wearing mascara that affected me. Just not fair.
But then he and I’d talked, and the tension dissipated. He was actually a pretty cool guy.
The time flashed eleven thirty a.m.
Fuck, what am I going to do with myself?
I clicked a game app on my phone and started playing Solitaire, counting down the days until I was allowed to return to work. That sitting around doing nothing shit would make me lose my mind. I’d already taken one administrative leave that year for the first shooting, and then another for the second.
Ryker was right. Ididhave rotten luck.
Craig and Harry had said the same thing. They’d come to visit me in the hospital and had joked that I was a magnet for psychos with guns. I’d then spouted back that I guessed it was a good thing I’d always be around to stop them.
And I would be.
If anything had helped me discover the extent of my passion for my job it was taking those bullets to the chest and stomach. Before that moment, I had questioned my job, not knowing if I really wanted to keep doing it, but that day had been eye-opening for me in so many ways.
I wanted to protect people—to make them feel safer in their everyday lives and be there when they needed me.
Molly came over and lay beside me, putting her head on my foot. I wanted to reach down and pet her, but it was still hard for me to bend my torso certain ways.
“I hate this, baby girl,” I said, looking down at her, hating myself for not being able to do the simplest damn thing without hurting myself. “I feel so worthless.”
“Hey. Don’t ever say that again.”
I jumped at Ryker’s voice, not having heard him come in. He walked into view and squatted down in front of me, taking my face in his hands. I pressed my cheek against his palm before placing a kiss there.
“You aren’t worthless,” he said, the blue of his eyes lighter that day, reminding me of the clear sky outside the window. “You’re my hero, remember?”
“Don’t make me barf,” I replied, fighting a smile.
Ryker leaned in and kissed me. The pressure of his lips was light, as if he were afraid of breaking me. My body hungered for him, and I gripped his nape, pulling him tighter against me. I had to show him I wasn’t fragile.
He groaned in the back of his throat, causing a vibration on my lips that shot right to my dick, but then he pulled back.
“Not yet,” he said with worry in his eyes. “When you’ve healed more, I swear I’ll let you fuck me like there’s no tomorrow. But for right now, you need to—”
“Take it easy, I know,” I finished for him, sighing as I rested my head on the back of the chair. “What are you doing home so early? It’s only eleven.”
“I didn’t have any more appointments today, so I came home,” he answered, moving his hands to my legs and parting them. All of a sudden, my throat became dry as I watched him. “I thought I’d bring you lunch… but not until I’ve had some dessert first.”
Fuuuuck.
“Didn’t you just say we had to wait?” I asked and then cursed myself for mentioning it.
If he came to his senses, it’d be my own damn fault.
“I did,” he said before flashing me a sly grin. “However, I said that referring to sex and you exerting yourself… I didn’t say anything aboutmedoing anything.”
His fingers slid under the waistband of my pants and slid them down. My dick sprang free and bobbed about two inches from his lips, growing harder and aching as I anticipated the moment he—
