Page 31 of For Wrath and Redemption
JONAH
“Doyou want to shower first? We still have a lot to get through today.”
I throw myself onto the couch and glare at Claire’s back. I’m exhausted and can barely walk thanks to Thor, and she’s expecting me to entertain her calendar? No.
“I’m starving. I’m not doing shit until I eat.”
She huffs out a tiny laugh. “So order room service. I’ll shower first.”
She disappears into the bedroom, so I sit up with a groan. I open the hotel app on my phone and pull up the room service menu.
“Yo, come tell me what you want before you get naked.”
The moment the sentence leaves my mouth, I frown. It’s too nice. Too thoughtful. And I don’t like the way my thoughts immediately go toward her standing naked in the shower. I haven’t decided how to handle her yet, but being nice and picturing her naked was ruled out as an option even before she dumped a pitcher of water on my head this morning.
Claire steps back into the main room of the suite, a towel and clothes in her arms. From the way her eyes are narrowed, she’s thinking the same thing I am.Niceis the last thing she expected.Niceis suspicious.Niceis not welcome.
She actually looks cute when she thinks I’m up to something—pert little nose all scrunched, full lips tilted downward. I almost smirk before I remember that she’s an annoying, ankle-biting dog that needs to be muzzled.
“I’m fine. But thanks.”
“You’refine?” My brows slant, and more thoughts bust through my filter before I can stop them. Fuck Thor, man. I can’t be calculating when my body is in distress. “You did like a hundred squats and then full-out sprinted for half an hour. Aren’t you hungry?”
She freezes for a fraction of a second, head jerking back in surprise before she catches herself and gives me an unbothered shrug.
“I had something this morning.” She turns toward the bathroom and calls over her shoulder. “You could have, too, if you’d woken up with the alarm.”
Then the door shuts, effectively ending the conversation. I stare at the spot in the hallway she just vacated. Her reaction has alarm bells going off in my head. There’s a weakness somewhere. Something I can exploit. Something I can use. I just don’t know what.
A knock at the door breaks me out of my trance. I haven’t even ordered my food yet. I’m prepared to tell Hammond or whoever it is to fuck off and come back later, but when I open the door, my scowl vanishes.
“Boss,” I greet, sticking out my hand so Levi’s daughter Brynn can slap me a low five, then I glance over her shoulder and jerk a nod toward Sav’s personal security guard. “Red.”
Red nods but says nothing. I look back down at Brynn. She smiles up at me, so I give her a small smile in return.
“Hey, Jonah. Are you busy?”
Instead of answering, I swing the door wide and usher them in. I don’t bother engaging with Red. I like him just fine, but knowing Sav sends him as a chaperone anytime Brynn comes over pisses me off. What does she think I’m going to do, snort something in front of the kid? Offer her weed? I’ve done a lot of dumb shit, but I have never and would never do anything to hurt Brynnlee. To hurtanyone. I’ve always kept my destruction contained so I’m the only casualty, and Sav knows it. Well, until now. The reminder that she doesn’t trust me makes my ears ring, and I have to force away the urge to dig into my stash and take another pill.
I inhale slowly and focus my attention back on Brynn. “What’s the word?”
“Ebullient,” she recites as she takes a seat on the couch. “Adjective. Extre?—”
“Extremely lively. Enthusiastic. Joyful.” I drop to the couch next to her. “The young girl became ebullient when talking about science but hated her literature classes.”
Brynn grins and rolls her eyes. “I thought I’d get you with that one.”
“Gotta try harder, kid.” I drop my attention to the paperback book and laptop computer in her lap. “Whatchya got?”
“The Outsidersby S.E. Hinton.” She scowls at the book. “Have you read it?”
I arch a brow and take the paperback. “What do you think?”
“Good, because I need help with this dumb assignment.”
“You don’t like it? This one is a classic.” Her expression flattens into one of disdain, and I chuckle. “For someone who loves words, you sure hate reading.”
She groans. “Dictionaries are easy. Fiction books are dumb. Like...why do I have to know this stuff? None of it is real. I shouldn’t have to analyze why these fake people do what they do in this fake story. It’s a waste of time. I should be working on my coding project, not writing a book report about why this horsey kid is obsessed with sunsets.”
