That vein in his collarbone thickens, pulsating as the muscles in his arms throb. Straining in his irritation at my defiance.
“Why do you have to make everything so goddamn difficult?” Iceman thunders. “It’s a gift. Keep it, don’t. Do whatever you want with it, but I’m not fucking taking it back.” His gaze strong as his temper ruptures. Patience dissipating with every new drawn-out exhale.
I raise my chin defiantly. “I won’t accept it.”
“Well, then donate it for all I care.”
“Fine.”
“Fine,” he grits. Iceman’s stubbornness not giving an inch.
Fear of what all this means hovers below the surface of my skin but not enough for me to express it to him.
Cole had been sneaky, and I know if Finn found out, he’d be pissed. He was supposed to give me something stupid and pointless, not acar!
It’s too much, and I’m not sure what it means, but it feels like something more and I’m not ready for that. I wish he’d pull his head out of his ass for once and take it back so I can forget about it and stop reading into what it means so much.
“God, you’re relentless,” I complain, shoving the key back into my pocket.
“And you don’t know how to just say thank you,” he fumes right back. A coldness settling in his glare that won’t melt.
There’s a faint sound of a voice off in the distance. It’s one I recognize but can’t put a finger on instantly. A rush of blood hits my ears, whooshing past at those familiar heel clicks.
“Mr. Kellet is taking a phone call but should be finished shortly.”
“Thank you.”
My eyes find Cole’s, despite not wanting to. “Is that—”
His hands find my back as he pushes us both to safety before I can finish. Away from the fast-advancing footsteps.
“Lorna,” he confirms once we’re inside the closet.
He cracks the door only a sliver. Enough for us to watch as she makes her way over to the entry side table. The very same one we’d been arguing in front of seconds ago. Lorna is oblivious to our presence as she reapplies her lipstick in the mirror.
“What’s she doing here?” I whisper. Watching as she dabs at her mouth and tucks it back into her bag.
It’s almost fascinating, watching someone so crazed do something so mundane. A minimal task.
“You think if I knew, I’d be hiding in a closet,” he screeches, and I instantly want to deck him.
Lorna doesn’t wait long, Silas greeting her himself once he’s done. They hug and it isn’t long before they’re pulling apart and he’s leading her away, but something’s off about it.
The embrace seemed more than of casual greeting. It holds a sense of familiarity, from what I have no clue, but it makes my teeth gnash together.
My senses heighten. Awareness sets in when Cole closes the door with a soft click after they round the corner.
“Why is she here?”
I can’t make out more than what the crack at the bottom of the door allows, but I can feel the dense look he shoots.
Fine, it was a stupid question, but I will never admit that to him.
I go to reach for the handle, but he stops me.
“What are you doing?” I ground out, confused. “We can leave. They’re gone.”
It’d been dark in here before with the crack from the opening, but now in the complete blackness, it’s like all my fears come alive. I can make out Cole’s basic shape. That’s hard to miss when he wears his bullheadedness like a suit of prominent armor.