Fuck.
I’d scooped my hair up with the intent of styling it before my girls arrived, but the morning had escaped me, so it was still piled on top of my head. That means my neck is bare, and the back is dotted with the dark marks Killian enjoys decorating me with.
I enjoy it too.
“Oh,” I breathe and a smile comes easily. “It’s just—”
“A love bite! You kinky bitch!” Kimmy squeals, and she claps her hands together with a laugh as the initial shock passes. “Well, well, well! That’s the real reason you want to study online, huh? To be at your handsome husband's beck and call!”
“Kimmy!” Sadie exclaims, slapping her on the forearm, but I lift a hand, waving it off.
“What?” Kimmy pouts slightly. “I always knew there was something there, Cara. You were just a littletoogood and shiny. It’s always the bookish ones you have to watch out for!”
“I’m still good and shiny,” I reply easily, quickly running my hands under the tap and drying them on my dress.
“Definitely not shiny,” Kimmy chuckles, her shoulders shaking, then reaches for the wine bottle and tops off our glasses. I return to my stool and grab my glass, poking my tongue out at Kimmy as she continues to stare at me in awe. Meanwhile, Sadie scoffs down a bunch of wedges to hide the fact that her own shock is fake.
She’d helped me at the wedding after all.
“It’s consensual, right?” Kimmy asks suddenly and her entire face falls stiff and serious.
“What?” The wine catches in my throat and I cough, a sharp burn traveling down my throat. “Of course it is!”
“Well, you hear stories don’t you!” Kimmy explains, straightening her posture as she talks. “Men wanting something more and wives not knowing how to say no to that sort of thing.”
Warmth brushes over my cheeks, sweeping down my neck and curling down my spine. It warms me that she cares so much, but the truth is, I crave Killian’s power and bites as much as he loves to give them. I reach across the table and take Kimmy’s hand in mine, her chilled fingers from the wine bottle coiling around my knuckles.
“I promise you,Kimmy, nothing is happening here that I don’t want to happen,” I assure her. “Thank you for looking out for me, though.” Glancing at Sadie, I hope she knows the thanks is meant for her too, and she tips her glass towards me with a warm smile, the corners of her eyes crinkling.
“So! Tell me everything!” Kimmy pushes her plate away and leans onto the counter with her elbows, her eyes narrowing slightly. “I’ve dished the goods on all my lovers.”
“That’s different!” Sadie laughs heartily, “Cara’s married! It’s not the same as your one-night stands.”
“Is this why you haven’t been on a honeymoon yet?” Kimmy continues, ignoring Sadie. I gulp a large mouthful of wine, closing my eyes briefly as the cold liquid slips down my throat and cools some of the heat on my skin.
“Kimmy!” Sadie throws a wedge at her, trying to get her incessant questions to stop, but I don’t mind.
Why should I hide it?There’s nothing wrong with it, and they certainly aren’t going to tell anyone.
“We haven’t gone on a honeymoon because of business,” I lie smoothly. “Killian isn’t in a position where he can just jet set off somewhere at the drop of a hat.”
“Why not?! Isn’t that one of the perks of being rich?” Sadie scoffs slightly and I clutch at her words, a vain attempt to guide the conversation away from Killian and I’s bedroom activities.
“Not if you want tostayrich,” I point out and Kimmy rolls her eyes.
“Enough of that,” she scoffs and she points her well-manicured pink finger at me. “Tell me, is Killian as good in bed as he looks? I always wonder if adonis-looking men are actually the opposite in bed. They rely too much on their good looks, y’know?” She returns her attention to the wine, seeking out the thrown potato wedge and popping it in her mouth.
“Well,” I begin coyly, and as Killian fills my thoughts, I’m struck with a sudden tight pang in my chest.
Today was the first day in two weeks that Killian didn’tactuallytell me where he was going, and my thoughts drift back to the day of the car crash.
It’s fine. He’ll be safe. I’m sure of it. Archer is with him; he’ll be completely fine!
34
KILLIAN
“How sure are we that he’s really in there?”