Page 125 of When Kings Fall

To me, the way I was interpreting it for my life, the ribs were what protected that which enabled you to breathe, that safeguarded your life force, basically. After everything I’d been through and after what we’d all gone through two years earlier, it held a shit-ton of symbolism associated with that.

“Yeah. Still got it,” I said, grinning out at him.

He put the needle down and rolled back on his chair. “Let’s take a ten-minute break.”

I sat up carefully. “Perfect. It gives me some time to return a couple of emails.”

“You know you’re supposed to be clocked off for the day, right? It’s after seven, brother.”

“You’re one to talk.”

“Well, I made an exception for you.”

“Sure that’s all it is. It can’t possibly be that we’re both being workaholics right now and pushing ourselves to build our lives.”

I snatched up my phone from a side table and started responded to a couple emails that had come in. I mean, they could wait until tomorrow, but why put it off when I could get it done now?

“And because we love our jobs. Your dad having you head his computer engineering division lets you show off your incredible skills every day and do that high-level problem-solving that you love sinking your teeth into.”

“There’s that,” I said, typing away. “And the fact that we’re finally about to take a vacation together, all four of us.”

“Fuck me, the last time was up at the safehouse. Not exactly a proper vacation.”

“Private island paradise is more like it.”

“Thanks to Colt and those high-flying contacts he’s made as a big-time rockstar. Can you even turn on the radio anymore without hearing one of Mythic Cry’s songs?”

We both chuckled. “I know. It’s incredible for him.”

I looked up as he leaned back in his chair. “Fuck, Lev, I’m so glad you’re finally getting this done today. Me and Colt have had to hide our tattoos and the only way was to forgo fucking.”

I finished off my emailing, then put my phone back on the table, looking out at him, giving him my full attention. “Fortunately, Brianna bought it because we’ve all been so busy. You and me with our stuff, Colt recording his next album, and our woman launching her app development business.”

“I can’t hold out much longer.”

“A couple of days for this to heal a little so it’s not red-raw and more dried blood than ink, and we’ll be good to go.”

“Unless I try to persuade Bree that we don’t all strip naked to sleep surrounding one another after fucking?”

I laughed. “Yeah, good luck with that. There’s no way. As soon as she thought of doing it regularly like that, it became permanent, She loves it, the skin-on-skin, the intimacy of it, being close to us with nothing between us.” I shoved my hand through my hair. “Sorry I had to delay getting mine.”

“Nah, I completely get it. You only graduated a year ago and started working at Knightsridge, you had a lot to cover and to learn before you took on the newest division, and once you did it was chock-a-block getting your new, handpicked team in shape and all that. The point is it’s happening now and we’ve only got about an hour left to finish.”

“Perfect. Ready to get back down to it?”

He rolled forward on his chair. “Yeah, let’s do it.”

I assumed the same position on my side.

After a few moments of the grating pain, I was able to zone out.

These days, when I did, it wasn’t the demons that I saw.

I rarely even saw them in my sleep now either.

Nah, it was all sugar and spice and all things nice now.

Excitement.

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