Page 84 of Run From Me

She was looking at me a lot more intently now.

“So you avoided getting caught by jumping off my condemned balcony?”

I nodded and tried to pull her back in, but she pushed her arms between us and made that impossible.

“Sparky, you wanted the cat. He made things a little complicated cause he sucks, but look at us now. O is rescued and, shh,” I said and everyone paused. “The fucker’s quiet.”

She hit me again.

“I wanted O, but I could have had animal services pick him up tomorrow. You didn’t need to nearly break your neck and almost get arrested. What would I have done then?” she asked.

Her eyes were shiny as she blinked. Aww, hell.

“Sparky, I’m fine. My knees a little bruised, but it wasn’t the first time I’ve jumped off a building, and?—”

This time it was her lips on mine. Her mouth cutting off my explanation, and I was so fucking here for it. I wanted her to come to me. I just had no idea how much it would affect me when she did.

This wasn’t like before. No desperate attempt to get my attention or to get me to fuck her. No, this was deeper and different. Her lips were soft and patient. Like she just needed to know I was real.

Without breaking the kiss, I lifted her into my arms and headed for the living area, fuck the cat and fuck my brothers. I had things to figure out, and as I stepped into the apartments, so did O.

“Fucking hell,” I shouted as the damn cat lunged for me and dug his damn claws into my pants and into my leg.

“O,” Cali said as I put her down.

“Get Satan off me.” I tried to detach each claw just for him to release me for Cali. “Sure, I save his ass, and that’s my thanks?”

“Looks like you have a fan club,” Zeid said walking through the doors and thrusting an armload of cat stuff at me. “And looks like you have competition. Now, I’m fucking starving, and since O is distracted, I’m tossing in some pizzas.”

I stood there with everything I needed for a pet I didn’t want for the second time today.

“Fucking hell. Come on, Sparky, let’s get O upstairs.”

Cali turned, and it was only then I noticed the slight sway to her steps. I looked at the table.

“Damn it, Rylee. Did you two get drunk while we were gone?”

Rylee shrugged.

“Don’t look at me. Look at your girlfriend. She’s the one that chugged, and I mean, like, three gulps and the glass was empty kind of chugged.”

I glared and then I paused. Girlfriend?

Was that what she was?

“Shut the fuck up, Rylee,” I said, and then Cas was flipping me off.

Girlfriend didn’t sound right. I didn’t date. But I had just impulsively brought Cali here, and as I followed her upstairs, catching her by the waist as she nearly fell over, I realized this was uncharted territory.

“Whoops,” Cali said on a giggle.

“Fuck, Calliope. Are you seriously drunk?”

I helped push her up the last round of the stairs and toward my apartment.

“Maybe.” Her hiccup didn’t help matters.

“Oh, Mr. O, aren’t you the snuggliest little kitty ever? You’re only prickly to everyone else, just like this big guy right here. Guess I have a thing for difficult assholes.”

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