Page 81 of Turmoil's Target

Christ, woman.

Playing with fire, as usual.

Aloud, I say, “Nah. If you were gonna shoot me, you’d have done it already. Subtlety never was your strong suit.”

She laughs at that, bright and carefree, and the sound wraps around my heart and squeezes . “True enough. I always did prefer the direct approach.”

I stuff my hands in my pockets, curling them into fists to keep from reaching for her. “So. You gonna tell me why you’re here? The last time we saw each other things didn’t exactly go well.”

The playful glint fades from her eyes, replaced by something more solemn. “I didn’t know about him,” she says softly. “About my father. Who he really was. What he did.”

I go still. “What do you mean?”

“He wasn’t a good man, Abe. Far from it. A monster in his own right.” She looks away, blinking rapidly. “My mum kept me in the dark. Fed me pretty lies my whole life. But I finally learned the truth.”

Shit.

I want to pull her into my arms, offer comfort, but I force myself to stay put. “I’m sorry.”

Seraphina shakes her head. “Don’t be. It’s not your fault. It’s just... this desperate quest for revenge, it doesn’t make sense anymore. How can I avenge a man like that? A man I never truly knew?”

My heart clenches painfully in my chest.

I hate seeing her like this, lost and hurting.

I want to fix it, make it all better, but I know I can’t.

This is something she has to come to terms with on her own.

“Hey,” I say gruffly, ducking my head to catch her gaze. “For what it’s worth... I’m glad you’re here.”

A ghost of a smile touches her lips. “Are you?”

“Yeah.” I risk settling a hand on her hip, feeling the warmth of her through the thin fabric of her dress. “I am.”

Seraphina goes still, barely seeming to breathe. “Abe.”

There’s a warning in her tone, a question.

I answer it by tugging her closer, until her body is flush against mine, until I can feel every dip and curve through our clothes.

My other hand comes up to frame her face, thumb brushing over the apple of her cheek.

“I’m not expecting anything,” I murmur, holding her gaze steadily. “I just...I’m here, all right? Whatever you need. I’m right here.”

Something shifts in her expression, gratitude and affection and a hint of something deeper, something that makes my pulse kick.

She lifts onto her toes, hands braced on my chest, and brushes a soft kiss to the corner of my mouth.

“Thank you,” she whispers against my skin. “For being you.”

“I’m not even gonna lie, Sera. I’m fuckin’ confused as shit right now. Why… I mean, are we good?” I prompt, trying to keep my voice steady even as my heart pounds wildly in my chest.

Seraphina looks up at me, slate gray eyes luminous in the glow of the lights.

She takes a step closer, until barely a breath separates us. “You told me it was real for you, and I hope it was, because I love you. I don’t know when it happened, but there’s no denying it.”

The words hang in the air between us.

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