Page 74 of Kissed By Shadows

Childish giggles and fake gagging have her pulling back with a small laugh as the children around us let their opinions of our kiss be known. Her cheeks are even more flushed now, and the colour is perfect on her. I can feel a slight warmth in mine, but I could never be truly embarrassed to be kissing my girl.

“Miss Iris?” a small voice asks, and I smirk realising they don’t know she’s Hunt’s wife yet. He’ll be pissed. We both look down to see Jimmy, a boy whose father drinks far too much and often forgets to bring him food.

We make sure he eats, but all our efforts of getting Dan sobered up have failed thus far. I make a mental note to check in on them, potentially step up our persuasion on Dan to clean up his act. Especially seeing how threadbare Jimmy’s clothes are, the holes in his jumper. It’s too cold for him to not be dressed properly.

“Yes? Jimmy, isn’t it?” she asks, and his smile is tentative as he nods.

“I, um, I finished my scarf, but I’m not sure what to do next,” he confesses softly, holding up what looks like a pretty respectable scarf in a mottled rainbow yarn that is so bright it hurts my eyes.

“My goodness, that was so quick!” Iris exclaims as she looks at the item. Then she turns to me, her smile like a breath of spring after a cold and dreary winter. “You know, I’ve neverknown anyone who picked up knitting quite so quickly. Jimmy is a natural.”

I watch as he practically floats, my dead heart thumping inside my chest at the way she said that just to make him feel good. She turns back to him and starts explaining something about casting off as they walk back over to where Jimmy was sitting. I can’t take my eyes off her, at the sunshine she brings wherever she goes.

And I know, now more than ever, that I can’t live without it, without her. Not now that I know what the brush of heaven feels like.

“PICTURES” BY ECÂF

IRIS

I heave a contented sigh, waving the last of the children goodbye and shutting the door to the room we’ve been using this afternoon. The sun is just starting to set, setting the room ablaze in shades of orange and pink, courtesy of the wall of floor-to-ceiling windows.

Turning around and preparing to clean up, I find the room already back to how it was when we first walked in. Hunt is loading the last of the cups and plates in the dishwasher in the kitchen area while the twins put the craft stuff away in the cupboard that has been set aside for us.

“You didn’t have to clean up,” I tell them as I reach for the broom to sweep up the mountain of glitter that seems to be spread across the room, but Roman gets there first.

“Yes we do, Princess,” he tells me, beginning to sweep all the glitter into a pile, Rowan heading over with a dustpan and brush. “You have worked hard enough this afternoon, and those kids left with bigger smiles on their faces than I’ve ever seen.”

“They did seem to have fun, didn’t they?” I ask, tiredness suddenly making me sway a little on my feet.

Suddenly, strong arms wrap around me from behind, the scent of mint and rosemary telling me it’s Hunter before his deep voice rumbles in my ear. “Sit down before you fall down, Peaches.”

He guides me over to one of the leather sofas that line the room, drawing me down onto his lap as we watch the twins finish up.

“Thank you for your help, the cookies went down a storm,” I mumble, snuggling into him. His arms band around me tightly and moisture stings my eyes because it feels so right, like I’m finally where I’m meant to be. Bloody hormones.

“I saved you some back at the flat, I knew you’d forget to eat anything once you got started,” he chides, brushing his lips across my hair. My eyelids flutter, my body completely relaxed against his. “Come, let’s take you home, wife.”

Home.

The word bounces around in my brain, settling there and taking on new meaning. The flat is our home, but more so, these three hard men, these Shadows, are my home. They love me for who I am and have stepped up in a way that no one else has done for me before. I come to the sudden and irreversible realisation that they are my chosen family, and that my bond with them, even over this short time, is far stronger than the man who helped to give me life. I don’t need him anymore, because I have them and they would never betray me, never trade me like a piece of discarded clothing.

A fissure of sadness winds its way around my heart, telling me that there is another to add to make our home complete. I wonder what Nik is doing right now while we are safe together? Is he hurting? Is his father punishing him again?

The sun dips behind the buildings, casting the room in shadows and darkness, and a shiver works its way up my spine even though it’s warm in here.

Please let him be safe.

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

“BAD DREAMS - STRIPPED” BY FAOUZIA

IRIS

Iwake with a start, my heart pounding inside my chest as sweat slicks down my spine. My muscles are tense as I search the darkness with wide eyes, trying to figure out what it was that woke me with terror filling my veins.

“What the fuck?” Roman mumbles, also sitting up in bed, his naked chest lined in the moonlight. His palm comes up to rub his face, the other side of me cold where Rowan should be. A sharp crack sounds and my heart thuds as he curses. “Fuck! That’s gunfire, stay here!”

He leaps out of bed just as the door crashes open and Hunter storms in.

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