Page 90 of Falcon's Prey

“Come on, mate. You wouldn’t shoot a friend?” Gideon smirked.

“A friend, no. You, I’d have no problem.”

Then Ren turned to me, his eyes frozen like the artic. They raked from the top of my head to the bottom of my shoes. He was hurt. That was the first thing I noticed about him. He had changed into jeans and a black T-shirt. His lip was busted, and his hands had cuts on them. They had hurt him.

“You fuck him?”

“You did not just say that to me!” I shouted, pissed that I’d noticed he’d been hurt and he wanted to know if I fucked someone else. I lifted my neck to show him the cut that still burned. “Does this look like we had a grand time? The asshole cut me, then licked me.”

One second Ren was still pointing his gun at Gideon, the next he was in front, punching him. When Gideon dropped, I ran into Ren’s arms. The first thing that hit me was his smell. I had never had anyone hug me and make me feel like I was home when I was with them, but the way I felt right now in Ren’s arms…it felt like finally having a place to call home. His arms wrapped tight around me, pulling me close to his body, and it wasn’t enough. I wanted him to crush me into him to make it hurt so I knew it was real.

The way he held me, I knew he cared. I’d known he cared for a long time. I just didn’t want to admit it, and neither did he. You couldn’t block the sun with a finger, and what we felt for each other was inevitable.

“Fuck, mate. I licked her neck, not her pussy.”

Ren went stiff, and I knew he didn’t like any part of that sentence. My heart was beating like crazy as I reached to his face and forced him to look at me. I’d never cared about anyone enough to show them that they meant something to me. Everyone always made the first move, and I made the last one, usually by leaving and never speaking to them again.

I guided his face down to mine, and I kissed him. It was the first time I’d ever kissed someone when sex was not on the table. It was a desperate kiss, burning me from within and consuming my soul. He was like water, food, and air, everything I needed to survive. I may have started it, but Ren took full control. His hand came to the back of my head, holding in me in place as his lips bruised against mine, making the cut on his lip open up. He made it hurt so I knew it was real, because pain was the only thing that left a lasting effect that served as a reminder that you didn’t imagine it.

“Ren,” I said against his lips.

Pam appeared at the entrance. “Can we take this inside before you idiots cause the cops to stop and ask what’s going on?”

“Pamela. Long time no see.” Gideon winked.

Ren led me inside the warehouse. As soon as we walked through the door, he turned to Gideon.

“Weapons.” He nodded toward a table that was nearby.

Gideon did as Ren asked and started by putting two guns on the table, followed by the knife that was at my neck earlier. He also moved his jacket and pulled out a small needle with a clear liquid.

“Is that T?” Pam asked in fascination.

I wanted to know what T was, but the reality of what kind of mess I was in was now starting to sink in. I mean, I knew Ren was dangerous, but he actually killed people. He hung out with men who carried weapons all the time.

“Are you okay, princess?” Ren whispered in my ear, but his eyes hadn’t left Gideon because he was a threat.

I thought about his question before I decided that I was okay. I didn’t care what Ren did for a living. I didn’t care that what we had had started out as a lie. What mattered was that I wasn’t his to protect anymore, and he still wanted to do it.

I’d never had that before, and it was an addictive feeling.

Once Gideon had taken off all his weapons and, for some reason, his jacket, we went to sit down.

“What do you want, G?” Ren asked as he pulled me to his lap.

“Heard about your audition.”

Ren went still. “Go wait in the room, Ember.”

He was hiding something from me. Fuck that—I wasn’t going into the room.

“No,” I told him.

“Ember,” he stressed.

“What are you hiding?”

“There are things—”

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