Page 48 of Peacock Me Like a Hurricane

“You should have let me go.”

“Never.”

He reaches up and touches his bite mark. “Can I help with the town shit? Maybe alleviate a little of your burden so you can focus on healing?”

“Short of breaking the ‘no ripping the spine out of community members’ rule, I don’t think so,” I grumble petulantly. I wouldn’t mind if he dismembered a few folks at this point, but as he’s said from the beginning, it would cause more problems than it would fix.

Standing, he kicks off his shoes. He climbs onto the bed, sitting next to me and holding out his arms. “Want me to be the handsome support structure you need instead?”

I chuckle. “I’m trying to be a bigger person. That’s very difficult when the issue is with someone you despise.”

~You’re a better person than I am, love. But then, we both know that.~

“Thanks, baby,” I murmur. For a second, I ponder why Shea doesn’t seem to share that opinion, and I can’t work out why. I shake my head to clear it. Shea is an issue for another time; I have bigger fish to fry.

He tugs me into his arms and I sigh, starting to relax a little. “That’s what I'm here for.” His eyes fall on the binder and mybook, light dawning. “I can grab a book or go to the gym if you have things you need to work on, pet.”

Moving the Beltane stuff aside, I shake my head. “No way. I’m not looking at that phone or my notes anymore today. I want to spend time with you.”

He exhales in contentment and grins, squeezing me tightly. “Thank fuck, because that was me being all noble. Feel free to praise my selflessness anytime. I am, after all, your ‘hunka burning clone’.”

“You are at that,” I chuckle, leaning into his chest.

“So, you'll say it again for me?” he asks, looking hopeful.

“Nope.”

His face falls and I smile, feeling it radiate from my face to my heart for the first time in hours. “You didn’t think it'd be that easy, did you?”

“No.” He looks away, his expression crestfallen.

I turn his face back to mine, stroking my fingers over his jaw. Don’t ask me why I finally gave it up in the first place; I don’t know. Maybe it was because of the fear of losing him to the Company’s dungeon because of his stupid killing spree. “Come here. I was only kidding. If you want me to call you my ‘hunka burning clone’ again, I will.”

“Yes, please.”

I tap his nose. “You are my hunka burning clone and I love you.” He tackles me and I gasp, my limbs flying akimbo. “Warning!”

~I'm all the warning you get, heart of mine~

I sigh, unable to do anything else until we discuss the six hundred pound whale in the room. “Tell me what happened at the hearing. I can’t focus on anything else until I know what those asshats decided.”

“I’m not being recalled, if that’s what you’re wondering. The debrief was a fucking disaster. I had to sit there and get myass roasted for hours. I have to teach the misbehaved rookies—including that fuckwit Cob—knitting in The Inferno for six months.”

My hand flies to cover my mouth. I try not to giggle, but it spills out and I hoot in laughter. “What’s the Inferno?”

Pouting, he rolls his eyes at me. “The Inferno is the punishment/retraining program for naughty agents-in- training. Someone thought they were cheeky when they named it.” He looks offended as I keep giggling. “Oi. It’s better than hiding out in our basement.”

I nod, tears running down my cheeks. “Oh, yes. But knitting? You. Hate. Knitting.”

Looking supremely ruffled, he crosses his arms over his chest. “I bloody do, but it’s punishment, Sandwich. I’m not supposed to like it.”

Wiping my eyes, I feel relief coursing through me along with the amusement. All I can focus on at the moment is the image of him teaching a room full of ‘bad apple’ clones how to knit one and purl two.

It fucking slays me.

“It beats being re-called or sent to Guatemala, woman.” Grumbling, he buries his face in my hair and lets me work the sniggers out of my system.

“It’ll help you prepare for when you’re pining for me,” I offer, still trying to breathe after my fit of giggles.

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