Page 69 of King of Pain

But in my head, the words echo. Do we have a future? My heart wants the answer to be yes.

But I’ve always worried that I’m a convenient distraction before Luke goes back to his family and his life.

And Mason just validated my worst fear.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Luke

The chopper tripto a small city is followed by a plane ride to I don’t know where. It’s a mystery. Through it all, Kate’s hand is laced with mine.

I heard what Mason said about sleeping with this woman.

He hinted that I was using her. That she was part of this plan to elevate our business, nothing more.

Waking without memory is the oddest sensation. I searched but nothing was there. Then, as I looked at her face, though I couldn’t remember, I could still feel.

This woman has my heart. If I doubted, her touch said it all. She ran her hands over me like I was the most valuable thing in the world.

And her story about my nicknames…

She likes them. And if I call herlove… Then I love her. Why do I know that about myself?

The moment I heard Mason’s voice, a ton of shit came back. My mom. My childhood. Roman. Arabella.

Odd. I can’t picture Mason yet. His voice sparked my memory, but his words were so cold. Am I that man? Cold? Calculating?

And I can’t remember a fucking thing about where I live, what I do for work. How I ended up in the woods in a cabin.

My head is pounding.

But I bring Kate’s hand, still laced with mine, to my lips and kiss the back of it, feeling the silk of her skin against my lips.

It’s a funny thing. I feel like the really important shit is floating to the surface in a way that’s providing so much clarity.

Kate told me about the tunnel project I apparently care about. About my worries I’d failed my family.

The way I struggle with numbers and even paperwork.

She told me about Gorilla, another one of my nicknames.

I listened to the whole thing, not saying much. Kate puts her head on my shoulder, the small plane humming above the clouds. “So all of Las Vegas thinks I’m dead?”

“Yeah.”

“And I just went along with it?”

“I guess. I don’t really know that part.”

“And I went to a sight in the middle of the night to close a deal?”

“Yes. And got shot. Nearly. That part I know, and I was even there for most of it.”

I shake my head. “Well, I guess I know my role in this company.”

“What?”

“I’m the guy who does the shit jobs. The one they put on the dangerous stuff. And I just power through, apparently.”

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