Page 76 of My Vigilante Valentine

I yelped, throwing my arms around his neck. “What are you doing?”

“Taking you somewhere better than a storage room.”

“Wait, but your side?—”

But we were already moving—and fast. The world blurred around us as he carried me through the back door and up the fire escape.

Or, at least, I think that was what happened. All I knew was that one minute, we were next to a freshly brewed pot of coffee, and the next…

We were on the roof.

18

enhanced cognition

“Show-off,” I teased against his neck.

He chuckled, the sound vibrating through his chest and straight into my heart.

The morning air was crisp against my cheeks as he set me on my feet, but I immediately missed his warmth.

I looked around, spinning in a slow circle to take it all in. The city was sprawled out around us in every direction, bathed in just enough of the pre-dawn light that everything looked softer somehow.

Including Jax.

He ran a hand through his hair as he stepped back, and I realized with a start that he looked...nervous?

Right, because before he’d shown off his super speed, he’d told me we needed to talk, and I’d been minorly freaking out.

A surge of annoyance coursed through me as Jax began to pace.

Okay…

It was all well and good for him to insist that he wasn’t The Blade, to evade my questions, and to flat-out lie about it. I got it, and he was forgiven.

But this? Bringing me up here to take back what he said last night in a pretty setting, like it would help to soften the blow?

Not cool, bro. Not cool at all.

And yes, I knew this was the beginning of an overthinker’s doom cycle, but I couldn’t seem to pull it back.

I crossed my arms, watching him shift from foot to foot like he wasn’t sure where to start. “Aren’t you a little too cool and capable to look this freaked out right now?”

He blinked at me, his expression flat. “If I look freaked out, it’s your fault.”

“Great. So, does that mean this the part where you tell me last night was a mistake, even though you already told me it wasn’t?” I asked, my stomach twisting. “Because I’ve been here before. Where the guy realizes he was just caught up in the moment, and now he has to let me down easy? It feels a little basic, and you should’ve just admitted it last night, but whatever. Just get it over with.”

Jax’s flat expression had hardened more with every word of that spiraling rant, and when I finished, he merely crossed his arms. “Are you done?”

I looked to the side, then nodded once. “Yep.”

Then he stepped forward, lifting his hand to the side of my face, angling it up so I couldn’t look away. “That’s not what’s happening, and I stand by what I said last night.”

“Oh.”

Lines appeared between his brows. “Luna… Did you really think that’s why I brought you up here?”

I tried to nod even though he still had a firm hold on the side of my face, but I’m pretty sure he got it.

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