Page 18 of Kiss of Fury

Truth? Matrimony scared him. He had no experience in forming relationships or engaging with a woman who wasn’t a target or an informant or a quick fuck. He’d brazened his way this far, but now that the wedding loomed, he questioned his ability to handle it. Adding a kid to the mix complicated it more. Marriage itself was out of his wheelhouse, but parenting a child? Assassins killed people; they didn’t nurture them. He could no more be a dad than Dusty could be a real cowboy.

They’d finished connecting all the panels and began attaching rails to the posts, Steel lifting them up while Fury secured them. “Am I selfish to wish I had my wife all to myself?” he said, revealing only one of his concerns. He couldn’t admit to Steel he was scared.

“Yes,” Steel said.

“Fuck you.”

“But you’re not wrong. I understand your feelings. I resisted getting married; I didn’t want a wife. But maybe Cosmic Mates doesn’t give us what we want but what we need.”

“You think I need a ready-made family?”

Steel shrugged. “Apparently Cosmic Mates does. Maybe you should give it a try.”

“I promised her I wouldn’t send her back.” Wasn’t that a try?

“Give it a try with an open mind. Give your marriage a chance.”

Could he do that? What if he started fresh with no expectations? In truth, he hadn’t known what to expect, only that he somehow hadn’t gotten it. He saw how Verity protected her son; it spoke to her great capacity to love. Did she have room in her heart for one more? And what if she did? Could he even handle it? What if she decided he was unlovable?

Maybe it would be good to have the kid around as a buffer. Maybe he might even become fond of the boy. Stranger things had happened.

* * * *

Fury pounded on the fence rail. “Solid as a rock. Let’s see them bust through that.” Rebuilding the fence hadn’t taken nearly as long as he’d thought.

They tossed the leftover parts into the wagon bed and climbed into the cab. “We have plenty of time to get back before the ceremony,” he said, not dreading it as much as he had. Maybe everything would turn out for the best. He knew dozens of ways to kill people, but his experience of life was limited. How could he know what he wanted when he didn’t know what the possibilities were?

And if the marriage didn’t work out, he could fall back on the escape clause. With his freedom secured, he would have a lifetime to explore his options. What was a year compared to the rest of life? And maybe it would be one of the best years.

Up ahead, the horniger herd had split into two, a group on either side of their vehicle. Peering left, Fury eyed the mama and the calf. “We need to tell Dusty about the newborn.” Haven collected the young animals in hopes they’d be easier to domesticate than adults.

“Yeah, he might send us back to drive them into the inner paddock—watch out!”

The five beasts on the right thundered toward the other group—charging in front of the conveyance.

Fury slammed on the brakes and jerked the steering wheel, to avoid running into them. He heard asnap, and the vehicle lurched and stopped. The hornigers passed safely and joined the others.

The vehicle wasn’t moving. “Did you hear a pop?”

“I’ll take a look.” Steel got out and peered underneath the conveyance. “Fuck.”

“How bad is it?”

“We’re hung up on a rock.”

Fury slid out. “Let’s lift it off.” One cyborg could do it. Two was easy-peasy.

“Won’t help. We broke an axle,” Steel said.

“Shit. Call Dusty to send another conveyance for us.”

Steel whipped out his multi-communication device. He frowned.

“What now?”

“No signal.”

No way would he get back in time for the wedding. He’d gotten a reprieve. Strangely enough, he felt more disappointed than relieved.

---