Page 495 of Lodestar

When the buzzer rang again, I huffed. “You’re doing this on purpose. You could have arranged this for a couple hours later, dammit.”

“I’m not! This was the only time everyone could get together andyouoffered to take Kat to her class so I could do this. Did you braid her hair?”

“I did. It’s wonky.”

“Stop being a perfectionist,” she retorted. “You’ll have done a better goddamn job than I would have.”

“Can’t argue with that,” I sniped, which made her chuckle.

“Anyway, before you have to leave, there’s something in the?—”

“Who’s leaving and where? Hello, I am here, you know?” Savannah grumbled.

“I can easily hang up the phone,” was Star’s pleasant retort.

“Katina has a gymnastics class, Savannah. Star is meeting up with Eoghan and some other ex-servicemen and women while I’m out.”

“Why?”

“Veterans Anonymous.”

“AKA, poker. Five card draw, to be precise.”

“Oooh, can I come up? I can beat all your asses. Plus, I’ve done stuff that means I’m practically a soldier.”

Star’s lips twitched. “If you feel like losing your stake, then feel free, Vana.”

I clucked my tongue—she only used that nickname when shit was going downorshe was in her feelings. “Now, now, children. Play nice.”

“I’ll be up in five minutes,” Savannah snarled.

“Iamplaying nice,” Star answered even though Savannah had hung up, reaching over to tug on my collar as she leaned on tiptoe and pressed her lips to mine.

When she sighed into the kiss, I breathed her in, absorbing everything she had to give which was a surprising amount considering how closed off she could be sometimes.

“Eww, man, you two keep kissing all the time,” Kat groused. “You have guests, andIhad to open the door!”

“Never get between a man and his woman, Kat,” Eoghan rumbled, meaning I had time for one last tug of my teeth to her bottom lip—she’d feel that during the game. “Especially when it involves kissing.”

As I pressed a final, parting kiss to her mouth, Kat queried, “Why, Eoghan?”

“There’s a lot of meaning that goes into a kiss. It’s a ‘hello’ and a ‘goodbye.’ It’s a silent ‘I’ll miss you.’ It can also mean ‘I love you’ when you’re in a situation where you’re not comfortable sharing that truth verbally with other people around.”

Kat watched Eoghan as he rested his forearms on the island counter. When she mimicked him, I almost snorted. “That’s a lot to say when you’re swapping mouth juice.”

“Mouth juice?” Star laughed.

Kat giggled. “I’m not wrong, though, am I?”

We shared a glance and chuckled. “No,” Star concurred. “You’re not wrong. Neither is Eoghan. A kiss is a secret language that?—”

“—you’re not allowed to learn until you’re at least thirty,” I chimed in.

“More like when I hit middle school. I know who I’m going to kiss too.”

“I don’t need to hear this,” Star muttered. “You’re already enough trouble as it is without throwing hormones into the mix.”

“Maybe it’ll calm her down,” I said with a wink. “It made Eoghan more zen.”

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