Page 31 of Saint's Sinner

“Oh get over yourself,” Night snapped, trying to keep his voice low and realizing he failed when Wreck growled at him to shut the fuck up. “Seriously, the damsel in distress routine doesn’t suit you. You’re too bad ass for that so give it and the pity party a rest. I’m over it for the night. Hell, make that for the year, and just let it go, for fuck’s sake, you wanna know why Imma have a hard time sleeping? It’s because you’re warm and pressed against my back and all I wanna do is roll over and get you to put your hands all over me.”

And there was Sinn going all silent again.

“Look. I know you and Saint have discussed fucking around with me and I’m down for it whenever you guys are. I just wish the wait was over.”

“It will be as soon as we’re all back at the compound together,” Sinn admitted, though his empty tone left Night wondering if he was really into the idea, or just telling Night what he thought he wanted to hear. In the end, he decided that not replying was the best way to keep from making things awkward if Sinn proved not to be as in to him as he’d seemed to be before getting kidnapped and dragged back to Texas.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been camping,” Sinn whispered. “Are the stars out tonight?”

“Yeah,” Night murmured. “Lots of them. I was just laying here trying to figure out the difference between Pollux and Castor.”

“The fuck?”

“Twin stars that make up the Gemini constellation,” Night said. “Pollux and Castor were brothers or something. One was mortal and one was immortal if I remember it right. The immortal one wanted to share his immortality with his brother, so Zeus made them stars. Now they live up there forever.”

He felt Sinn moving and when he glanced over, Night saw that he was laying on his back now too. “Where did you learn that?”

“This book my brother had when we were kids. He was always staring up at the sky, talking about space camp and wanting to be an astronaut.”

“I’m going to go out on a limb and assume that didn’t happen.”

“Naa. He and a couple of my cousins got busted holding up a Wawas. They did three years in juvie and joined the family business not long after they got out.”

“Which would be?”

“Nothin’ legal.”

“Yeah, I kinda figured that,” Sinn said. “So what about you? Did you join the family business?”

“I’m not a fan of sleeping behind bars,” Night admitted.

“That doesn’t answer the question.”

“I’m on hiatus.”

“Uh-huh.”

“It’s the best answer I’ve got.”

“Somehow, I doubt that, but I’ll wait and press you when there are fewer ears around to hear whatever it is you’re trying to hide.”

“Mark knows my history.”

“But it isn’t Mark’s bed you’re looking to climb into,” Sinn stated. “Or at least I hope it’s not.”

“Don’t see where one thing has to do with the other.”

Sinn rolled a little more, until his hand rested on Night’s chest, just above his heart. “When I claim someone, it’s not going to be for a little while. So if you’re on hiatus from something that’s going to yank you out from underneath me, then I wanna know before I invest too much time in what this could be.”

“I’m patchin’ in here, now aren’t I?”

“Yeah,” Sinn replied. “But if this week has taught me anything, it’s how quickly the past can come back to haunt you. If I hadn’t told you where I was from…”

“We’d still be searching, it’s that simple,” Night said. “Saint wouldn’t have given up until he was six feet under, and even then, they might have had to stomp him down two more feet just to keep his ghost from going postal.”

“Yeah, that’s the part that scared the shit outta me.”

“I wouldn’t have given up either,” Night murmured. “I’d have been another vengeful wraith right there beside him, haunting the bastards that took you until we’d given them a heart attack.”

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