Page 39 of Kennedy

“She is, but she’s also very loyal. If you’re her friend, she’ll do anything for you, including using her training for unsanctioned killings.”

Lewis shuddered. “It’s lucky I don’t have anyone to kill, then.”

“It really is.”

Lewis thought briefly of Wallace Senior, but he pushed the man away from his mind as quickly as he’d appeared there. He wasn’t about to put out a hit against Wallace Senior, but he also wouldn’t stop anyone who tried kicking his ass if he ever returned to the facility.

He looked around. It was good to have friends, even friends who could kill you with their bare hands.

Chapter Seven

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ONCE AGAIN, KENNEDYwas spending time with Seymour and Jimmy. Before meeting Lewis, he would’ve never thought it possible. He’d only viewed Seymour as someone he worked with, even though he’d liked the guy well enough. The same had gone for Jimmy, who Kennedy had known even less.

Now, they saw each other almost every day. Lewis and Seymour were incredibly close, which wasn’t a surprise. Kennedy had expected to spend a lot of time with Seymour, and he didn’t mind it. It made his mate happy, which was all he cared about.

“So you’re taking the trainer’s job?” Kennedy asked before taking a sip of wine. Having a Nix mate who could shimmer him around meant he didn’t have to be as careful as he usually was when drinking during dinner.

“Yeah,” Seymour confirmed. “It means I can stay in town. I can’t see myself as a trainer, but I guess I will eventually, or I’ll fake it ‘til I make it. I just hope I don’t mess up these kids.”

Jimmy snorted. “Some of them will be older than you, Sey.”

“Please don’t say that.”

“He’s right,” Kennedy confirmed. “I’ve been going over the files, so I know for sure that some of them are old enough to be your parent.”

Lewis made a strangled sound, and Kennedy turned to him. He looked disturbed, like every time parents were mentioned. As far as Kennedy knew, things were going discreetly well with them, but he still hadn’t met them. They might have accepted that Lewis wouldn’t sell his shop just because he’d met Kennedy, but they were still confused and didn’t understand why Lewis was doing this. Lewis had decided to take some time and space from them, but Kennedy knew that, eventually, he’d want to reunite with them.

He wasn’t sure he was looking forward to it. He was curious, but knowing that Lewis’s parents were one of the reasons Lewis felt like what he was giving Kennedy wasn’t enough left a bitter taste in Kennedy’s mouth. Sometimes, Lewis asked him if he was sure this was what he wanted. He’d even offered to give Danny more responsibilities so he could focus more on their relationship. Kennedy had been horrified because that wasn’t what his mate wanted, and he’d known where those words had come from.

It would take some time for Lewis to accept that the way his parents behaved wasn’t normal. If it worked for them, that was great, but most supernatural beings didn’t drop everything when they met their mate. They had jobs—mostly because they couldn’t afford to stay home, unlike Lewis’s parents—friends, and families. They had a life outside of their mate, as it should be.

That was what Lewis’s parents wanted Lewis to give up. From what Lewis and Seymour had said about them, they didn’t have anyone else. They relied entirely on each other for everything, keeping even their sons at a distance.

The thought of not having anyone in his life but Lewis gave Kennedy the creeps. He loved his mate, but not so much that Lewis was the only person he wanted around. He liked having friends and a job, and he knew Lewis felt the same. Kennedy imagined that spending all of their time together would eventually feel suffocating, and he didn’t want that. He wanted to be happy when he spent time with his mate.

He was. He’d never been happier.

“I don’t know if I can do this,” Seymour complained. “It sounded like a good idea, but now, I’m not sure. What if these people don’t respect me? I’m not scary like Kennedy and Hawthorne. Hell, I’m not even scary like Cynthia. She’d glare at these people, and they’d fall in line. What am I going to do? Beg them to listen to me?”

“You won’t be the only trainer,” Kennedy reassured him.

“Hawthorne has been promoted.”

“Yeah, but what am I? Chopped liver?”

Seymour’s eyes widened. “I’ll be working with you?”

Kennedy smiled and nodded. He’d requested to be assigned to the same group of trainees as Seymour, and Hawthorne had agreed it was a good idea. He was in charge of all these programs now. After the success of the council assassins’ program, the council had decided they wanted better-trained people to work for them. They wouldn’t be trained to be assassins, but it would be close, and Kennedy would be in charge of one of the teams. Rhonda had another.

And Seymour would be working with Kennedy.

Seymour’s smile was so similar to Lewis’s, yet so different at the same time. Kennedy took Lewis’s hand and found that Lewis was beaming at him, too. The brothers had never looked so much alike. Kennedy would always be able to tell them apart, even if it weren’t for the bond, but they were both beautiful.

“I can’t believe you did this,” Seymour breathed. “You requested I be assigned to your team.”

“I can,” Lewis said. “You wanted to look out for my brother because you knew it would make me happy.”

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