Page 36 of Kennedy

“I shouldn’t have run from you,” Lewis muttered.

“Even though you did, we still found each other, so who cares? You don’t have anything to worry about. I know you’re uncomfortable with what we do in the facility, but these people are just like anyone else.”

“Except they can kill me in a hundred different ways.”

Kennedy laughed and pressed a kiss against Lewis’s temple. “Someone’s grumpy tonight.”

Lewis sighed. “Sorry. I just didn’t expect to have to attend a party, and there’s the mess with Wallace Senior, so I’m not entirely comfortable. I keep expecting him to jump out from behind a bush or something.”

That would be a sight. “Even if he does jump out from behind a bush, you’ll soon be surrounded by a bunch of people who can kill him in a hundred different ways.”

Lewis pushed Kennedy with his shoulder. “Using my own words against me, huh?”

“I just want you to relax,” Kennedy said, hoping Lewis could hear the honesty in his tone. “I understand being nervous, but you really don’t have anything to worry about. The few people we knew wouldn’t take it well when we told them they couldn’t be council assassins already left.”

With their father, in Barry’s case. Kennedy was glad he’d never have to deal with either of them again. Barry was twenty-five, for fuck’s sake. Had he really thought that having his father there would change anything? Was he really so full of himself that he didn’t understand why he wouldn’t be a good fit as an assassin? Kennedy wasn’t even sure how he’d managed to get into the program to begin with.

Probably through his father, come to think of it.

“I’ll do my best,” Lewis promised. “I’ll smile and have fun and celebrate the fact that Seymour is done with the program.”

“That’s why he wants you there,” Kennedy said as he glanced ahead to where Seymour and Jimmy were walking. Seymour was talking and waving his hands. Jimmy kept watching him with a fond expression that Kennedy was pretty sure he mirrored when he looked at Lewis.

They were both in love, so it wasn’t surprising.

Just a few weeks ago, he couldn’t have imagined he’d find himself in this position. Even during the last party, when he’d noticed Lewis and had been intrigued by him, he hadn’t thought they were mates. He probably should have considering how he’d felt even then, but it had been too outlandish.

Every shifter and paranormal being had a mate out there, but the odds of meeting them were small. Well, they had been small. It seemed like more and more people around Kennedy were finding their mates, which was a good thing. He just hadn’t thought he’d be one of those people. It was always easier to believe in the happiness of everyone else rather than in your own, and even though Kennedy wasn’t particularly pessimistic, he’d never really thought he’d be that lucky.

Now, here he was, walking down the path with his mate, going to a party before heading home, where they would spend the night together.

Home was Lewis’s apartment. Kennedy had been staying there more than he’d been staying at the facility, but it was small, and eventually, they’d have to talk about what came next. For now, Kennedy was happy to let Lewis set the pace and eager to see where it took them.

Tonight, it would be to a party.

It was in full swing when they arrived. The trainees couldn’t invite people to celebrate the end of a program that no one should know existed, so there weren’t a lot of people, but it was enough for the room to feel crowded. People danced, laughed, and drank, and even though shifters and supernatural beings tended to have a higher metabolism, Kennedy noticed at least two people stumbling around. He was tempted to ask how much they’d drunk but decided it was better if he didn’t know. After all, these people were adults, even though right now, they weren’t behaving like it.

“This is a lot,” Lewis murmured.

“I’d tell you to mingle, but I’m not sure you want to do that. Why don’t you find a seat somewhere? I’ll bring you something to drink.”

“Or I could stay with you.”

Kennedy laughed. “You can make friends outside of Seymour and Danny, you know?”

“Most of these people will be gone tomorrow.”

“Not all of them. A lot are staying and entering other programs or finding work.”

“Like Seymour.”

“Exactly like him. He’s not going anywhere, and neither are several of the trainees. Maybe you can make friends with them.”

Lewis looked around the room. Kennedy didn’tneedhim to make friends, but it would be nice to be able to mesh these two parts of his life. He didn’t have to hide what he did or who he was from Lewis, and he liked that. Starting their relationship by lying to Lewis would have been the worst thing Kennedy could have done. Luckily, he hadn’t had to. Lewis had already known, which had been a breach of protocol, but no one cared.

Tonight, it looked like no one cared about anything but beer and food.

Kennedy let go of Lewis and watched him for a moment so he’d know where to look for him. He wasn’t surprised when Lewis chose the quietest corner in the room, sitting on a chair while people walked around him. He looked a little lost, but when Cynthia dropped into the chair next to him, he smiled at her.

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