Page 25 of Carter's #Undoing

“How did he even get on this deck? It’s on stilts.”

“I trained him how to,” I explained. “Just like I gave him one of your sweaters to sniff months ago so he’d know you were a friendly.”

Serenity froze. “Come again?”

Damn.Now I was telling her too damn much. Maybe Scotch was right. I’d been on my own too long. “I had Avery mail a piece of your clothing to me months ago to a secure location that I use to pick up items I need. I had Colt sniffing it for a while so he’d know your scent by the time I got you here.”

She frowned. “You know, the more you talk, the more insane all of this sounds. As if everything else isn’t a mindfuck already, but how much does Avery know about you? And why did she never tell me anything?”

“She doesn’t know much,” I said. “However, if you want to talk to her, you can use one of the burners, but you can’t talk for longer than seven minutes. We can’t chance anyone finding out exactly where we are. Not even Avery.”

Serenity groaned into the sky before she turned back to me, still seeming pissed. I didn’t even know which part she was pissed about at the moment, but she looked damn sexy all riled up.

I extended my hand again to help her down. She took one more look at Colt before accepting my hand, her eyes observing my chest as she got down from the chair.Shit.I’d forgotten to put on a shirt in my haste to see what had caused her to scream and was only in my jogging pants.

Usually, I didn’t give a shit about how my scars looked to others. If they had an issue with them, that was their problem, not mine. Yet, as I stood there, watching Serenity’s eyes glance over each scar that had been hidden by my clothes, I found myself wondering what she thought about them.

Did they look as ugly to her as the one of my face? Did the depth of the stab wound on my left pectoral muscle make her wonder how close the wound was to my heart? Did she know the gash across the right side of my abs was the freshest one? Could she tell by the slight pinkness of the flesh on the part that still had to heal?

Every wound had a story. A moment etched in my memory to forever haunt me in my nightmares. Given everything we’d talked about, I expected her to ask me questions about them … but she didn’t. Instead, she placed a soft kiss on each and every one, her lips like a warm embrace to the injuries that held secrets I would take to my grave.

When she kissed the last one, she held my gaze. “I hear you sometimes,” she muttered.

“What?” I asked in confusion.

She took one quick glance at Colt for what I assumed was to make sure he was still standing still, and then she leaned on her tiptoe and kissed the scar on my face. “I said, I hear you sometimes when you’re sleeping. I may have been hiding out in my room, but that didn’t stop me from hearing you at night, your nightmares telling me more about what you’ve experienced over the years than you probably ever would.”

My eyes searched hers. “What did you hear?”

She rubbed the side of my face. “Nothing. Everything. Your words haven’t been illegible, but the pain in your voice and moans filled with sorrow caused me to cry myself back to sleep a night or two.”

Cupping her face in my hands, I leaned my forehead to hers, not believing that she’d heard me those nights. I knew the nightmares she was referring to. I had them more times than I could count. I hadn’t been around someone in so long, I wasn’t sure what I said in my sleep anymore.

I didn’t know she was crying until my hands felt wet from her tears. I kissed them away, wishing she hadn’t cried herself to sleep over my nightmares, but feeling a sense of relief that there were a few less secrets between us.

“Let’s head inside,” I suggested, taking the broom out of her hand.

“Okay,” she agreed, wiping off the rest of the tears from her face. When Colt yawned, her eyes widened and she took the broom back from me. “Is he coming inside?”

“He can stay out here if you want.”

Serenity bent down to observe him more closely. “Why did you call him Colt when he looks so … wild?”

“Colt is one of my favorite guns.”

Serenity looked to me. “You named him after a weapon?”

“One of my favorite weapons,” I corrected. “It’s kind of an old-school brand with this western style to it. First one I ever used had a unique brownish color, and Colt’s fur reminded me of that color, although you can’t tell right now.”

“Somehow, being named after a gun seems accurate for him.” Colt took the opportunity to playfully pounce on her before Serenity knew what was happening.

“Get your beast,” she shrieked as Colt licked her face and got her filthy from all the mud coating his fur.

“Okay, Colt, that’s enough.” I tapped him on his side. “Let’s get you cleaned up first, then maybe Serenity will let you come inside.” I helped Serenity up next. “Are you okay?”

“Nothing’s broken, but I’m in need of a shower.”

“Are you okay if I wash him while you shower, and then I’ll set you up for your call to Avery?”

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