Page 27 of Knot So Fast
There's something about the way he moves, the way he looks at me, the casual familiarity with which he navigates my space, that suggests we have a lot more history than a few hospital visits. The question is whether that history is something I want to remember or something my brain is protecting me from.
As I start the shower and wait for the water to heat up, I can hear the low rumble of masculine voices from the kitchen. They're not arguing, which is probably a good sign, but there's definitely tension there. Luke mentioned something about Budapest, and whatever happened there clearly wasn't pleasant.
I strip out of the rest of my workout clothes and step under the spray, letting the hot water wash away the sweat and confusion of the morning. But even the familiar routine of my shower can't wash away the questions that are multiplying in my head.
Why does Kieran have access to my building?
How well did we know each other before the accident?
What happened in Budapest that Luke obviously hasn't forgiven?
And most importantly, why does being around Kieran feel both comfortable and dangerous at the same time?
The water runs over my skin, and I find myself thinking about the way he looked at me when I was stripping off my shirt. There was recognition there, familiarity that went beyond casual acquaintance. The kind of look that suggested he'd seen me undressed before, possibly in contexts that had nothing to do with drunken kitchen dancing.
That thought sends a different kind of heat through my body, one that has nothing to do with the shower temperature.
Whatever our history is, it's clearly complicated and probably involves more than just friendship.
As I wash my hair, I make a mental note to corner Luke later and demand some real answers.
He obviously knows more about my past relationships than he's been letting on, and his protective instincts toward me suggest he's been shielding me from information he thinks might be harmful.
But I'm tired of being protected from my own life.
If Kieran Cross was important to me before the accident, I deserve to know why. Even if the truth is complicated or painful, it's still mine to deal with.
The sound of laughter from the kitchen—actual, genuine laughter from both men—makes me pause in my hair washing.
Whatever tension existed between them seems to be easing, which could be either a very good sign or a very bad one, depending on what they're bonding over.
I hurry through the rest of my shower routine, suddenly eager to get back out there and figure out what exactly I've stumbled into. The morning has already been full of surprises, and something tells me the revelations are just getting started.
As I reach for my towel, I catch myself hoping that whatever comes next, it might finally give me some real answers about the life I can't remember.
Even if those answers turn out to be more complicated than I'm prepared to handle.
Because at this point, complicated is starting to feel a lot more appealing than the blank spaces that have been haunting me for months.
BREAKING POINT AS THE SIDEKICK
~LUKE~
The soundof the shower turning on gives me permission to finally let out the nervous breath I've been holding since this whole encounter started.
The moment Auren is safely behind her bathroom door, I turn to face Kieran with the kind of serious expression that usually means someone's about to get their ass handed to them.
"How long are you going to keep watching our morning runs like some kind of stalker?" I ask, cutting straight to the point because dancing around subjects has never been my strong suit. "Because I've got to tell you, it's getting pretty fucking obvious."
Kieran has the decency to look slightly embarrassed as he leans against my kitchen counter, but he doesn't try to deny it.
"As long as I need to," he admits with a shrug. "Though these early morning surveillance sessions are brutal when I'm staying up until three AM most nights."
I roll my eyes and cross my arms, fighting the urge to reach for the pack of cigarettes hidden in the back of the junk drawer. Auren doesn't know I've been trying to quit smoking—again—orthat I promised her and vowed never to hold another cigarette between my fingers.
But that was before the accident, when my stress levels weren't constantly through the fucking roof.
Now I deal with anxiety every single day, worrying about my sweet Omega roommate who's fighting amnesia while still being a force to be reckoned with in a world that doesn't want her to succeed.
