Page 142 of Beautiful Trauma
The truth was, there was nothing he could do.
As much as I was a realist, I don’t know how I’d allowed myself to be so naive. Like I could just jump from one world tothe other without any issues. Everywhere I turned was a harsh reminder of what I’d lost.
After I finished in the shower, I dried my hair. Leo’s wife, Drea, had set me up with a new set of makeup and toiletries. As I stared into the mirror, a beautiful, put-together woman appeared in the reflection. But it was far from the truth.
When I came out of the bathroom in my robe, Kellan was reclined in the bed on his side. Not only was he lying down, but he had the covers pulled up over him. “What are you doing?”
He pulled his gaze from the television to me. “I started feeling kinda weak, so I decided to lie down.”
“What about dinner?”
“I’m just going to eat dinner in here. I don’t think I’m up to all the family madness tonight.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Bullshit.”
His brows popped wide. “Excuse me?”
“You’re not going downstairs, so I won’t have to.”
Kellan shook his head. “You’re welcome to go down. I just want to rest.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “What about Maeve? She’s come from New York just to see you.”
“And she’ll be here tomorrow.”
Tsking, I eased down on the mattress beside him. “How are you a deceitful mafia man when you’re the worst at lying?”
He chuckled. “If I remember correctly, my poker face was enough to snow you before.”
“I wasn’t at my best then,” I challenged.
“You’re still a sore loser, I see.”
“And you’re still an ass,” I muttered before stretching out beside him.
Kellan buried his face in my hair. “Mm, you smell good.”
“Thanks.”
As he spooned up behind me, he nuzzled my ear. “We’re in bed together.”
“So?”
“We’ve yet to have sex in a bed.”
“What do you call what we did on the jet?”
“That doesn’t count.”
I laughed. “Why not?”
“Because only my tongue was inside you.”
With a roll of my eyes, I countered, “Getting hurt has done nothing to damper your raging libido.”
“I think it’s something about a near-death experience,” he mused.
I grinned at him. “I’ll never forget when Dima said I didn’t have to fear you coming on to me because you were the alleged gentleman of the family.”
