Page 72 of Seductive Architect
“I’m done being your puppet.” He threw Apex’s unconscious body to the floor. “I’ll always choose him.”
My chest tightened at his declaration. Hudson staggered back until he hit the wall next to me. We both slid down, breathless. He’d have to carry me from the lab if my suit didn’t turn on. Tonight, I’d be okay with being the damsel in distress, especially if this beefy man served as my white knight.
“Are you okay?” We’d be asking this question a lot in the future.
He nodded. “My dad’s a dick.”
I snorted. “No family reunions?”
“Maybe with yours.”
“My mom is going to feed you so much pie.”
His head leaned back against the metal. “I’ve never had pie.”
I struggled to raise the arm of the suit. Hudson reached over, intertwining his fingers. My brand-new super-soldier boyfriend and I had just saved Vanguard from a homicidalA.I. Mom would want all the details while she packed leftover pie for Hudson to take home.
“You’re pretty amazing,” I said.
“Are you trapped in your suit?”
I glanced down. “Maybe?”
“Good.” He leaned over, holding my cheek as he planted his lips on mine. If this were the reward for defeating a bad guy, I’d be scouring the city more often. Unlike our first kiss, this one teetered on perfection. He pulled away, leaving me wanting more. My boyfriend had mastered kissing and moved on to teasing. I’m not sure I liked this newfound playfulness. I wanted more kissing.
“I can hear the police scanners. They’re on their way.”
“Well, aren’t you both lucky?” Janet huffed and puffed at the entrance to the lab. “Wyatt went down easy enough, but Arthur—” She held up her arm. “That bastard bit me.”
We did it. Our B-rate team of heroes had saved the city from disaster.
“You two get out of here.”
“But—”
Janet frowned. “As the Lord Imperial of Synergy’s Superhero Division, it’s my job to fill out incident reports. Besides, you two are hardly ready to give an interview to Channel Seven.” She had extended her role to taking over Ricardo’s company. That checked out.
“Thanks, Janet.” I meant it. From the start, she had beenin my corner. She might be the queen of chaos, but from now on, I’d always think of her as a friend.
“I better see this in my review bonus.”
Hudson got up, lifting me in his arms. He carried me like a blushing bride. If somebody outside caught a photo, it’d be all over the HeroApp™. I’m not sure I minded. Let the tabloids tell the story about a boy who fell in love with a machine. Plot twist, I fell in love with the man in the machine.
“Let’s go home.”
With him, anywhere would feel like home.
25
I felt lost.
My toes lined up with the edge of the steel girder. We had won. The bad guy had been defeated, and we walked away… most of us. Connie had sacrificed herself to save us all. I loved machines for their simplicity, and yet what she did had been the most human thing I had ever seen.
The wind on top of Vanguard bridge whipped about, strong enough that it could throw me from the edge. Janet had stayed to fill out reports with the local authorities. Free of Apex’s influence, Drew secured Senator McAfee while Wyatt returned Arthur and Ricardo to their homes. I wasn’t ready to go back to my apartment, not yet. I knew the moment I walked in the door, the memories would come flooding in and the breakdown would begin.
Hudson said nothing as his hand wrapped aroundmine. Through all of this, he had proven he was more than Apex had ever imagined. While I tried to shut down my emotions, he embraced his. From the corner of my eye, I could see the city lights reflecting in the tears streaming down his face. This would be a lot for anybody to digest.
“Are you okay?”
