Page 71 of Vengeance & Sin

Her brow knit in confusion as she looks from them back to me.

“We have plans, Doll,” I tell her as she pushes herself onto her elbows to better look up at me, “unless you're too tired now.” I say in a mocking tone that has her rolling her eyes at me as she slides to the edge of the bed where I stand. At least she appears to be getting used to my teasing.

I jump slightly, abruptly pulled from my thoughts. Jade hadn’t moved from her spot in front of me on the bed, but without me noticing her movement, she reached forward to rest her hand on my still, rock-hard cock through my sweats.

I look down at her to find her already looking up at me. Mischief dances in her eyes as her grip tightens and loosens, causing my cock to jump in her hand.

Slowly, I move my hand down onto hers before pulling it away.

Fuck, this is so much harder to do than it should be.

“None of that, Doll. We have somewhere to be.” I tell her as I nod to the pile of clothes sitting untouched on her bed beside her.

Her lip juts out in the slightest bit as if she’s pouting, “But-”

“No buts.” I cut her off with a shake of my head. “This wasn’t about me.” I tell her hoping she can hear the sincerity in my voice. I’ve never been more serious. I didn’t do this so that she would repay the favor. I don’t need her to do anything out of a sense of obligation.

Still, she doesn’t make a move for her clothes, and I can’t help but sigh as I continue to look at that fucking pouty lip of hers. Seeing her like this makes me want to give her anything and everything, and it’s killing me to deny her, but I know she will love the library.

I bend forward and lightly grip her chin, “I have something I really want to show you,” I tell her. She opens her mouth to interrupt me, but I just push on, “but that doesn’t mean we can’t revisit this. We can do this as often as you want, so long as it doesn’t cut into my surprises for you.”

She snaps her mouth shut as she considers my words before giving me a stiff nod.

I lean forward and gently touch my lips to her nose in a soft kiss before releasing her chin so she can get dressed.

I step back and watch her, all the while wondering how this girl, this supposed killing machine, has turned me into such a fucking sap.

She gets dressed and brushes her freshly tangled hair before putting her towel away in the bathroom. When she finishes, she bounces over to me, damn near skipping with a smile before she laces our fingers together, and I realize I don’t care. If being a sap means I get to have her like this, I’ll fucking be that all day every day, for the rest of my life.

“Okay, I’m dressed. Now, what's the plan?” She asks, the excitement clear on her face, but I just shake my head.

“I told you it’s a surprise. You're really not good at these, you know.” I squeeze her hand as I lead her to the door and out into the hall with a chuckle.

“No,” she laughs softly, “apparently, I’m not. There are lots of things I’m learning about myself with you.” She says it as if it's an off-hand comment, but I feel there's more to it than that. I catch her eye and raise a brow at her in question. “Oh, and what else have you learned?” I ask, watching her cheeks turn a deep shade of red as she shakes her head almost violently back and forth.

“Oh, nothing, nothing, I was just saying in general.” She squeaks out but based on her reaction. I’m not buying it. I let it go in favor of leading her down the hall and through the kitchen. I can always think of a way to get the truth out of her later.

The thought is enough to almost make me rethink our plans and just head back to the bedroom, but two steps into the library and I know I made the right call.

Jade’s jaw goes slack as her eyes widen, taking in the library's layout and every single book that surrounds her. She twirls in a small circle, and I drop her hand to stand back and watch her.

The smile that lights her face is so big and so happy, that I also find myself smiling. My stomach feels funny as I continue to watch her, but I ignore it, I’m not sure what exactly these feelings I have for her are, but I hope they never go away.

Ispend a lot of time down in this library, mainly when I’m trying to stay away from the guys and anyone else in the house. That’s even more true now that Jade is a constant here.

I don’t really care for the books, occasionally, I’ll pick one up, but mostly this room is forgotten, which means I can bring my laptop down here and get work done.

Froggie has been using my computer skills since Kratos learned about them. I also handle most of our bookkeeping and drop-offs for our section of the city and clubs we manage. I’m happy to help when it cements our worth to the boss. Well, usually, I am. Helping set Jade up was not my favorite, but I did it anyways.

Right now, I'm elbows deep in looking into her actual past, not the one I had to create for her to go to an elite school that she doesn’t deserve to be at. No, that past I know everything about because I made it. It’s what I don’t know that’s driving me crazy.

I reach for my coffee and go as far as to take a sip before realizing it’s empty.

Shit.

I don’t feel like going upstairs right now, not with the chance of running into Jade being a possibility. I look down at the small clock on my screen just to make sure, but yeah, it’s only just after eight, which means she could be anywhere in the house right now.

I put my cup down just a little more forcibly than necessary, not that it matters because nobody’s around to see, but it still bugs me just how far beneath my skin this girl has managed to get in such a short time.

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