that Daedalus was using on sick humans? Her frown deepened, and I bridged the insignificant space between us, keeping my voice low. “I’ll tell you later.”
Understanding flared, and she brought her leg up a little so it rested against mine. My breath caught, and a different kind of awareness crept into Kat’s eyes. She bit down on her lower lip, and I fought back a groan.
That pretty color edged into her cheeks again, so not helping the situation. I brought my hand up her arm, senses flaring as she shivered. “You know what I’d give for some privacy right about now?”
Her lashes lowered. “You’re terrible.”
“I am.”
Her expression clouded over. “I feel like there’s a big clock hanging over us right now, like we’re running out of time.”
We probably were. “Don’t think about it.”
“It’s kind of hard not to.”
There was a pause, and I cupped her cheek, smoothing my thumb over the delicate bone. Several moments passed.
“Did you see my mom at all?”
“No.” I wanted to tell her why, and tell her more, but divulging any information at this point was a risk. I had an idea, though. I could take my true form and talk to her that way, but I doubted the powers that be would appreciate that. I wasn’t willing to risk it at this moment. “But Dee has been keeping an eye on her.”
Kat kept her eyes closed. “I miss my mom,” she whispered, and my heart cracked. “I really miss her.”
I didn’t know what to say, and what could I say?
Several moments passed before she spoke. “I’ve always wanted a Mogwai.”
“What?”
Kat’s lashes still fanned her cheeks, but she was finally smiling, and some of the pressure eased off my chest. “You’ve seen
I rested my chin atop her head and grinned at the image of the little brown and white furball-sprouting pods. “I don’t know.”
“What?” She burrowed closer, tucking her fingers against the collar of my shirt.
Throwing my arm around her waist, I took what felt like the first real breath in weeks. “If I had a Mogwai, I’d totally feed it after midnight. That Mohawk gremlin was a badass.”
She laughed again, the sound tinkling inside me, and I felt about a thousand pounds lighter. “Why doesn’t that surprise me?” she said. “You’d totally bond with the gremlin.”
“What can I say? It’s my sparkling personality.”
Chapter 11
Part of me still believed I was dreaming. I would wake up and Daemon would be gone. I’d be alone with my thoughts, haunted by what I had done. Fear and shame kept me from telling him about Blake. Killing Will had been one thing. An act of self-defense, and the bastard had still managed to shoot me, but Blake? That had been an act of anger and nothing else.
How could Daemon look at me the same, knowing I was a murderer? Because that was what I had done—I had murdered Blake.
“You with me?” he asked.
“Yes.” Pushing away the troubling thoughts, I touched him. Honestly, I kept touching him, reminding myself that he was really there. I thought he was doing the same thing, but he had always been the touchy type, something I loved about him. I wanted more. There was a desperate urge to lose myself in him, in a way I’d only ever been able to do with Daemon.
I traced his lower lip with the pad of my finger. A muscle flexed in his jaw, and his eyes brightened. My heart did a funny little cartwheel, and he closed those beautiful eyes, face tensing. I started to pull my hand back.
He caught my wrist. “Don’t.”
“I’m sorry. It’s just that you…” I trailed off, not sure of how to explain it.
A lopsided grin appeared on his face. “I can deal. Can you?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t be.” His eyes opened, and the pupils shone like diamonds. “I honestly don’t want to be anyplace else.”
I snorted. “Really?”
“Really.” He kissed me softly and quickly pulled back. “Sounds crazy but it’s true.”
I wanted to ask him how he planned on getting us out of here. There had to be a plan. Hopefully. I couldn’t imagine that he busted up in Daedalus and hadn’t thought about a way out. It wasn’t like I hadn’t been thinking about how to escape. There was just no foreseeable escape route. I licked my lips. Daemon’s eyes flared.
“What if…?” I swallowed, keeping my voice low. “What if this is our future?”
“No.” The arm around my waist drew me forward, and an instant later I was pressed against his front. His mouth moved against the sensitive spot under my ear as he spoke in a low whisper. “This isn’t our future, Kitten. I promise you.”
I sucked in a sharp breath. Memories of being this close to him hadn’t done the real thing any justice. The hardness of his chest against mine scrambled my thoughts, but it was his words that flooded my body with warmth. Daemon never promised something he didn’t hold to.
Fitting my head in the space between his neck and shoulder, I inhaled the smell of soap and the outdoorsy scent that was uniquely his. “Say it,” I whispered.
His hand slid up my spine, leaving a wake of shivers. “Say what, Kitten?”
“You know.”
He rubbed his chin in my hair. “I love…my car, Dolly.”
My lips cracked into a tiny grimace. “That’s not it.”
“Oh.” His voice dripped innocence. “I know. I love
“You’re such a douche.”
He laughed softly. “But you love me.”
“I do.” I pressed a kiss against his shoulder.
There was a pause, and I felt his heart rate kick up. Mine quickly matched his. “I love you,” he said, voice gruff. “I love you more than anything.”
I let myself rest against him, probably relaxing for the first time since I’d gotten there. It wasn’t that I felt stronger because he was there, though in a way I was. But it was because I now had someone on my side, someone who had my back. I wasn’t alone in this, and if it had been the other way around, I would’ve done the same thing he’d done. I doubted—
The door to the cell opened suddenly, and Daemon stiffened just like I did. Over his shoulder I saw Sergeant Dasher and Nancy Husher. Behind the incredibly douchetastic duo was Archer and another guard.
“Are we interrupting?” Nancy asked.
Daemon snorted. “No. We were just saying how sad we were that you guys weren’t visiting us.”
Nancy clasped her hands. In her black pantsuit, she looked like a walking ad for women who hate color. “For
