Page 97 of Hart's Redemption

A darkness passed behind his eyes almost too fast to catch, and if it hadn’t been for the sudden anxiety that entered his scent, I might have dismissed it.

“What?”

“It’s just a house, Josh.”

I shook my head. “It’syourhouse.”

“Rental,” he corrected.

I rolled my eyes and pushed up to a seated position. “Semantics.” Perhaps now would be a good time to tell him the cottage was actually his and had always been. The amount of digging through layers of trusts to determine the actual ownermight have been daunting for anyone else, but for me, it was regular due diligence on the assigned Pack Liaison.

“I was kind of hoping we could take a bit of a vacation. We’ve certainly earned it.”

I stole a kiss, then slithered out of the bed to get dressed. “And we can, but I want to take care of the situation in Adler Springs first.”

The whisper of sheets betrayed Elijah’s movement. “It’s not like they’re going anywhere.”

A response to my earlier message to Lombardi came through, letting me know that the pocket portal would be ready whenever we were. I slipped on my vest, but didn’t bother with the buttons. “True. Let me at least check in, and then we can spirit ourselves away somewhere.” I chuckled to myself.

“What?”

I glanced back at him to find his pants on, but still undone, and no shirt. My libido attempted to rally, to no avail. Man was an extra treat, and he was all mine. I shook my head as tendrils of slated lust and desire lazily swirled within me. “In a sense, we’re doing everything backward.”

“How so?” He pulled on his shirt and walked over.

“First the bond, then the ‘I love yous’, death, marriage, then a proposal, now we’re speculating what amounts to a honeymoon before we even have a wedding.”

His smile lit up his face as he once again wrapped me in his embrace. “You might have a point there. I’m just not ready to share you with anyone yet.”

I kissed the side of his neck and rubbed his arms. “You win. We can go on vacation.”

The sheer brightness of his smile stole my breath away. “Perfect. I already have some ideas.”

“But…” His face immediately crumpled. “We should actually pack clothes, don’t you think?”

“We’ll order some when we get there.”

“Except I want my clothes,” I countered. When he opened his mouth to protest yet again, that was it. “Is something wrong with the cottage? Is that why you keep putting me off?”

“What? No, of course not.”

I stepped away from him and crossed my arms. “Then what is it? What aren’t you telling me?”

Elijah

I ran my hands through my hair, then pulled it into a low bun as if that had been my intention all along. I didn’t want to lie to him, but I also didn’t want to tell him the truth. He clearly didn’t know just how strained the relationship between myself and Conrad had become.

“I’m waiting.”

“There’s nothing wrong with the cottage. I just don’t see why you have to immediately jump into a difficult situation. Things are… complicated with the pack.”

His face fell and his arms loosened. “Did something happen while I was gone?” Suddenly, his face lit up with realization. “Seven hells, were you banished? You were, weren’t you? Of course you wouldn’t want to go back.” He threw his hands up as he paced in place, then whirled back. “How could you not tell me?”

“Josh.”

“This is all my fault.”

“Josh.”