Page 100 of Her Selfless Warrior (Omega Sky)
“Look, this is something I should have just talked to you about a week ago. It’s really no big deal.”
Kostya stroked back her hair and gave her a soft kiss. Even a kiss that he meant only to give for comfort, shook him. Lark tasted different each time. Tonight she was strength, moonlight, and raspberries and he wanted more, but he pulled back. Smiling, he tapped the end of her nose.
“Even if it isn’t a big deal, tell me about it.”
Lark snuggled closer to him. “First, you need to know that Harris got gone the moment Mom saw what was going on. I’ve never seen her flip her shit like she did that day.”
Kostya had no doubt that Beatrice Allen would have ripped the head off anyone who was abusing her daughter.
“Tell me about it.”
“Looking back on it, it wasn’t so bad. He never even hit me. Not once. The fact that I cringe or flinch pisses me off. You know?” She rolled her eyes.
Lark relaxed into his caresses as he cuddled her closer. “That’s looking back on it,Sólnce,but you know better than that. What matters is how you were feeling back then.”
She let out a deep sigh. “You’re sounding like Amy.”
“Didn’t a psychologist tell you this?”
“Again, you’re sounding like Amy. Mom dragged me to one after she booted Harris. I went for a year. It was a waste of time.”
Kostya tucked that little nugget away. If something big ever happened, it would take quite a bit of finessing to get Lark to go into counseling.
“So, you’ve talked to Amy about this? Can you tell me?”
“Again, I repeat, it’s not a big deal. Harris Evans only ever got out of line with my grandmother. I know he hit her, but almost always it was in some other room where I couldn’t see.”
“But sometimes you did see, right?” Kostya interrupted.
“Sometimes,” Lark reluctantly agreed. “But only a few times. Mostly, I only heard it happen. I also heard him yell that if she didn’t do what he said he’d hurt the brat.” Lark gave a weak grin as she looked up at him. “That’d be me, I was the brat. Imagine that.”
Yep, that was his Lark, hiding her pain behind humor. Kostya hated the way she was minimizing all of this.
“Kostya, you’re getting that Navy SEAL protective look on your face. This was a long time ago. Harris is in some old-folks-home now, eating mush and he can’t remember his name. He’s nothing. Seems to me he got his comeuppance.”
He eased his fingers underneath her hair so he could massage her scalp and tried a different tack. “How’s your grandmother doing now?”
“She’s doing great. These days she’s hiking with her friends, but mostly she’s focused on Mom’s philanthropic foundation. Mom did a good thing when she put Nonnie on the board.”
“So no men on the horizon for your grandmother or your mom?”
Lark shook her head. “That’s not true. Nonnie might actively avoid men, but Mom dates sometimes. Look, I get what you’re trying to say, Kostya. But I’ve mostly worked my way through this, okay?”
He sighed, then smiled down at her. “Okay.”
She rubbed her nose against his chest. “But things are looking up for me, aren’t they? Or am I reading too much into things?”
“Are you asking if I mean to be a big part of your future? If you are, then you can count on it.”
Her eyes shimmered liquid silver. “I’d like that. I’d like that a lot.”
* * *
“Waitfor me to come open your door,” Kostya said.
“You’re kidding, right?”
Kostya gave her a look that said he wasn’t kidding.
