I frown.
And there’s silence stretching between us. It’s like he’s looking me over for a reaction.
“What’s on your mind?” he finally asks.
Okay, out with it then.
“Are you into organized crime, Killian?”
He grabs my hand. “No.”
I search his face. I don’t think he’s telling me everything.
“Are you keeping me on a need-to-know basis?”
“Yes,” he immediately says.
I frown some more.
“Trust me,” he requests and the look in his eyes stops me cold.
I say nothing.
“You have become the most important person in my life quickly, Violet. Can I ask you to trust me?”
The most important person in his life? I’m shocked.
He cups my jaw and caresses the apple of my cheek with his thumb. I lean in and feel my eyes drift closed, emotion engulfing me as he adds, “I won’t let anything happen to you. I won’t put you in any dangerous situation. Can you trust me? Please? Even if that’s hard?”
“It’s not hard,” I reply instantly. “I trust you, Killian.”
Tension leaves his face.
“Do you want some soup?” I lean over and lift the spoon and put it in.
“Not too hungry.”
He sits up a little, so I lift the bowl closer and hold the spoon out. “Just a little? I made it for you from almost scratch.”
He gets a twinkle in his eye as I feed it to him.
“I like this,” he says after swallowing, his voice dropping to a lower octave.
“My soup?”
“Yeah, but not just that. This.”
“Me taking care of you?” I ask.
“Yeah. Waking up to you. Having you here. Having you look after me. Nobody has ever done that. Not since my grandmother. But she didn’t baby me. She knew the family I was born into, I’d have to learn self-sufficiency. So I did.”
“No? Not when you were sick?”
He shakes his head. “My mother wasn’t motherly.”
“That’s sad. Every child needs some babying, at least sometimes.”
I get a slightly sad smile and a shrug from him. Killian doesn’t feel sorry for himself; it’s clear he doesn’t blame his upbringing on his problems. Unlike Ray. Ray used any crutch he could as an excuse. What polar opposites they are.
“Another bite?” I offer.
He opens his mouth and I spoon some in and then he leans back.
“That’s awesome, baby.”
“Glad you like it. I used wild rice instead of noodles. Makes it more interesting, I think.”
“One more bite and that’s all I can manage.”
I give him that, then tuck him in a little bit and I kiss his forehead. His fingers tangle into my hair briefly before he kisses my mouth, holding me there an extra-long beat.
“I’m sorry, baby.”
“For what?”
“For what you went through last night,” he says softly, eyes fiery with emotion.
I can’t tell if it’s anger, pain, or what, but it makes my heart skip a beat.
“It’s not your fault. You gonna sleep for a bit?” I ask, rubbing my nose against the side of his.
“Gonna try,” he replies softly. “Climb in with me. Put something on television.”
“Halloween movie? Beetlejuice?” I suggest.
“Whatever you want. Just wanna feel you here.”
I climb in, snuggle up, and kiss his jaw on the non-bruised side, doing my best not to touch anything that might hurt.
“I called my boss,” I say, “Told her what happened. She says I can work remotely for a few days this week to take care of you.”
“Yeah? In that case, tomorrow we should drive to my other place.”
“What other place?”
“Got a place right on the water near Tillamook. We can relax there.”
“Is there Wi-Fi?”
“Yep.”
“Then I can do that.”
“Cool,” he says, eyes lighting up. “We’ll go in the morning. I’ll have Patricia get it stocked for groceries.” He grabs his phone and taps out a message.
“Okay.” I nuzzle in. “Tell me about it.”
“It’s a pit. Bought it a few months ago, but haven’t got far. Spot is gorgeous. House is huge and has good bones, but needs a lot of work to update it. Large lot. Water right there. I think you’ll like it. There’s a barn, big workshop, room for a garden. Maybe even a vegetable stand at the end of the driveway…” He lets that hang and when my face goes hot, he smiles and wiggles his eyebrows. He’s talking about my little girl dream of having a place like that.
He chuckles. “Don’t look so freaked, Violet. I’d love your take on décor. Already got work underway in the basement, but the main floor and upstairs, could certainly use a woman’s input.”
“Let me guess… man cave basement?” I ask.
He smiles wide. “Completely. Well, it will be when it’s done. Already got construction started.”
“So typical,” I roll my eyes lightheartedly.
He chuckles again and then groans and grabs his side.
“Rest. We’ll tell jokes later,” I say and kiss him.
He turns into me as I search the TV menu for the movie and a moment later, I look over and he’s asleep, mouth nuzzled into my shoulder.