Page 201 of Code Bound
“This is bullshit!” Svetlana shouts. “I deserve so much more than this! I am easily the strongest, most beautiful, best member of this team!”
I raise my brow at her and laugh. “You know what? You’re right. Maybe the next Tier will have bigger upgrades.”
“It better,” she huffs, crossing her forelegs and pouting. “Such bullshit.” She looks around. “I’m going to go get a drink.”
Then she launches off my shoulder and flies off to the bar. There’s no bartender, but she doesn’t seem to mind. I watch as she selects a bottle, tips it over, and pours it across the bar. Then she lands in the mess and starts to drink it straight from the counter.
“Your familiar is . . . odd,” Cipher says as I stand.
I laugh. “The system calling a talking bug odd when we’ve encountered so many other odd things is laughable.” I wave to Svetlana. “Don’t hurt yourself. I’m going to sleep.”
Svetlana straightens. “Alone or . . .”
I raise my brow. “Alone.”
Svetlana snorts. “For now, you mean,” she teases and then goes back to drinking liquor off the counter.
For now. My eyes trail over to Locke where he’s lounging against a table, his gaze staring off into the distance. When he sees me looking, he tilts up his chin to me, and I tilt mine up in return.
“Do you need anything?” I ask him.
Do you need me?I want to ask, but I keep things cordial. Locke has been through a lot of things in the month we’ve been here. I want to ask about Mother Remainder, but I want to give him time to come to me. I can’t force the information.
Do you want to come with me?floats in my mind. I could ask him to come to a room with me and I know he would come. But . . .
We’re all dancing around it, this desire. The pull that draws me toward Locke is so strong, sometimes it chokes me with its potency. I care about it, far more than I ever expected to, and it would hurt me if I ruined it. I have no doubt that he would come eagerly, but he needs some time to heal after the interaction with Madam Polly and the Rat Queen and . . . Mother Remainder?
“I’ll be okay,” he says, seemingly seeing my thoughts written all across my face. “Don’t worry about me. You go get some rest.”
“I do worry,” I tell him.
His eyes twitches. “It’s my job to worry about you.”
“Is it?” I tilt my head. “I thought we were taking care of each other.”
He smiles. “Tell you what. I’ll take care of you and if you happen to take care of me sometimes, I’ll try to allow it.”
My lips curl. “Deal.” I gesture toward Svetlana. “Can you make sure she makes it to my room?”
Locke shoots Svetlana a glare. “Perhaps.”
“Thank you,” I sigh. “Good rest.”
His eyes flick back to me at the Dross words. “Good rest.”
I slip away into the hall of doors and find one unlocked. The room is large, the bed larger than any others we’ve stayed in. This one has been cleaned recently, the bed made up with sheets that look like I’ll be sleeping on a cloud.
“Fancy,” I say, looking around the room. I reach for the edge of my shirt.
Cipher sighs. “How many times do you think I will witness this moment?”
I pause. “What do you mean?”
“This. You. Witnessing you undressing.” He sighs deeper. “I wish I could touch you.”
My fingers fall away. I open my mouth, close it, open it again. There are so many things I want to say, so many things I should say. He shouldn’t be watching me, and even if he is, why does it matter when he’s just a machine? I should ask why he thinks he has the right to say such things about me, why he thinks I would ever let him touch me.
But . . .
