Page 21 of Give Me Peace

‘’Go on, then,” Saylor encourages, but I can see the amusement dancing in her eyes.

“Sugar,” I declare. “Love it. Gotta have it. I’ll take it in any form, even raw, straight from the canister.” She nods, like that makes perfect sense and it’s completely normal.

“And I hate creepy ass lizards and their slippery little body’s.” I shiver like she did, but mine’s more of a full-body convulsion.

“Hmm, not sure that one counts since I already knew about it,” Saylor jokes, biting back a grin. Fuck, it feels good to be the one helping her escape for a while. I know it won’t last, but she’s okay right now, if only for the moment.

“You, my little Puddin’-Pop, are absolutely right.” I boop her nose, causing her eyes to temporarily cross as she tries to follow the movement. I think I’ve stunned her, but I hammer on. “Let me expand upon that. My phobia actually lies with all things that aren’t snuggly. You got a spider than needs squishing? I am not your man. If you see a snake, pretend you didn’t and never, ever tell me about it. If it’s an insect of any variety, I can offer you some bug spray but that’s about it. I will, however, bake you some kickass cupcakes.” I spread my arms, wiggling my fingers as if to say, ‘I’m a catch, huh?’.

“That’s…” Saylor pauses, contemplating her next words as she nibbles on her bottom lip. “That’s okay. I can squash your spiders. And snakes? Never heard of ‘em. Folklore, I’m sure. As for the bugs, we’ll get a zapper, and if that doesn’t work, you can hold the hairspray while I strike the match.”

I think I just fell in love. Not in a sexual way. God, that’s…not something Saylor’s ready for just yet. But I’m ass over teakettle for who she is as a person. That’s the purest fucking thing anyone’s ever said to me, and I think she actually means it. Saylor’s the kind of loyal that would risk life and limb to flame roast bugs with me. And if I’m anywhere near that catastrophe waiting to happen, you can bet your ass it’ll involve bodily harm. In other words, she’s a fucking keeper.

“Deal.” I clear my throat of emotion, holding out my hand for her to shake. She wavers but takes it eventually. “Gotta say, Gumdrop. I think I came out on top with this arrangement.”

“That’s because you’re under the impression I can cook, when in reality, I burn water. I’m going to get cupcakes, that’s a win no matter how you look at it.” I laugh, rising to my feet when I notice she’s preparing to get up. I offer her my hand, but she sucks in a sharp breath when I gently tug her forward. Trying a different route, Saylor moves to her knees first, then slowly gets her feet underneath her. I help keep her steady, but my free hand fists tighter with every pained exhale that leaves her lips. I know all too well how badly she’s hurting right now.

I’ve got x-rays for days that paint a grim timeline of my years spent in Hell. Some breaks were clean, while others never healed right because they weren’t treated properly to begin with. My right shoulder dislocates far easier than it should from the numerous times it’s been snapped out of place. But I’d still add to it, take on all of Saylor’s pain, if I could.

“You, okay?” I lean down so we’re eye to eye.

“Yeah,” she nods her head. “I just haven’t had any pain medication today. We left the hospital really fast and it slipped my mind.” Fuck. Her forgetting is one thing, but those two grown ass men know better. And they say I’m the one who doesn’t take shit seriously.

“Alright, let’s get you inside and drugged so good, you’re counting unicorn farts within the hour.” I keep my hand on her elbow, steering us toward the path of least resistance as we navigate the thick sand.

“Is there something special about these unicorns that would make me want to count their farts?” Saylor asks, likely to take her mind off the forty more feet we have to go.

“Oh, yeah. They also shit sparkles, but that’s a different type of drug, meant for far different circumstances.” She laughs, the sound short and sweet, but it hits me right in the feels. When we finally make it the house, Saylor’s panting and sweat dampens her skin. It’s been a hot minute since she’s been out in the sun. We should’ve had her put some SPF on. The temperature shift once we’re inside is glorious. I walk us to the kitchen, get her seated on one of the barstools, and fix us both a glass of water. Loch and Ro come sauntering in a second later, and if looks could kill, they’d both drop like those bugs Saylor and I plan to barbeque.

“Has the heat made you ornery?” Roan, being the giant, annoying fucker he is, ruffles my hair as he walks by.

“No, the fact that Saylor hasn’t had a single thing for pain today has me ornery,” I snap, my glare dripping with accusation. They both look at each other, then me. And then back to each once again.

“What the fuck,” Roan demands, while Lochlan asks, “How the hell did we let that happen?” at the same time.

“It’s okay,” Saylor interrupts, her voice soft and unsure. “It was a crazy morning. No one’s at fault.” Not true, but I bite my tongue, not wanting to stress her out even more. Apparently, Lochlan has the same idea because he has the pills ready a second later. She needs to eat again if she’s going to take those, so I get busy making us a grilled cheese.

“You’ve only got a few more in this bottle, so one of us will run out first thing tomorrow to get your refill,” Loch tells her, watching as she pops them in her mouth and washes them down with the water I gave her. A couple minutes later, I’m plating a perfectly cooked cheese sandwich. I cut it in half, creating two triangles, and move to stand across from Saylor. Placing it on the counter between us, I give her a goofy grin.

“Whatcha say, Sugar-Britches? Wanna go halfsies?” I waggle my eyebrows. She rolls her eyes playfully but picks up her side as I pick up mine. We tap them together in a ‘cheers’ motion before taking a bite.

Heaven. Gooey, cheesy heaven.

“Yum.” Saylor moans, going in for more. I preen, happy I’ve contributed in some way. She ate that whole muffin earlier, without even noticing, and it looks like she’s going to finish this off, too. We’ll be slinging back pizza in no time. Saylor thanks me as I rinse the empty plate of any crumbs and place it in the dishwasher. I’m just about to tell her it was no problem when Krew comes flying from our office, hollering for Loch.

“What’s wrong?” Ro comes around the corner at the same time. Attached at the asshole, those two.

“Kade just came through the gate,” Krew fires off quickly, tossing a bomb at our feet. It’s silent for all of a second, then the panicking commences. Meltdowns are always better when we’re together.

“Why the fuck is he so early?” I ask no one in particular.

“Because he probably switched his flight so he could get home sooner. I booked it for later to avoid this exact thing, but he’s an impatient asshole and he hates California. I should’ve known he wouldn’t stay there a second longer than he had to,” Krew gripes while rubbing at his temples. The faint sound of the garage door clicking into place makes us all scatter.

“Come here, Saylor.” Roan holds his hand out, and then guides her behind him. Her eyes are wide with worry.

This shouldn’t be happening like this. We were dumb as shit to not sit her down as soon as they got here so we could explain everything. When the door finally opens, we’ve formed a wall in front of Saylor, but it’ll mean jack shit to Kade. He’d tear his own arm off to reach her, so there’s no telling what the scrappy fucker will do to us.

Chapter Twelve