Page 63 of Ripping the Odds

I glanced between them. “Do you want to go to the hospital with me to check on Kent?”

From Makari’s phone call earlier, Kent had surgery to repair a knife wound to one of his kidneys. He was out of immediate danger, or so we were told. I wouldn’t believe it until I saw it with my own eyes. Zak and I argued once already, but I wasn’t backing down. Kent was my bodyguard, and he got hurt protecting me. At the very least, I owed him a visit. Maybe even a good meal if he was allowed to eat. Hospital food sucked.

“Prudence.” He scrubbed a hand down his face.

“Zakhar,” I answered with equal amounts of exasperation in my voice.

When his head dropped back against his shoulders and he growled, I knew I’d won.

“Fine.” Right then he got a text. He looked at the screen, said, “But you’ll have to wait until Alexsei, Rurik, and Luka get here to take you.”

“Where are you going?” I eyed him suspiciously. “Work,” was all he said. After dumping the rest of his coffee in the sink, he crossed the room, kissed me breathless—not giving a damn that my sister and friend were in the room—then jogged up the steps to get changed.

“Damn.” Daria fanned her face. “You two are seriously combustible.”

“Thanks, I think.”

“I never had that with Charlie.”

“I haven’t had that with any man,” Lennon muttered.

We hadn’t known each other long, however she’d never mentioned any past relationships. Not one. All of a sudden, her silence stirred my curiosity. “When was your last boyfriend, Lennon?”

She looked away, avoiding my eyes. “Technically, I’ve never had one. I’ve gone on a few dates, but I wasn’t looking for anything serious then.”

“For the love of all things holy, are you a virgin?”

“Daria,” I whisper-shouted. “That’s none of our business.”

“Like hell it's not.” She softened her tone when she addressed Lennon. “You said you wished you had a sister, right? Well, now you’ve got two. Welcome to the family. So…virgin or not?”

“Jesus, I need to buy you a filter. Ignore her, please.”

“It’s okay,” Lennon said even as her face turned cherry red. “It’s not like I’m keeping state secrets. I’m not a virgin, but it’s been a while.”

“How long is a while? Like do you need to dust off the cobwebs?”

Forget the filter, I was going to buy my sister a muzzle. Sometimes I underestimated her need for intrusion. She couldn’t help herself really. Daria was a fixer. It’s what made her such an amazing physical therapist, and it’s also why she typically dated bad boys with issues. She needed a man with the ability to handle her wild nature without trying to diminish it in any way. I hoped she would meet him soon.

She grimaced. “Eight years?”

“Are you asking us?” My sister snorted.

“No. It’s been eight years.”

“Damn. And I thought eight months was a long time.”

“Wait.” I did the math in my head. “You and Charlie only broke up a few months ago.”

“Which was why I wasn’t exactly heartbroken when I dumped him.”

“Why didn’t you say anything to me?”

“Like what? My boyfriend doesn’t want to have sex with me anymore? Yeah, that’s a conversation I want to have with my big sister.”

“Daria.”

“Prudence.”