Opposition

EPILOGUE

Eleven months later . . .

{ Katy }

Bright sunlight streamed in through the bedroom window of the townhome at the foothills of the Flatirons. An early bout of October snow had capped the tips of the mountains, turning them white.

It really was beautiful here in Colorado—the air fresh and trees everywhere. It reminded me of home, my old home, but with easy access to a lot more cool stuff.

Like Starbucks.

Which had reopened two months earlier, just in time for the return of the pumpkin spice latte, a sure sign mankind would trek on. Humans were probably the most resilient and stubborn creatures in all the universes.

Something the invading Luxen, those who’d managed to escape the Arum, had learned quickly. Days after the battle, while our little group had holed up in Northern Virginia trying to decide how and where to move on, the remaining invading Luxen left.

It had been like a reverse D-Day.

Lights had flashed upward in steady streams, all across the world, for several hours. It had been a sight to see, just like it had been when they’d come. Something I would never forget.

But we all knew that there still could be some here, and there was no stopping them from coming back. Maybe one day they would, but if I’d learned anything in the last two years, it was that I could not look toward the future if I lived in the past.

It was hard.

Not a day went by that I didn’t think of my mom. Like with my dad, it got a little easier, but there were days when something would happen or I’d just get bored or want to talk to her, and I’d reach for my phone, seconds away from calling her when I’d realize she wasn’t there, that she’d never be there.

Those days were rough, full of tears and anger. I wanted to resurrect Ethan just so I could kick him in his junk and kill him all over again. The fury and helplessness and, oh God, the hurt could be so raw some days. If it weren’t for Daemon and my friends—my new family—it would be unbearable.

I glanced over my shoulder.

Daemon rested against the headboard of the king-size bed—a bed big enough for half of my economics class. His arms were folded behind his head, one leg bent at the knee. No shirt. Just faded denim jeans, and I knew for a fact that that seriously was all. The corded biceps drew my gaze and I soaked in the naturally tan expanse of his chest and the tightly rolled muscles of his stomach. To this day, I had no idea how he got that dip on either side of his hips. Like what kind of sit-ups does one do for that? The only time I sat up from lying down was to get out of bed.

Or get some chocolate.

Or a book.

But yeah, Daemon Black . . . well, he totally made it bearable.

He winked one green eye, and somehow, when most guys would look all kinds of douchey, he made it look sexy. “Like what you see?”

I didn’t even dignify that with a response. Instead I faced my computer, my fingers hovering over the keys—the enter button to be exact. My heart was racing like it had been when Daemon and I had submitted our applications, the day the University of Colorado had finally opened their enrollment and resumed classes.

That had been major.

Still felt epic.

We both were doing something I thought we’d never be able to do. Going to college had seemed like a fantasy, but it had come true.

We were college students—Daemon and me.

Neither of us had declared a major yet. We had no idea what we wanted to do, but that was okay. We’d figure it out eventually.

“Just do it,” Daemon said, his voice closer than I expected, causing me to jump. His chuckle stirred loose strands of hair around my temple. He tugged my ponytail, tipping my head back. He kissed me softly, almost making me forget what I was doing, and when he lifted his head, he grinned down at me from behind. “You’ve been obsessing over it for weeks. Do it.”

I bit my lip, still tasting him.

“Come on.” He picked up a pen off my desk and tapped the tip of my nose with it. I swatted at his hand, and he laughed. “Your inner book nerd will have a book nerd orgasm.”

My brows knitted. “That just . . . sounds weird and kind of gross.”

He snickered as he let go of my ponytail. His gaze landed on the screen of my brand-spanking-new MacBook that I’d protect with my last dying breath. I’d even named her Brittany, because she had to be a girl, and she was shiny and red and perfect and she might not have ten toes and ten fingers, but she was my baby.

And I loved her.

Taking a deep breath, I flexed my fingers. Daemon dropped his hands onto the arms of my chair and leaned over me. The warmth that rolled off him and trailed down my back turned the corners of my mouth up.

I hit publish and then sucked in a sharp breath as everything on the screen refreshed into a brand-spanking-new blog.

“Katy’s Krazy Book Obsession is alive once more.” He kissed my cheek. “You nerd.”

I laughed as some kind of weight drifted off my shoulders. “I think the pink and brown go well together.”

He grunted some sort of reply as my smile grew into creepy proportions. I almost clapped. And I almost got up, knocked Daemon over, and raced into our extra bedroom, where all my books—all my pretties—were.

After everything had gone down, Daemon and I had traveled back to my house. Archer had shown up with Dee, and the four of us had packed up all of the stuff. We’d managed to get my books shipped to Colorado once we decided that was where we were going to try to put down some roots.

The blog was a big deal to me. It wasn’t just pretending everything was fine or grasping at normalcy, but grabbing it by the ears and making it my bitch. Blogging about books was something I’d loved to do and missed fiercely. Books were a part of me that I was going to get back, starting now.

“Hey.” Daemon pointed at the screen. “You already have a follower.” A dark eyebrow cocked up. “The YA Sisterhood? Hmm. That kind of sounds like fun.”

I rolled my eyes so far it actually hurt. “You’re so perverted.”

He nipped my ear, causing me to wiggle in my chair. Leaning forward, I closed my laptop so I didn’t obsessively start following every blogger out there. I’d leave that for another day when I had more time.

As Daemon backed off and I pushed out of the chair, my gaze danced over the stack of magazines piled on the corner of the desk, wedding gown after wedding gown staring back at me, stealing my breath a little.

My gaze dropped to my left hand.

The shimmery diamond on my ring finger drew some major attention. Some days when the light hit it the right way, it would literally dazzle me into staring at it for several minutes.

We were going to get married, the whole deal—white gown, ceremony, bridesmaids and groomsmen, reception, DJ, and most importantly, the wedding cake. For real this time, under our legit names. The fake IDs were left behind, though I kind of missed them a little.

Kaidan Rowe was a Hottie McHotters.

But General Eaton had kept his promise. The ARP—Alien Registration Program—did not affect us, and as of today, no one had recognized either of us from the brief time the Vegas videos had been up on the internet.

The ARP was General Eaton’s and the government’s answer to weeding out any Luxen and Origins who may be flying the unfriendly skies. All Luxen, hybrids, Origins, and Arum were required to register—all except us. Some days I wondered if that would change, and it always caused knots of unease to form in my belly.

Now that the alien was really out of the bag, and with all the terrible things the invading Luxen had done, aliens weren’t all that . . . accepted in communities. Every day, there was something in the news about an attack on a suspected Luxen or colony. Many innocent Luxen had been injured in the past months and some . . . they’d been killed just because of what they were.

That was scary, knowing that someone you saw every day, who thought you were a nice and normal human, could turn on you so quickly once he or she realized that wasn’t what you were. And God forbid if the general populace learned how onyx and diamond, or even a low-dose Taser, could affect us.

Things weren’t easy or perfect, and the future seemed shaky at times, but life wasn’t wrapped up in neat little bows.

I ran my fingers over the multicolored tabs poking out of the tops of the magazines that marked pages with the gowns, decorations, and cakes I liked.

Daemon wasn’t much of a planner when it came to the whole wedding thing, even though it had been his idea, but whenever I dragged out one of those thick magazines, he didn’t moan and complain as I thumbed through it.

Although he seemed disturbingly fascinated with the selection of garter belts.

When I lifted my gaze, he watched me intently, in that all-consuming way that always made me feel like I was stripped bare for him.

A rush of warmth flowed through my veins. I bit down on my lip as I glanced at the clock on the wall.

“We have time,” Daemon said, voice rough as sandpaper.

I arched my brow even as my heart skipped a beat. “Time for what?”

“Uh-huh. Don’t play coy with me.” He walked around my abandoned chair, causing my stomach to dip in the most pleasant way as he stalked toward me. “I know what you’re thinking.”

“Do not.” I took a step back, my toes digging into the carpet.

“Do too,” he murmured, one side of his lips kicking up.

“That’s just your overactive ego and your wishful thinking talking.”

Dark eyebrows rose. “Is that so, Kitten?”

Fighting a grin, I nodded as I glanced at the clock again. We so had time. I shrugged.

Challenge flared, deepening the hue of his eyes to a forest green, and a burst of excitement went off inside me like a firecracker. “I think I can prove that’s not the case.”

“Whatever.”

In the blink of an eye, Daemon was in front of me. I started to yell at him, because I still hated that, but he captured my mouth in a searing kiss that went straight to my knees.

“All I need is ten minutes,” he said, voice gruff.

“What happened to only needing two minutes?”

Daemon chuckled as he reached down, caught the hem of my shirt, and tugged it over my head. “Well, what I plan to do is going to take a little longer than that.”

He was remarkably skilled at taking my clothes off in record time. Before I knew it, I was standing there, feeling a wee bit exposed.

Daemon stepped back, as if he was admiring his handiwork. “If I haven’t told you this before . . .” He dragged his gaze up, lingering on my chest until it felt like a physical touch. “I want you. I’ll always want you.”

“Always?” I whispered.

He stepped forward again, his hands closing around my arms as he lowered his head, brushing his lips along the curve of my cheek. “Always.”

My chest rose, grazing his. The sensation rocked me. He made a deep sound in the back of his throat that twisted up my insides. He kissed me again as his hands skimmed down my arms to settle around my waist. I shivered, and at this rate, I didn’t think he’d even need two minutes.

Daemon lifted me up, and I wrapped my legs around his waist. Not once did he break the kiss, and by the time my back hit the mattress, I was breathless with a thousand different kinds of wants.

“How many minutes do we have left?” he asked as he shucked off his jeans.

I smiled as he climbed over the top of me, and as he leaned down, the edges of his hair tickled my cheek. “I’ve totally forgotten about the minute thing.”

“Wow. Already?” he murmured against my lips and curled an arm around my waist, lifting me up so our bodies were pressed together at all the amazing points. “I’m a little amazed by my own skill.”

A laugh burst out of me, and he caught the sound with a grin and kiss, and then there really wasn’t room for laughing. He trailed a path of hot, tiny kisses across my forehead and then down, way down, where he lingered until he completely erased the whole idea of time and the fact we had things to do.

When he rose again, my body was shaking as our hips met. “Kat, God . . . I love you.”

There would never come a time when I’d grow tired of hearing those words or experiencing just how much he truly did love me. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, raining kisses across his cheek, his lips, and when his control shattered, I went along with it.

I don’t know how long he moved while I was awash in a riot of sensations, but when I opened my eyes and his face was pressed against my neck, his brilliant light flickered over the ceiling.

A lazy, contented smile pulled at my lips as he lifted his head and placed a kiss to my damp temple, and I fell in love all over again. When he rolled onto his side, he tugged me right along with him, and I rested my head on his chest, listening to the rapid thrum of his heart matching the pace in my chest.

At some point, Daemon looked over his shoulder and cursed under his breath. “We have ten minutes before they show up.”

“Holy crap!” I shot up, smacking his chest.

He laughed as I scrambled off the bed. “Where are you going?”

“I need to shower.” I tugged my hair out of the ponytail and then twisted it high up. Hurrying around the bed, I shot him a look.

His gaze was trained way below my face. “You don’t need to shower.”

“Yes I do!” I threw open the bathroom door. “I smell like—like you!”

Daemon’s deep laugh followed me into the quickest shower I’d ever taken, which was surprising, because he hopped in and bathed like a total dude. Some soap here. Some soap there. That was all.

I hated boys.

There was enough time for me to grab the gift bag from my makeshift library of awesome books and run down the stairs before the front door rang.

Daemon slid past me, reaching the door as I placed the pink gift bag on the couch. He shot me a look. “You still smell like me.”

My mouth dropped open.

He threw open the door before I could shriek and run back upstairs. And I was sure I looked really weird, because our guests stood at the door, wearing identical WTF expressions.

Or else freaking Archer was peeping in my head.

His amethyst-colored eyes glimmered with amusement. “Maybe.” He drew the word out, and my eyes narrowed.

“You really need to stop doing that.” Dee brushed past him, her thick, curly hair trailing out behind her like a glossy high-def cape. “You know what he did yesterday?”

“Do I even want to know?” Daemon muttered.

Archer stepped in. “No.”

“Great.”

“We were at Olive Garden, and by the way, thank you for talking up the endless breadsticks crap, because I think we’ve eaten there like ten times this month, and I’m going to start smelling like garlic,” Dee went on, plopping in the recliner and tapping her ballet flats on the floor.

“I like their soup and salad,” he said, shrugging as he walked over to the armchair and sat down.

Daemon’s forehead wrinkled.

“Anyway,” Dee said. “I thought our waitress was checking him out. Like nonstop. Like I wasn’t even there.”

That was hard to imagine, treating Dee like she wasn’t there.

“So I was, you know, doing something normal,” she said.

“Normal?” Archer barked out a short laugh. “She was fantasizing running the poor waitress over with the car. Like in complete gory detail.”

One slender shoulder rose as she shrugged. “Like I said, you shouldn’t look into people’s thoughts and then complain about what you see.”

“I wasn’t necessarily complaining,” he said, leaning down so his mouth brushed the curve of her ear. “If I remember correctly, I’d told you that it was kind of hot and that it made me want—”

“All right,” Daemon shouted. “That is stuff I just don’t even want to think about.”

Dee frowned at her brother. “What? You think we don’t have wild—”

“Stop,” he warned, waving his hand. “Seriously. I barely like him as it is, so please don’t make me want to hurt him.”

“But I like you,” Archer replied.

Daemon shot him a look that would send most running in the opposite direction. “I really regret suggesting that Dee get a place here. I wouldn’t have done it if I knew that was an invite when it came to you.”

“Where I go,” Dee chirped, “he goes. We’re like a two-for-one special. Deal with it or get over it.”

My smile grew when Dee’s eyes, so much like her brothers’, met mine. It was another thing I thought about a lot. The “what ifs” of everything, like what if Dee hadn’t broken the hold the Luxen held over her. Would she have died in the fight or would she have survived, only to leave Earth or be hunted down?

Losing Dee, on top of what happened to my mother, was something I don’t think I ever would’ve gotten over. And Daemon? I didn’t want to even think about how he would’ve been affected. It would’ve broken him, almost had when Dee stood against us.

She glanced at the small pink bag as she tucked her hair back. “What’s in there?”

“Oh!” I snatched up the bag. “Something I had ordered.”

Daemon shrugged when Archer glanced at him. “I don’t know what it is. She hasn’t told me.”

Excited about my find, I reached inside the bag and held up the one-piece sleeper for their inspection. “What do you think?”

Daemon’s brows rose as he read the words in black block lettering. “Boyfriends Are Better in Books?”

Giggling, I placed it on the arm of the chair. “I think Dawson and Beth will appreciate it.”

Archer looked confused. “I don’t get it.”

“I’m not surprised,” Dee responded drily. “I think it’s adorable.”

“Me, too.” I folded it up and tucked it back into the bag. “I’m going to get her addicted to book boyfriends at a young age.”

“Her.” Archer shook his head as he blew out a breath. “I don’t know how long it’s going to take for me to get used to hearing that.”

“You need to, because I doubt that’s going to change any time soon,” Daemon responded.

“How do you know?” Archer shrugged. “She’s one of the first female Origins ever. Who knows what that kid will be capable of.”

“Well, I seriously doubt changing genders is one of them.” Dee wrinkled her nose. “At least I hope not, because that would be weird.”

Dawson and Beth had brought the surprise to end all surprises into the world when Beth gave birth to a baby girl, so much so that the first thing I thought of was Nessie, and then I couldn’t stop cackling for like fifteen minutes.

“You guys ready?” Archer asked. He was already at the door, holding it open. “Guess who I heard from this morning?” He paused as Daemon strutted past him. “No, jackass, it wasn’t Justin Bieber and I’m not in love with him. What the hell?”

Daemon chuckled.

“Who?” I asked before the whole conversation derailed.

He smiled at me as the door shut, locking behind me. Dee was already calling shotgun on the Jeep Archer was driving. “Hunter checked in. He was wondering how everyone was doing.”

I exchanged a look with Daemon as he took my hand. We’d heard from him and Serena a few months ago. They’d been planning on moving out of his brother’s house, heading west. “Did he move?”

“Yeah, he’s actually not that far from here. I think he settled in Boulder or somewhere close, since Serena’s from around here.” Archer fished out his car keys and we picked up the conversation once Daemon and I had piled into the back. “I imagine you might be getting a visit from them, sooner or later.”

“Great,” Daemon muttered.

Every Saturday we made the drive to their house. Even though the baby was old enough to go out and about, it wouldn’t be . . . um, the brightest idea. The baby had an odd habit of moving things without touching them, doing the eye-glowy thing, and last week, she’d levitated.

Right off the floor.

The house was on an acre of land, and thick trees gave the front of the house much-needed privacy. Dawson answered the door, smiling as he let us in. I frowned, because he looked different.

Dee stretched up, rubbing his head. “Is this a dad haircut?”

Ah. That. His hair was shorter now, cut close along the sides and a little longer on the top. It looked good on him. Then again, the brothers could go bald and they’d still look great.

“I like it,” Archer said, grinning because it was nearly identical to his haircut.

Beth appeared in the doorway leading to the living room. Propped against her hip was a smiling baby with a head full of dark curls. “I ordered Chinese,” she said, wincing. “I was going to make lasagna, but . . .”

“Oh! Chinese is fine with us.” Dee sent me a look as she hurried down the hall, immediately going for the baby’s cheeks.

We all had learned quickly that Beth couldn’t boil water. Ordering out was the much better option.

We were herded into the living room, and I couldn’t help but be amazed by how different Beth looked. Her hair was pulled up in a high ponytail, her face fresh and glowing. She still had moments of . . . darkness and when she didn’t seem to have a tight grasp on reality, but she was much, much better.

Daemon placed the gift bag on the end table where toys covered one corner of the living room. In the center of the stuffed animals and dolls were baby blocks spelling out a name.

Ashley.

It was beyond kind and perfect that Dawson and Beth had decided to name her after Ash. If it hadn’t been for her sacrifice, the three of them wouldn’t be here today.

“You see that?” Dawson’s gaze followed mine, and his prideful grin was hard to miss. “She did that this morning.”

My mouth dropped open. “She spelled her own name?”

“Yep.” Beth glanced at Dawson. “Ash was on her mat, playing with her toys, and the next thing we know, she’s spelled her name.”

Dee sat on a love seat beside Archer, pouting. “I couldn’t spell my name until I was, like, in the first grade, and that’s really sad, because my name is, like, three letters.”

I laughed.

“Want to hold her?” Beth asked.

It would be rude to say no, so I nodded and lifted my arms awkwardly. I wasn’t good with the whole holding-babies thing, even after they weren’t newborns and could easily hold their heads up. I just never knew what to do with them once I had them in my hands. Like, should I rock them? Bounce them up and down? And dear God, what was I supposed to say to them?

A second later, the little bundle of Origin was in my hands, with big, purple-colored eyes fixed right on mine, and I seriously hoped the kid wasn’t reading my thoughts and understanding any of what I was thinking.

Because I was a little concerned about accidentally dropping her.

As I lifted little Ashley closer to my chest, she was quick to grab hold of two of my fingers and squeeze. Hard. I laughed. “Wow. She’s got a grip on her.”

“She’s pretty strong.” Dawson smiled as Beth sat beside him on the couch. “Just the other day, she threw her teddy from the living room clear into the kitchen.”

“Damn,” Archer murmured.

“Maybe she can be a softball player,” Dee suggested.

Beth’s laugh was light and surprisingly carefree. “If she gets any stronger, I’m afraid she’s going to throw something through a wall.”

“Well, that would be awkward,” I said to Ashley, who just giggled in response. Her gaze flickered over my shoulder, and I could feel Daemon drawing closer. Her stare was serious, curious as she studied him. “I’m not sure she likes you.”

He laughed. “Everyone likes me.”

Archer snorted.

Daemon brushed his lips over my cheek as he circled his arms around my waist, holding me as I held Dawson and Beth’s child. Ashley reached out with one short arm, splaying her chubby fingers alongside his jaw.

Like always, she was absolutely fascinated with touching his face.

Maybe one day, I’d be holding our child. Who knew? But it would be a long, long time from now, like decades from now, and I wasn’t sure that day might ever come. The idea of raising a child was still something foreign to the both of us, and we preferred it that way. As Daemon’s arms tightened around my waist, I knew we’d be happy if it was just the two of us, or three of us. But I was really hoping that the third member of our family would turn out to be a puppy or a kitten. Babies seemed like a lot of work.

Ashley’s gaze trailed back to mine, and as I cooed and smiled at her, her little bow-shaped lips parted in a big grin and the dark pupils in the center of her eyes suddenly lightened, turning a brilliant shade of white.

“She’s special,” Daemon murmured.

That she was.

“You’re still more special,” he whispered into my ear, and I laughed as I leaned back into his embrace.

I looked up, my gaze traveling over the faces of those sitting in the room. Dee. Archer. Dawson. Beth. And then I found myself staring into Ashley’s glowing eyes. She’d finally stopped feeling up Daemon’s face and rested her head under my chin, making little murmuring noises as she appeared to soak everything in like a sponge.

Dee and Beth started talking about the wedding—my wedding—and what colors they hoped I decided on. I think Dee was praying for pink. Archer and Dawson sat between them, looking thoroughly confused by the whole conversation. My smile felt permanently plastered across my face.

No matter how rough the future got, this was my family, and I would do anything to keep them safe, even if one of them was currently drooling all over my shirt.

A knock on the door pulled me out of my thoughts, and when my gaze swept across the room, it landed on Archer. He was grinning like a fool.

“Who could that be?” Daemon asked. “We’re all here.”

Dawson stood. “I have no idea. Let me check.”

I kept staring at Archer and my stomach tumbled. Is it?

Archer’s grin spread.

Turning toward the entryway, my breath held in my throat, and then Dawson was strolling back into the room. Behind him was someone we hadn’t seen since we’d left Montana.

Luc strolled into the room, his long-legged pace easy and fluid, and holy crap, he’d grown even taller since the last time I’d seen him. “How dare you guys have a get-together and not invite me.”

My lips broke into a wide grin, and I almost—almost—ran over and hugged him, because of so many reasons. But I didn’t, because I knew Luc wasn’t the hugging type.

Dee, however, didn’t get that.

She jumped up from where she sat like there was a spring beneath her and got to Luc before he could react, enfolding him in one of her epic hugs. His slightly wide eyes met mine over Dee’s shoulder.

It was hard calling Luc a friend, but I liked to think he was one, and my heart ached for him. As far as we knew, the serum—the Prometheus serum—hadn’t done what he’d hoped for Nadia. That was the sucky thing about Daedalus. In some ways, they’d had good intentions, and maybe if they’d had more time, they’d have been able to craft a medicine that would eradicate most human diseases.

But not everyone got their happy ending.

When he finally got free of Dee, he ended up in front of Daemon and me. He wasn’t really looking at us, but studying Ashley like I was holding a new species in my arm.

Which I totally was.

In a low voice, I asked, “How are you doing?”

Luc shrugged. “You know, I’m doing my thing like a chicken wing.”

My brow arched.

Daemon sounded like he choked. “Did you seriously just say that?”

“I did and I’m cool like that.”

I smiled as I watched him tilt his head to the side. “Are you still with the Origins?”

He nodded as he squinted at Ashley. “For the time being. I think it’s good for them, because like I said, I’m pretty damn cool and they’re learning from the best.”

No one in the room responded to that, because well, Luc was . . . Luc. Yeah, the Origin kids were better off now that Nancy wasn’t around and neither was Daedalus, but what in the world could Luc be teaching them?

I was pretty sure I didn’t want to know. And I also didn’t want to know who was watching over them while he was here.

“Can I?” Luc asked, extending his arms.

My gaze found Beth’s and she nodded. “Sure.”

Luc took Ashley from my hands like he had a lot of experience holding really small people. He hoisted her up, and Ashley seemed to look back at him like she was studying him.

“Hey there,” Luc said.

Ashley responded by smacking a baby palm against his cheek with one hand and then grasping his hair with the other.

“That means she likes you,” Dawson said, hovering between Beth and Luc.

“Interesting,” he murmured.

Ashley hooted or did some kind of weird baby laugh, and Luc cracked a grin. “You’re something special,” he said, echoing what Daemon had said earlier.

Watching Luc turn with Ashley, facing Dawson and Beth, I was only vaguely listening to the conversation they started. Something to do with potato chips, mayo, and awkward locations, and that was all I wanted to hear about that.

“Kitten?” murmured Daemon.

I turned my head slightly and, like always, I was simply struck by him, had been from the first time I’d knocked on his door and wanted to punch him in the face. He was mine, all of him—the prickly side and the warm, playful, and loving side.

“What?”

His lips brushed my ear as he whispered a string of words that widened my eyes and scalded my cheeks. And I recognized the words.

They were what he’d written on the note he’d passed to me in class so long ago.

“You game for that?” he asked, eyes burning a luminous green. “I’m really hoping so. Been thinking about it for, like, two years. Don’t let me down, Kitten.”

My heart thumped like thunder in my chest as I said the truest words ever. “I’m game for anything with you, Daemon Black.”