Dealers' Choice - Susan Hayes Page 0,35

fast it was almost painful. He checked his internal clock, paused, then checked it again. He’d slept for five solid hours. That couldn’t be right. He hadn’t done that since he’d stopped being a Reaper.

He sat up and scanned the room. Ward sprawled on the far side of the bed, still deep asleep. Another gift from Xori. Just being with her had helped them both get a real night’s sleep for once. She was making their lives better in so many ways, and after last night… He grinned to himself. Last night had been incredible.

This was the beginning of a new chapter for all of them.

That’s when it finally registered. There was an empty space between him and Ward. Xori was gone.

He rose quickly and did a quick tour of their suite, expecting to find her in one of the sanitation rooms or maybe working on her tablet in the main room. She wasn’t there. Neither were her clothes. Son of a bitch. Why would she leave like that? It didn’t make sense.

He jogged back into their bedroom. “Ward! Wake up. Did Xori say anything to you before she left?”

His batch-brother came awake with a snort. “Huh? What? Fraxx, I’ve been asleep for hours!”

“Yeah. We both were. And while we were out cold, our little blue beauty snuck out on us.”

Ward’s lips curled back into a snarl. “She left?”

“Well, she’s not here, so, yeah.” He shrugged as if it was no big deal. And maybe it wasn’t. She might be back any second. Or there could be a good reason she had to leave without waking them. He grunted and scrubbed a hand over his unshaven jaw. Too many maybes, not enough facts.

Ward stalked into the other room, his pain and anger an almost tangible cloud swirling around him. “She folded our clothes. What the fraxx does that mean?”

“She did?” He hadn’t noticed.

“Uh huh. Why would she do that? Is it some female code we’re supposed to know? Thanks for the sex, don’t call me again?”

“I’m no expert, but I’m pretty sure that’s not it.”

Ward grabbed his things and spun to glower at him. “Then what the hell does it fraxxing mean, Fox? Why did she leave us?”

“I don’t know.” Had she decided they were too broken for her, after all? Had they missed something? Failed some kind of test? Confusion and anger swirled in his gut, staining every thought to race through his head.

Ward grunted as he dressed, his mood worsening by the second.

Vic saw it and knew he had to get his batch-brother safely away from anyone who might trigger an outburst. Ward hadn’t been this angry in months.

“Come on, we need to head back to the club. We can message her on the way, find out what happened.”

“I think that’s obvious.” Ward gestured around the empty suite. Housekeeping bots had already cleared the remains of last night’s feast, and once they left, they’d tidy up the rest of the place, until it was like it never happened. Fraxx that. He dressed and grabbed his comms. He sent a vid-call request to her communicator, but she didn’t answer. He switched it off. There was no point in leaving a message. She’d know he called. He’d have to try again later.

They finished dressing in silence. He was still pulling on his shoes when Ward stalked out into the corridor, clearly eager to be off the ship and away from any reminders of their night with Xori. He didn’t blame him.

He heard Tink’s light, lilting voice outside the door, but by the time he joined Ward, the hologram was gone.

“What did Tink say?” he asked.

“Not much. I told her to flutter the fraxx off the second she said good morning and started offering breakfast options.”

They didn’t speak another word until they were nearly home.

“I’ve got a shift starting in less than an hour. Going to clean up, grab something to eat, and hit the floor. What are your plans?” He asked Ward.

“I’ll shower at the gym. I need to hit things over and over until I’m in a better mood. If that’s possible.”

“It’s possible. And remember, we don’t know why she left yet.”

Ward shot him an irritated glance. “One more optimistic word and I will smack those rose-tinted glasses right off your face.”

“There’s nothing wrong with not going straight to the worst-case scenario.”

Ward scoffed. “Says you. I’ll stick to what works for me.” Ward closed one hand into a fist and smacked it into his open palm. “Violence.”

Vic opened his