kids ready, I texted him.
Are you awake?
He took less than a minute to reply.
What do you need, babe?
Fuck.
I quickly texted the information, and he was on my doorstep five minutes later. He looked awake and alert. Not at all like he’d just rolled out of bed.
Which was exactly what I looked like.
I’d pulled on an old shirt of Ranger’s, some jeans and worn sneakers. My hair was thrown into a messy bun. Not the chic, messy bun that Amy and Gwen perfected. No, the I haven’t brushed and can’t remember when I last washed my hair kind of bun.
So not cute.
Kace didn’t seem overly disgusted, in fact, his eyes flared with an ember of heat.
“You got here quick,” I observed.
He grinned. “Quick at some things, sweetheart. Take my time with others.”
I swallowed roughly, my thighs pulsing with remembering.
“You weren’t asleep?” I asked, trying to make my voice sound even.
He shook his head. “Was too buzzed. Worked out. Caught a few hours of the Asian stock market.”
Who was this guy?
I decided to ignore that. “Okay, I wouldn’t do this if it was any kind of emergency that didn’t involve a PTA full of bitchy women judging me for forgetting something again,” I said, snatching my keys and putting them in my purse.
“Babe, it’s good. I like your kids,” he reassured me.
My mind flashed back to the day after the migraine—the day that I had not mentioned to Kace since it happened because I didn’t want to inspect what it had meant—and how both kids had raved about the time they’d spent with Kace. Jack had done so begrudgingly, as if it were something he was going to be punished for, but he did it, nonetheless. So it was safe to say the kids felt comfortable him, that they were happy to spend time with him. It only made me more reluctant to do this.
On cue, Lily entered the room. “Kace!” she yelled with glee. “You’ve come to hang out and have breakfast.”
I’d already quickly briefed them on the situation, about Kace having breakfast with them while I went to get food. Lily had been over the moon. Jack had groaned about not needing a babysitter.
He was likely sulking in his room right now.
“Yep, breakfast is the most important meal of the day,” Kace declared with a wink.
Lily’s face sobered. “That’s what I tell Mom, but she never listens to me, she never eats breakfast.”
“Well, we’re going to have to change that, aren’t we?” Kace asked, eyes twinkling.
Lily nodded.
“Okay, I have no time for this.” I kissed Lily on the head. “Be good for Kace. Don’t try to trick him and say you’re allowed ice cream for breakfast.”
She folded her arms and pouted, since that was exactly what she’d been planning to do.
“Thank you,” I muttered to Kace, still uneasy about this.
“Babe, we’ll be fine. Go.”
This was crossing a line now. Leaving Kace with my kids. Him being more than willing to do so. This was crossing to more than just sex. Or maybe that line had been destroyed a long time ago.
Nevertheless, I left.
I was speeding. Because I was in a rush. Because I was distracted with my thoughts. Because the streets were quiet. I’d all but breezed through all of the traffic lights before getting outside of town. The local police weren’t likely to touch me, even for blowing through stop lights. It’s the way it was in Amber. The Sons and those connected to them were not bulletproof, that much was clear, but they were definitely invisible to the law.
Edmond might be right, that might change one day, but not today.
So I was speeding when it happened. When a sharp corner came up ahead, when I was distracted enough to have to break at the last minute. But tapping on the break did nothing to slow me. I was fully paying attention now. My foot didn’t tap the break this time. I slammed on it. Nothing happened.
Realization dawned.
Right about the second the turn came and there was a crash, crunching of metal, blinding pain, then not much else.
“Lizzie, baby, you need to open your fucking eyes,” a voice hissed.
I felt hands on me.
“Don’t move her,” another voice commanded. “We don’t know what kind of damage has been done.”
The hands on me tensed. “You want me to leave her in a mangled fucking car?” the voice, who I was now thinking belonged to Kace, clarified.
“I want you to lock it down for a second. Can hear the sirens and the