Fighting For Light: A Dark Sports Romance (The Coldwell Brothers)

52. Kai

A cry startles me awake, and I shoot up in bed, looking for the threat. Cordi’s eyes are closed, and her hands are fisting the sheets. She cries out again and kicks her feet. She’s having a nightmare.

“Please,” she says quietly.

I reach for her face, cupping her cheek gently.

Her eyes spring open, and they blink rapidly, slowly trying to focus on me.

“It’s just me, gem. I’m here,” I whisper. Her chest heaves, and tears brim the edges of her eyes. “It was a nightmare. It’s okay, you’re safe.”

She blinks again, willing her tears away. “I’m sorry I woke you up,” she rasps.

I kiss her forehead. “Are you okay?”

Cordi sniffles, and I pull her into my body. “I love you,” I say into her hair.

She nuzzles her head into my chest and sighs. “Is it done? Is it over?”

I tense a little before forcing myself to relax, and she picks up on it immediately.

“I’ll take that as a no.”

“We need to stay here for a bit. I think it would be the safest option.” I tighten my arms around her.

“I missed you,” she says quietly.

“I’ve been here the whole time, baby.”

“No, you’ve been downstairs. I missed you holding me when we went to bed. I…I needed you last night. I know you had to do what you had to do, and I made it worse, but I needed you.”

I sigh, rubbing my hand up and down her spine. “You didn’t make anything worse. I’m sorry, but when you need me, and I don’t know it, I need you to tell me. I know you very well, but I can’t read your mind, baby. Trust me, I’ve tried.”

“I don’t expect you to. I’ll ask next time.”

“Good girl,” I mutter into her hair.

“What time is it?” she asks. I stutter for an answer because

I assumed she would ask me about who we have in the basement. I let her go and roll over to the nightstand to check my phone. “It’s four in the afternoon.”

“Wow, I slept for a while.”

I roll back over and clasp her face again. “I’m sure you needed it.”

“Kai, what are we supposed to do next?”

I take a deep breath and toss my leg over hers. Her body fits perfectly into mine, and her belly is protected between us. It makes my heart stutter. “Well, like I said, we’re going to stay here for a bit. I need to update you and Mom about what we found out. Which, unfortunately, isn’t a lot.”

“That…sucks,” she mutters.

“It does,” I agree, sliding my hand down her back, and she scoots closer to me. “Is there something you want to talk about, gem?” I ask, preparing myself for the blow.

“How do you do that?”

“What? You mean, how I know you want to talk about something but won’t say it?” My chest pulls, and my nose burns. She nods her head against me. “Are you mad at me?”

“No.”

“I didn’t…intend for you to see that side of me. It’s why I wanted you to stay upstairs. I could come up with a hundred different reasons as to why I did what I did, but none of them matter. I’m sorry if I scared you. I don’t want you to be scared of me. You’ve asked me tough questions in the past, and I was honest, but you never saw that side of me in action. Now that you have, I can’t lie—I’m scared that you’ll…that you’ll leave me.” I take a deep breath and watch her process the information.

“I’m not going to leave you,” she whispers.

“Thank God.” Relief floods my body, and I kiss the top of her head.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but it didn’t scare me…I understand why you did it. I don’t know what that says about me because I did it too.”

“I think it says more about me because I put you in that position. That being said, I don’t regret it.”

“I still love you anyway, Kai.”

“I love you, too,” I say, my throat too full of emotion.

“Kiss me,” she commands.

I dip my head and press my lips to hers, kissing her with a branding ferocity. She sighs into my mouth as I thrust my tongue past her lips. Grabbing the back of her neck, I hold her to me as I lose myself in the light of my life. She pulls back slightly, and I don’t let her get far as she nips at my lip. I groan and drop my lips against hers, over and over.

“Don’t get too big of a head. I’m pregnant and horny.”

I wink and peck her lips. “My two favorite things.”

She giggles, and the sound alone lifts the weight off my chest. Her blue eyes study me closely as her fingers run through my hair. I close my eyes, leaning into the feeling. She is written on my heart and beats through my veins. I didn’t think it was possible to love someone as much as I love her.

Her hand stops and clasps my cheek as she leans in to kiss me again.

“You’re always making my heart race.”

I hum, grazing my hand up and down her thigh.

“You’ve been making mine do backflips from the moment I laid eyes on you.”

***

We make our way downstairs and into the kitchen, where it looks like the private chef has been hard at work. “Mom, did you seriously call in the chef?” I ask her.

She shrugs and takes a sip of coffee from her mug.

“I told him I didn’t know what any of you would be in the mood for, and I’m pretty sure Emerson didn’t sleep at all, so I told the chef to make everything.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

Cordelia reaches for a croissant and takes a bite, sighing. “I could get used to this,” she says around the food in her mouth.

Mom studies her closely like she’s looking for something. I look down at my wife to see what she’s staring at, but she seems fine to me. I glance at Mom again and find her watching me instead.

“Are you feeling okay, darling?” she asks, focusing on me.

I nod and pull Cordi into my side while I reach for another croissant.

Mom pours Cordi a cup of chamomile tea and me a cup of coffee before she leaves the kitchen.

“What’s going on?” Cordi asks.

I shake my head and take a drink. “She’s on edge,” I mutter.

Cordi takes a sip and looks over her shoulder.

“Come on, let’s sit down,” I tell her.

I help Cordi lower herself onto the couch and then sit next to her, my hand resting on her thigh. Mom comes in with Emerson and Liam behind her.

“So, what did you find out?” Mom asks.

Liam and Emerson look at me; I’m always the one to explain. I don’t know how it started that way, but Emerson doesn’t talk much, and Liam is too much of a smartass. He is more likely to piss people off before he can actually have a serious conversation with them.

Mom paces back and forth as I recount what we found out from each man. Then I lean back on the couch, giving Emerson the floor. I don’t think it’s wise to keep the hired gun alive, but we are a team. It’s a choice we all have to make together.

“The one who came for you, Mom, is still alive. We can use him as a message and send him back to the Costas and Fred,” Emerson tells her.

Her steps pause, and she stares at him for a moment.

“Why?” she commands.

“He’s a hired gun that was sent to take you back to Massachusetts. It makes sense to send him with pieces of the one who went for Cordi as a show of strength.”

She stares at Emerson for a long moment, then resumes pacing.

“What does that mean?” Cordelia asks in my ear. My heart thuds, and I don’t want to tell her, but I know she won’t stop wondering.

“It’s a… message to tell them we will fight back.”

Her eyes widen, and she glances at Emerson. “Got it.”

I rub her shoulder with my thumb and kiss her cheek.

Mom sighs and plops down unregally on the chair across from me. No one speaks as the tension and pressure increases in the room. I haven’t seen Mom this agitated in a very long time.

“He just wants me,” Mom sighs. We all freeze at her words.

“Mom,” Emerson grunts out.

She shakes her head and takes a drink from her coffee, which I’m starting to suspect has whiskey in it. “No, this is enough. I’ve had enough. He won’t… stop. He is sending hitmen for my children.“ Her voice breaks, and Emerson shakes his head.

“Mom, you are on crack if you think any of us would let you walk into the lion’s den. Absolutely not,” Liam barks, his voice rising in volume. Fear is written all over his face, and I can see my little brother behind his mask of jokes and crazy behavior. He was the youngest when we ran in the middle of the night. He was old enough to understand why and what was going on, but something tells me it’s instilled a sort of fear in him that if something happens with Mom, it will mean he failed her.

I know Emerson feels similarly. If she isn’t protected in every way, it means he has failed not just her but all of us. I don’t think about myself and how our past has shaped me. I make a point not to. But with Cordelia, I tell myself it doesn’t matter anymore because she has opened a door for me and my family. The renewed sense of hope has affected all of us. While my father is trying to mess it up purely to continue his power trip, it’s made everything harder on all of us. We have a better reason to fight for something bigger than ourselves, something new.

Emerson kneels in front of Mom. He takes her hand, and her eyes well with tears. Memories flash through my mind, knowing they are thinking of the same thing. It’s not an easy pill to swallow, reliving your past over and over again because someone won’t let you move past it.

“You’re not going, Mom. It’s not a discussion. He will never lay another finger on you again. So get that thought out of your mind. We will find another way.”

Mom glances at Cordelia and me, and a tear slips from her eyes. “I don’t want anyone to get hurt again.”

Cordi sits up and says, “Esmarie, I can’t imagine what you’ve been through, but they are right. There is no reason to sacrifice yourself to that animal. I need you here. We need you.“ Cordi rubs her hand on her belly.

Mom looks down at Cordi’s belly and nods, brushing her tears away.

After we discussed everything and got Mom to agree to stay where it’s safe, Cordi and I went upstairs.

I close the door behind me, and she sits on the edge of the bed, puffing out a breath.

“I have to admit that was a lot, but at least we have a plan,” she says.

Crossing the distance between us, I get on my knees in front of her, and I press my lips to her belly.

“Thank you, baby,” I say.

“For what?” she asks, dragging her hands through my hair.

“For loving me even when it’s hard,” I tell her.

“You don’t need to thank me for loving you,” she says quietly, making my heart leap. Then I feel a kick against my cheek. I guess that means he agrees with his mother.

If I do one thing for this little boy, it’s keep him safe from all the monsters, seen and unseen. I will be their protector, whatever it takes. I will fight for them in the dark so they can remain in the light.