Chapter 47
forty-seven
Gentry
When the Weavers left, Gentry sat numbly in her chair, her mind racing. She was supposed to have five days left. Now she only had a day because she’d put someone else’s family ahead of her own life.
It was all so terribly unlike her.
“You okay, baby?” Kit knelt down and cupped her face, gently guiding her into looking into his pretty eyes. It brought her back down, and she nuzzled into his hand, enjoying his heat which was so unlike her own.
“I’m not who you think I am,” she mumbled the words before she could chicken out. “I want to bolt, to run away. Hell, before I even learned excision was a thing, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to turn myself in to save my mom and sister. I’m selfish, Kit.”
“And yet here you are”—he smiled at her—“doing the brave thing, anyway. It’s okay to be scared. I know you’ll do the right thing. Who else organizes an entire frontal assault within two hours for kids she only knew for a few hours?”
Gentry pulled back from his hands, everything in her protesting against prematurely ending the physical contact.
She then put her finger on the red, angry Favor mark on Kit’s neck.
He winced. “I did this to you. Took your free will away so I could escape. A good person doesn’t do something like that. ”
He chuckled and picked her up. “So? I was going to kill you. That’s fair game as far as I’m concerned, baby. We’re both trying to be better people together. I call that a win. Now let’s get some sleep.”
Kit left little room for argument as he helped her remove her bra and jeans just the way she liked it. He stripped to his boxers. Then he tucked her to him, wrapping her with warmth and all the things she didn’t deserve. His hold didn’t waver when she murmured something about taking the tonic.
“Let it go for a night, sweetie. Sometimes you’ve got to rest.”
He kissed her asleep.