My entire body felt like mush, so the motion came off as less sassy and more clumsy. Cassian’s smirk turned into a genuine smile, and the feral part of my mind wanted to bite him. You know, just to see how one ofthemliked it.
The room fell silent for a moment, other than the humming of a fan in the corner. A gentle breeze blew between us and tickledmy cheeks. The air between us was heavy with the things we’d both rather leave unsaid, like you know,hey, sorry I stabbed you. Or, you know, the real reason he didn’t let me die.
Cassian cleared his throat and looked away from me.
“It’s uh, it’s been a while since I’ve had to fix someone Icareabout.” His admission was soft, almost sheepish.
And honestly, I should have pushed him to figure out what he actually meant. But that was a lot to unpack, and I didn’t think I had the mental energy to deal with it right now. Plus, there were more pressing matters.
“I’m still thirsty.” I declared as my eyes darted to the empty glass. “But, I don’t want water–I want iced coffee.”
“Jesus-fucking-christ.” He ran a hand down his cheek with so much force that it pulled his lower eyelid down.
His face snapped back into place once he let go.
“Seriously?” Exasperation crept into his tone.
I stared at him for a beat before nodding.
“An ice-cold Coke Zero would work too.”
It might even work better. I practically salivated at the idea of the sweet bubbles dancing along my taste buds.
Cassian groaned before mumbling something under his breath. It sounded suspiciously likespoiled little brat, but I didn’t push the issue. Even though I wanted to remind him I was well within my rights to act like a diva,theywere the ones who kidnapped me and forced me into a killing game… Even if Ididagree to play.
Cassian lifted the metal tray from his lap and placed it on the nightstand as he stood. He then offered me a hand. I stared at it as if it were a trap.
“Come on.” He gestured for me to take his hand.
“What? Where are we going?”
I held both my hands to my chest, not trusting him.
“The others want to see you. We’ve gotta get you moving, it’ll be good for you.”
“No.” The word came out horrified.
“Yes.”
He pulled me to my feet, completely against my will, and Istilldidn’t have it in me to fight him.
The world spun a little, and I almost fell, but Cassian caught me. Andthatwas when I realized I wasn’t naked, or dressed in lingerie, or anything weird. Instead, I was draped head to toe in what looked like averyexpensive set of pajamas.
“These aren’t mine.”
Cassian made a sound that suggested I was one comment away from giving him an aneurysm.
“No shit they’re not yours. We don’t have any of your clothes, and Ronan offered to let you borrow a shirt of his.”
I nearly gagged at the idea. He wasn’t exactly the cleanest… but the rest of the guys were so thin that I didn’t think I could comfortably fit into theirs.
“And then, Seth threatened to kill him the next time he slept, and then Seth and Solomon went out and got you somethingsoft.” Cassian waved a hand at the navy blue, buttery smooth outfit I’d been dressed in. “So, congratulations. You now ownfoursets of luxury Pajamas,andhave a manhunt for your honor.”
Cassian started pulling me to walk, lacing his arm under mine, and I followed on shaky feet.
“They went out in public?”
He nodded. “I wasn’t gonna fucking do it. I wanted to leave you naked.”
