Into the Fading Twilight (Starlight Grove, #2) (75)

One corner of her mouth kicked up.

“I’d take your ghost over anyone else. Even just the memory of how it felt to hold you.” My knuckles skimmed the back of her hand. Just the barest graze. “How you smell—like sunbaked cherries and vanilla. Sometimes, I think you spray it into the air vents.”

“Kol.”

My ribs constricted around my lungs, but I continued my confession. I couldn’t stop now. Moreover, I didn’t want to. I’d gotten a taste of living without her, and I hated it with every fiber of my being. “You make everything you touch better.”

Some unnamed emotion streaked across her face. “It doesn’t feel like that. Not lately.”

I hooked my pointer finger around hers. “You make me better. My life. My world.”

Nova’s hand trembled in mine. “What do you want?”

“Come home with me.” It was both a question and a plea. A reckless leap and a spark in a desert-dry forest. But I didn’t give a damn. All I could do was wait to see if she’d meet me in the potential ruin.





CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO


Nova




ITRIED TO FOCUS ON THE BAND. WHAT SONG WERE THEY playing? I couldn’t make it out over the blood roaring in my ears. “Come home with me.”

It was what I wanted. But now that it was being offered, I was terrified.

Something shifted in Kol’s expression, and a new fear lit inside me, one where he would take back his words, his offer. He didn’t. He met me in the mess, like always.

“Home can mean whatever you want, Phoenix. It can mean sitting on the back deck and talking till sunrise. It can mean me holding you like before and nothing else. It can mean whatever you want it to mean.”

This man. He wrecked me. In the best possible way.

“Okay,” I rasped.

His finger contracted around mine and then released. “Gonna be a little tricky getting out of here.”

My brows pulled together in confusion. “Why?”

“Well, lots of folks who might say something that could get me fired are in this bar right now.”

My stomach twisted. “Where’s your truck?”

He frowned. “On the street a block south.”

“I’m not built with an internal compass like you.”

His lips kicked up in the barest smile. “Toward the Yarn Barn.”

“Thank you.” I took one more sip of my drink and set it on a vacated table. “Meet me there in five.”

“You’re not walking alone—”

“No, I’m not. Aster is going to walk with me.”

Kol still looked a little unsure but finally nodded.

“Go talk to someone else.”

The scowl that erupted on Kol’s face had me biting back a laugh.

“I don’t like talking to people,” he grumbled.

“Buck up, Boss. You gotta take one for the team.” And with that, I turned to find Aster.

She was at the bar, obviously trying to avoid the advances of a slightly inebriated man who was talking about the intricacies of pig farming.

“Aster, I need you. Girl emergency.” I looked at the drunk man. “Sorry. Cramps. You know, that time of the month.”

He looked absolutely horrified, like he hadn’t just been talking about pig shit. “You … go.” But he scampered before we had a chance to move a muscle.

Aster turned to me in awe. “How did you do that?”

“Periods are the secret weapon against douchebags.”

“How can I ever repay you?” She gave a bow with her arms out like she was worshipping me.

“Can you walk me somewhere really quick and keep it between us?”

Aster looked confused, then something clicked. A mischievous smile spread over her face. “Where to, my hero?”

“Just down the block.”

She nodded, and we made our way out of the bar. It was a bit of a challenge with all the people, but I managed not to get bumped or jostled. The moment we stepped outside, I sucked in fresh, clean air. “You know, I’m not sure crowded bars are my thing anymore.”

Aster sent me a little nod. “I might be heading into my grandma era because what sounds really nice right about now is a hot bath and a good book.”

“Preach.”

She eyed me. “Why do I have a feeling that’s not what you’re going home to?”

I rolled my lips over my teeth.

“You don’t have to tell me. Just be careful. You’ve been through a lot, and that dance might take a little time to ease back into.”

“You’re a good friend,” I whispered.

“I’m here for whatever you need,” Aster assured me.

We passed Aster’s truck. Kol’s was only a few down, and as we walked up, he came running from the other direction.

“What are you doing? You were supposed to talk to people for five minutes,” I demanded.

He shrugged. “Talked to Wylder in front of my douchebag coworker. Told him I was heading home to help Waylon with some alpacas that got out. Left through the back door—”

“And ran around the block,” Aster cut in.

Kol sent her a glare, but it softened slightly. “Thanks for walking her.”