“That was me.” He surveyed her warily. “And I took a photo of your note and showed it to Theodore. That’s how he got your number. That’s why he texted you.”
“You … asshole,” she finished lamely. “I’m so mad at you.”
“You don’t sound mad.” He stepped forward, tilting his head in curiosity.
She wasn’t at all.
She was relieved.
Because she really, really liked Kilian. And not as a friend.
And not just him.
She released a nervous laugh, shaking her head. “You’re right. I’m more embarrassed that I never actually asked if you were gay or not. I just assumed. You must get that all the time. I’m sorry.”
“So you forgive me?” He caught her cheeks, drifting another step closer, their bodies almost touching. “I’ll still be your gay bestie in public so that you have a safe option in front of the cameras. But … do you want me to keep pretending in private?”
She bit her lip, a sound catching in the back of her throat. She wasn’t sure what it was, exactly, but the sudden awareness that sparked in Kilian’s pale eyes implied that he did.
“I don’t know,” she answered honestly. “I just want you to be yourself, but it was nice to have someone I could always touch without it having to mean anything.”
“I can manage that,” he said softly, still cupping her face, his thumbs brushing along the tops of her cheekbones. “I’ll be whatever you want me to be, Isobel. Just don’t change anything between us.”
She swallowed, blinking back tears, and nodded silently. He kissed both of her cheeks, tasting the errant tear that slipped out, and then he bundled her up, lifting her into his arms as he turned off the light and carried her back to his bed. She refused to release the fistfuls of his shirt that she had grabbed, so he slipped into the bed beside her, pulling the blanket up around them both.
“I’m so much happier now than I was when I first got to Ironside,” she whispered. “But I cry more now. How does that work?”
“You were disassociated when you first got to Ironside,” he returned. “You walked around like a pretty little zombie, never letting anything affect you because you were never safe to just stop and feel anything.”
She felt his inhale, like he was going to say something else, but then the door opened. It was hard to see in the dark, but it looked like Theodore. He approached the other side of the bed, falling into it before turning to face her, his head propped up on his hand.
“Kissed and made up?” he teased.
Not Theodore.
Moses.
Kilian reached over her and shoved at his chest. “What do you want?” he grumbled.
“Came to remind Miss Carter that she’s neglecting her obligations,” Moses replied flippantly. “She was supposed to destroy Wallis. She didn’t even try.”
“I thought about it a lot,” Isobel defended, sounding just as grumpy as Kilian.
Moses leaned in closer, his powdery, crushed petal scent teasing into her nostrils like a whiff of perfume. “You thought I’d go easy on you just because of what happened in the closet?”
She deadpanned. “Which closet?”
He smirked, pinching her chin. “Oscar went too easy on you. You’re getting cocky.”
“I think you should go easy on me too.” She gripped his wrist, only because he was holding her chin, but as soon as her fingers wrapped around his skin, they both paused. He stared at her fingers for a second, and the smirk dropped right off his face when his eyes returned to hers.
“Why is that, Sigma?” His tone was low and rough.
She pouted. Just like Kilian. And just like it worked for Kilian, it seemed to work for her. Moses narrowed his eyes on her lips.
“You almost had sex with me,” she said, inserting a slight whine to her voice as she trailed her fingers down his arm. “You aren’t even nice to me, and you almost fucked me in a closet.”
“Why are you pouting about it?” His voice was almost a groan, his gaze confused and frustrated, like he knew exactly what she was doing but still couldn’t control his reaction.
“Can’t you help me out?” she pleaded. “Just this once?”
He closed his eyes, trying to block her out.
She inched closer, placing her head on the pillow right beside his, their noses touching.
“Please, Moses?”
His grip dropped from her chin, skimming her neck. He paused there, his fingers stretching out before he quickly formed a fist. “Stop it, Carter.”
“Stop what?” She brushed his nose with her own, her knee inching forward until it touched his thigh.
Behind her, she was pretty sure she could hear Kilian trying to smother a laugh.
“Stop trying to flirt your way out of this,” Moses growled, reaching beneath the blanket, gripping her knee, and pulling it up over his hip, bringing her flush against his erection. He wasn’t half hard either. He was throbbing. He pushed it against her stomach, and she swallowed a squeak of surprise.
“Why?” Her voice was suddenly shaking. “Is it working?”
He laughed, the sound full of darkness, and then his eyes popped open. “I don’t know. Maybe you should try harder.”
“Or maybe we should cool down,” Kilian suggested, his arm hooking around her waist and drawing her back an inch.
“I’m not surging.” Moses rolled his eyes, even though Kilian couldn’t see him. “Just letting the little Sigma think she can seduce me.”
“It feels like I can,” Isobel said.
His hands drifted from her knee to her thigh, his fingertips slipping beneath the edges of her shorts. “Let’s make a deal,” he suggested. “Go and sleep with Theo for the rest of the night and I’ll help you destroy Wallis.”
“Okay. Why? You hate when I’m with Theo.”
“It’s our last night, Carter. He’s barely gotten a minute with you, and I know he needs you. I don’t want to deal with all the shit he’s bottling up and have him going feral if your asshole dad decides to separate us for the summer.”
“Done. Now help me.”
“So demanding.” He squeezed her thigh, and then released her, pulling out his phone. He tapped his screen for a few minutes and then turned it around, pointing to a button that said Process Transaction.
“Just click here,” he said.
“Wh—”
“And don’t ask what it does. I’ll tell you after.”
She surveyed Moses over the top of the phone, but his expression gave nothing away.
She clicked the button, and he tucked his phone back into his pocket.
“Done,” he said. “Her bank account is empty. All her savings and Ironside stipends from the last two years completely stripped.”
“What?” Isobel croaked.
“You just donated it all to The Huts. It’s a section of the Hudson settlement where all the elderly people who no longer have family or a means to support themselves are shoved into closet-sized homes to die.”
She almost choked. “How can you even do that?”
“Oscar hacked her and got into all her accounts when you stole her phone. Now … it’s time to go.” He suddenly tore her out of Kilian’s arms and set her on her feet, before taking her hand and dragging her from the room.