Fatal Contingencies (Book 2, the Fatal Trilogy Series)

Chapter 7.

When I first wake up to the sun flitting into the bedroom and it casts Daimon's skin in this beautiful warm glow, I don't feel anything but complete contentment.

He's here and we are together and wrapped around each other and all is right with the world within our own little bubble.

The thing about bubbles is that they pop though.

Just like the sound of pots and pans clanking together in the kitchen and the smell of fresh baked cinnamon buns wafting up the stairs does.

It pops me right out of our bubble.

"Shit," I whisper and Daimon groans as he rolls over, nearly crushing me beneath him. "Hey," I giggle. "Can't...breathe..."

"It's overrated," he says into my neck, nuzzling his head in closer, his nose tickling me and making me laugh more. "Fuck, I needed that." He sighs on me, pinning me further into the bed.

"Which that? The sleep or the other stuff?" I choke out and he rolls off of me halfway so that I can breathe again.

"Both." He kisses the side of my face before he flops back onto the bed on his back and slings one arm over his eyes and sighs. "I could still use more of the sleep." He yawns and I roll onto my side and prop up on my elbows to look at him.

"What's been happening since I was gone?" I ask carefully. Not sure how much I really want to know about.

He takes a deep breath and sighs as he slides the arm away again and glares up at the ceiling fan spinning in fast circles. "Too damn much," he says. "The guys are all nervous. They worry about the retaliation that will be coming if Jon does end up making it to Pablo's pack, and he tells them about you and me. Then there's..."

He draws off and I sigh. "It's ok, Daimon," I tell him. "We can talk about her."

"Are you sure?" He turns to eye me. "I don't have to–"

"No, she's a part of our lives now." I nod. "There's no avoiding it."

He nods, taking a deep breath. "She's having a hard time," he tells me. "She's so...frail. She's covered in these scratches, her hand is broken, she was so badly dehydrated her lips bled when she smiled. She had all kinds of infections. Easton said he wasn't sure how she was even able to stand she's so bad off." He shakes his head. "She's scared and confused...I don't know what to do."

"Do you still think that Luca was the only one who knew about her?" I ask.

"Probably," he says. "Anyone else could have turned him in to Pablo for disobeying an order and he'd have been killed. She didn't see anyone else either so I don't think we have to worry about that." He still stares up, his eyes heavy even after the few hours of sleep. "The issue is going to be keeping it a secret that she's back. If word gets to the wrong person and they snitch..." His hand on his stomach clenches into a fist and I lean down over him to kiss it, taking it and opening it back up to plant another kiss inside of his large rough palm.

"Nothing will happen to her," I whisper. "We will all protect her and keep her hidden."

"You amaze me." He shakes his head at me, his eyebrows knitted together. "How can you be so calm about all of this? I would have expected you to hate her."

"I understand her so I could never hate her," I tell him. "The things she's been through...no person should have to experience them. And she's important to you so she's important to me. I'm not calm either," I admit. "It's not easy, but I'm trying."

"You make it look easy." He pulls me down on top of him and I sit up on his chest looking down at him. One of his hands strays up the back of my leg to rest on my ass, squeezing once while the other threads into the hair at the back of my head. "What about you?" he asks.