"I’m not crying."
"You literally sound like you’re about to cry."
I laugh weakly through the emotion building in my chest.
Then suddenly all three of them rush at once in a chaotic group hug.
I let out a startled sound as arms wrap around tightly.
"We missed you," June mutters dramatically into my shoulder.
"You’ve been through too much," Lila adds softly
"And now we live here unofficially," Tessa declares.
Despite everything...i actually laug a real laugh this ti.
"You guys are insane."
"And you love us
Unfortunately...Also true.
They squeal excitedly when I admit I’d actually love having them around more often.
"See?" Tessa says triumphantly. "Daily dose of our friendship!"
"Daily chaos," Zane mutters beside .
We all turn toward him. He already looks exhausted by the noise.
Honestly, fair.
Tessa gasps dramatically.
"Why do you sound disappointed?"
"I enjoy silence."
"You married Elaine willingly," June points out.
"That was your first mistake," Lila adds.
I snort.
Zane sighs deeply like we’re all personally stressing him out. Then he rubs tiredly at his temple.
"I’ll be in my office."
I turn sharply toward him imdiately.
"What?"
His brows lift slightly.
"What?"
"You are absolutely not working right now."
"I’m fine."
"You got shot days ago!"
"Yeahhh days ago love, I’m totally fn now."
I stare at him incredulously.
"That sohow makes it worse."
Zane exhales patiently.
"Elaine, I can’t just disappear from work completely. Things are already piling up.
"So let them pile."
"That’s not how businesses work."
"You can barely move without wincing.
"I’m managing just fine."
"No, you’re being stubborn."
His jaw tightens slightly.
"I need to start handling things little by little."
Whn it looks like I want to argue again..He stalks toward ...there’s no other word for it. He walks Slow, deliberate steps across the room, like a predator who knows exactly what he wants. The air between us thickens. My heart kicks up, hamring against my ribs.
"Zane..." I start, a half-warning, half-plea, but it dies in my throat.
He reaches in two more strides. One big hand slides around the back of my neck, fingers threading into my hair, while the other grips my waist, pulling flussh against him and beefore I can say anything else, his mouth crashes down on mine.
The kiss is devastating.
His lips are firm and demanding, parting mine instantly. There’s nothing gentle about it...he kisses like he’s been starving for days, like the hospital beds and the pain and the fear have all funneled into this one mont. His tongue sweeps in, hot and possessive, stroking against mine in a way that sends liquid heat rushing through my body.
I lt completely. My hands fist in his shirt without thinking, clinging to him as my knees go weak.
My toes literally curl against the hardwood floor. A soft, involuntary sound escapes ....half moan, half whimper....lost against his mouth.
The world narrows to just him: the familiar taste of coffee on his tongue, the faint scent of his soap, the solid warmth of his chest pressing into mine. I get completely lost in it, I forget there’s people..my friends watching us right now.
Ti stops. The bullet wound, the threat, our friends sitting ten feet away....everything fades. There’s only the slick glide of his lips, the way he tilts my head to deepen the kiss even more, the low growl vibrating in his throat that I feel more than hear.
My pulse thunders in my ears. Heat blooms low in my belly and down down in my pussy. I’m drowning in him, happily.
Then....
A loud, awkward cough cuts through the haze twice.
I jolt like I’ve been shocked. Zane and I pull apart, breathing hard. My lips feel swollen and tingling. A string of saliva connects us for a split second before breaking. My face ignites with embarrassnt so intense I’m sure I’m glowing bright red like a ripe tomato.
Tessa is staring into her coffee mug like.... wait, hold up she didn’t have that a second ago, how long have we been kissing for?.
She’s staring at us like it’s the most fascinating thing she ever seen, while Lena presses her lips together, clearly fighting a grin. The cough ca from June, but all three of them look painfully uncomfortable and slightly amused.
"Oh my God," I whisper, wanting the floor to crack open and swallow whole. I cover my mouth with one hand, mortified. My other hand is still gripping Zane’s shirt. I let go like it’s burning . "I.....I’m so sorry. We didn’t... I an..."
Zane, on the other hand, looks annoyingly smug. His mouth curves into that crooked, satisfied smirk that always makes my stomach flip. His eyes are still dark with heat, but there’s pure male triumph in them. He doesn’t look embarrassed at all. Of course he doesn’t.
He leans in one more ti and presses a soft, lingering kiss to my forehead, his lips warm against my flushed skin. His hand gives my waist a gentle squeeze.
"Sorry about that," he says casually to my friends,his voice still a little rough. "Been cooped up too long. You know how it is." He glances down at , that smirk deepening. "I’ll go grab more coffee."
He brushes past toward the kitchen, moving a little stiffly because of his side, but still radiating that smug confidence. I stand there frozen, cheeks burning, heart still racing from the kiss.
I can feel the wetness between my thighs and the way my nipples have tightened against my bra. All from one kiss.
Lena finally lets out a soft laugh. "Girlllll, the tension in here is thick enough to cut with a knife. You two need a room... or at least a warning for guests."
I bury my face in my hands, groaning. "I can’t believe we just did that. In front of you guys. Jusr Kill now."
June chuckles, shaking her head. "Hey, at least he’s feeling better. That’s what matters, right?"
I peek through my fingers. Zane is in the kitchen now, pouring coffee with his back to us, but I can tell from the set of his shoulders that he’s still smirking. My body is still buzzing, toes still rembering that curl, lips still sensitive.
Part of wants to drag him back to the bedroom and finish what that kiss started but we can’t have sex now...doctors orders.
The other part wants to hide under the couch for the rest of the evening.
I’m not sure which one is winning.
Zane gives one last look like he already knows I’m about to argue again. Then he turns and disappears toward his office before I can stop him.
Typical.
I stare after him for a second before muttering under my breath, "Hardheaded man."
"He definitely heard that," June says dryly behind .
"I wanted him to."
Tessa hooks her arm through mine imdiately.
"Co on. We’re making soup and gossiping....pr do you want us to talk about that kiss?."
"Ohh god please no... and I don’t think gossiping counts as emotional healing," I say while letting them drag fully into the kitchen anyway.
"Incorrect," Lila says seriously. "That’s exactly what it is."
And honestl? The second I properly step into the kitchen, sothing inside softens.
The room feels alive again...warm, sssy and Comfortable.
Pots simr quietly on the stove while music plays softly from sobody’s phone speaker near the fruit bowl. Tessa stands over chopped vegetables arguing with June about seasoning while Lila pours a cold drink and imdiately starts interrogating about how the burial went.
It’s chaos.
But it’s Familiar chaos.
And sohow it makes the heaviness in my chest loosen just a little.
I sit on one of the stools near the kitchen island, watching them move around the kitchen so naturally like they belong here, like they’ve always belonged here.
"You people are very bossy," I mutter while taking the drink Lila hands .
"You need bossy right now," she replies instantly.
"That’s true," June adds while stirring sothing aggressively. "You and Zane together are one emotional disaster.
I gasp.
"Excuse you."
"Did I lie?"
Unfortunately...No.
Tessa suddenly points the wooden spoon she’s holding at .
"And before you say anything, yes, we’re staying."
"For how long?"
"As long as necessary."
"You guys have other jobs."
"We called in sick," June says proudly.
I blink.
"All of you?"
Lila shrugs casually.
"You looked emotionally unstable."
"That’s not a dical condition."
"It should be."
I laugh before I can stop myself.
A real one too.
God
I didn’t realize how badly I needed this, just normal conversatio and Norma people
Just my friends bickering over soup recipes while hovering over like aggressive mother hens. The ache of missing Margaret still sits heavily in the room though, I can feel it in small monts.
The way Tessa pauses briefly while reaching for spices like she rembers Margaret’s exact arrangent.
The way June instinctively wipes the counter imdiately after spilling sothing because Margaret used to complain about sses constantly.
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