My throat made a noise I couldn’t control, soft and low, like a moan of pain but it wasn’t that I felt the pain, it was that I was letting it go.

His head settled back, his hand twisted softly in my hair and his other arm wrapped tighter around my waist.

“Why’d you give me back my keys?” I asked.

“You told me to.”

“Yeah, but –”

Then my body tensed when Mace interrupted me by saying, “For now, whatever my father told you to do, he’s gotta see you doin’ it.”

Oh my God.

How did he know?

“How did you know?” I breathed.

Mace didn’t answer me, instead he went on, “What we’re not gonna do is play by his rules. He won’t know I’m comin’

home to you.”

“Do you think he’s watching?”

“Yeah.”

Effing hel !

How creepy!

“Why?” I asked.

“Because he’s an ass**le.”

It occurred to me that Mace was talking about his Dad but I didn’t go there mainly because I agreed with him. His Dad was The Supreme Asshole of Al Time.

“If he’s watching, he’l see you come in,” I pointed out.

“No he won’t.”

“Yeah he wil . Swen and Ulrika have motion sensor lights outside and –”

“He won’t see me.”

“Mace –”

His arm gave me a squeeze. “Babe. Trust me. He won’t see me.”

The way he said it, I trusted him. I decided not to go there later. I didn’t want to know how Mace learned how to get into houses without being seen.

He moved us into the bed, flicking the covers over us.

We settled in, he pul ed me so our fronts were touching, my hands against his chest, his arm resting at my waist and his fingers started to move whisper-soft of my back. I decided this felt real y nice when Juno joined us, the bed rocked with her movements before she col apsed at our feet.

“You know about your Mom bein’ sick and the mortgage, don’t you? That’s what he got you with, isn’t it?” he asked quietly.

I didn’t ask how he knew that. He was a private investigator, the question would be stupid and whatever Preston Mason thought of me and my grade point average, I wasn’t stupid.

“Yeah,” I answered.

“How much did he share? About your Mom?”

“Not much. Just that she had cancer and they were behind on their mortgage, which he owns, by the way.” Mace sighed then he said, “They were. Today they became current.”

My body froze. I had a mind to protest, to scream and yel , not at him, but at the world and maybe his effing ass**le father.

Instead, I burst into tears, loud and obnoxious.

But I had reason. The tears were triple-fold. I was sad about my Mom. I was grateful to Mace for taking care of yet another one of my problems. And I was pissed as hel at his father.

Mace gathered me in his arms and held me tight.

I cried for a long time and he held me the whole way through. When I started to recover, I lifted my head and yel ed, “I’m sorry Mace, but your father is a dick! ” Then, for some stupid reason, I burst out crying again.

As my second crying jag commenced, Mace pul ed away and knifed off the bed. I sat up and watched his shadow move, stil gulping with tears. He jumped off the platform, went into the bathroom and came back, getting into bed again and stuffing Kleenex in my fist.

I took a few deep breaths to control my emotion, an effort that was luckily successful. When I was done wiping my face and blowing my nose, Mace took the Kleenex from me and tossed it on the nightstand.

Juno had come to her bel y to watch al of this. After Mace tossed away my Kleenex, she made the doggie assessment that the most recent drama was over and settled on her side with a groan. Mace stretched out in the bed on his back, pul ing me into his side. I rested my head on his chest and draped my arm across his abs.

“After that, I hate to tel you, but you gotta know,” Mace started and I sighed into his chest, heavy and huge and nodded so he went on. “It’s ovarian cancer, Kitten, it’s spread. We got info that it’s not lookin’ good.” I bit my lip for a beat then whispered, “I’l cal her tomorrow.”

His arm, curled low around my back, gave me another squeeze.

“There’s more to talk about but we’l do it in the morning.

You’ve had enough for tonight. Yeah?”

I nodded again.

Then I instantly reneged and said in a voice, so low, you could barely hear it, “I know about your sister getting kidnapped and murdered.”

I felt his body go solid.

It was my turn to give Mace a squeeze.

“Please don’t go away, please.” I was stil speaking super softly.

“I’m right here,” he replied.

“You were going to tel me.”

Hesitation then, “Yeah.”

“I’m such a bitch.” My voice was louder now and harsh even to my own ears.

“Kitten.”

I got up on an elbow and looked at his face. “Did I miss my chance? I don’t want to miss my chance. You said you’re supposed to be there for me but I also have to be there for you,” I explained before whispering, “Please, Mace, give me another chance.”

His hand came to my neck, his thumb sliding along my jaw then up to fol ow the bottom edge of my lower lip.

“Tomorrow.”

“Mace –”

“Tomorrow.”

“I want to –”

What he said next, or more importantly, admitted, rocked my world.

“I can’t talk about it in the dark, Kitten. It’l f**k with my head al night. It’s gotta be talked about in the light.” I understood that.

Effing hel but I understood that.

I would have never guessed Mace had a weakness but there it was.

And, without hesitation, he gave it to me, a piece of him.

And that piece was the fact that he lived in black too.

And it was right then, I knew I loved him.

And that my luck had final y changed.

And that, come hel or high water, I was going to pul him out of black.

This made me happy but I kept my smile to myself. My head went back to his chest and my body relaxed into his. I felt his relax under mine and listened to his breathing go even.

When I thought he was asleep, that’s when I al owed myself to smile.

Therefore, my body gave a start when he asked, his voice husky. “We final y good?”

I pressed my body further into him and whispered,