Fall For My Ex’s Mafia Dad
Chapter 113

"Just briefly," Kent murmurs, grabbing my left hand and pulling it to his mouth, kissing my knuckles like a prince and then turning my hand over and starting to drag kisses up the length of my forearm. "Not as long as it's been on your hand, even," he murmurs against my skin, trying to distract me. "A youthful mistake." "Mistake!" I cry, aghast, ignoring the tingles on my skin where Kent has placed his lips. "Kent, you loved her."

Kent looks up at me seriously, then. "I thought I did," he replies, lifting my arm and pulling it forward to loop it around his neck, where he wants it. "Natalia was...light and fire, so alive and passionate in comparison to Lenai's cool disdain. ...misunderstood how she made me feel. I thought it was love." Kent hesitates and then shrugs. "It's complicated, Fay. And it was a long time ago."

I study him for a moment and then nod, not pressing him any further. He'll tell me if he wants me to know. Otherwise, I can press Daniel for more information if I need it.

"Either way," Kent smoothly moves on, a little smile coming to his lips now as he nods to the book of military strategy that's fallen on the bed next to me. "There are ways to counter her, Fay. She's not smarter, or more powerful, or better supplied with resources than you. If she's walking all over you, Fay, it is because you're letting her."

I open my mouth to protest but then I realize that Kent is just saying to me precisely what I thought to myself, tonight, when Natalia caught me with Ivan. Right before I told her to shove it, which was one of the more satisfying moments of my life. Slowly, I close my mouth, thinking, and then I look back at Kent.

"All right," I say. "So what do I do?"

"You study," he says, reaching out to tap the book. "And you plan. And you learn her moves, and figure out ways to counter them."

I cock my head to the side, considering this. That I've...never quite thought, concretely, about making a larger plan regarding how I move through Kent's world, four or five steps ahead rather than just one or two. So far, I've mostly been acting on impulse - and it's worked, as far as it goes.

But what would happen if...

Suddenly eager to get started, I drop my arm from Kent's neck and reach for the book -

But before I can grab it, he swats it out of my reach.

"No," Kent groans, laying down and pulling me on top of him. "Start tomorrow. Tonight is for sleep." I glance at the clock and laugh, realizing that it's nearly one in the morning. "You're exhausted, we're exhausted. For one day..." he sighs as I settle against him, my head on his chest, "it's enough."

"Okay," I agree, closing my eyes and finding myself yawning a little bit, realizing that he's right. Even if my mind is on fire to begin strategizing, my body is ready to sleep.

A few minutes pass and I feel Kent's breathing soften, hear his heartbeat slow.

But I can't help myself as my mind continues to turn.

"Kent," I whisper, nuzzling my face a little against his warm chest. "Can I ask you something?"

"No," he murmurs, laughing a tired little laugh. "You get six thousand questions each day, Fay, and today, as usual, you've used them all up."

But I smile and press on anyway, ignoring him. "Kent," I ask, "if Natalia was light and fire, and Lenai was cool distain...what am I?"

"Irritating," he grumbles. "Loud. Awake, when you should be asleep."

I laugh, shaking my head, but not really bothered. It wasn't a fair question anyway. I know that I'll never be on Lenai's level - can never be. She was his first and only love. As I think it, something twists low in me - but I push the feeling away, not letting myself address it.

And then I close my eyes, ready for sleep, and am surprised when Kent raises a hand, bringing it up to gently stroke his fingers down the length of my hair.

"My refuge, Fay," Kent answers, his words hardly more than a whisper. "You're peace."

The next morning I'm not startled awake as I was before, but instead slowly awoken to the feeling of Kent's warm hand sliding up my stomach to cup my breast. And, as I stretch a little and turn curiously towards him, I feel Kent's mouth on mine, gentle and sweet. "Hey," I murmur, smiling and turning my body towards him. "No horrible shrieking today?"

"We've got about two minutes before that," Kent replies, his voice still rough with sleep as he takes a deep breath, sliding his hand back down my belly and using the pressure of it to pull me tight against him.

"What?" I ask, confused, still blinking awake.

"It's 5:58. Alarm's set for six."

"What!?" I cry, and then I tilt my head back and groan. "Seriously, Kent? You wake up before your alarm? After five hours of sleep?"

"I almost always wake up before my alarm," Kent murmurs, burying his face against my neck, dragging kisses along the length of it. "Complete diligence. Like a hawk."

"You're more like a bat," I sigh in response, not making much sense in my half-asleep state as I look anxiously towards the alarm, "I'm starting to suspect that you don't sleep at all and you just wait for me to fall asleep and then you hang from the ceiling -" "What?" Kent asks, picking up his head and laughing at me.

"And stare at me all night, obsession in your eyes -"

"You wish," he mutters, shaking his head at me as he brings his lips back to my shoulder.

"Kent, please," I beg, still looking anxiously towards the clock, "turn it off before it goes - I'm still half asleep -"

"Up!" Kent commands, giving me a smack on my ass that makes me yelp as he obligingly leans over to grab the clock before it goes off. It starts to ring against his hand just as he grabs it and I give a little shriek and cover my ears. Kent just laughs at me, though, tossing the clock aside and pulling me back to him as I turn away from the racket.

"Seriously, Kent," I moan, tucking my head against him and sighing. "Can't I sleep? It's only been five hours..."

"No," he replies, and I can feel him shake his head even if I can't see it. "You have to go back to your room before someone notices that you're missing."

I groan and wrap my arms around him, defiant and determined not to move. I even lock my legs around his like a little sloth clinging to a tree, which makes him laugh again.

"Come on, Fay," Kent coaxes gently, nudging me with his nose. "If it were up to me, we'd stay in bed all day. But we have things to do."

"Yes, but mine are way worse," I murmur. "I have to go shopping with Natalia."

Kent chuckles at me, a low and pleasant sound, and I glare at him a little bitterly, my expression clearly communicating glad you're getting such enjoyment out of this, Kent. He just laughs harder and nudges me with his nose.

"If you're good," he whispers, "I'll send you through the passage with a coffee."

"Really?" I ask, perking up. Then I blink and sit up all the way. "You have coffee here?"

"I have everything here," Kent murmurs in reply, sitting up with me and pulling me back against his chest like he doesn't want to get me go. And I let him, for a moment, trying to decide what I want more... Coffee? Or a little bit of Kent for breakfast?