Total pages in book: 153
Estimated words: 144571 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 723(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 482(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144571 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 723(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 482(@300wpm)
“She said I was kind of evil.” A rush of shame flowed over her even thinking about it. “Not in those words, but in a way that almost made it seem good to be evil. At least for my job. It’s not the first time I’ve heard it.”
“You are not evil,” Eve said, her voice shaky. “You are good at your job. Every bit as good as your father. There are some people who have different impulses. You’re a protector.”
“I can be a killer.” It was pure truth. She’d killed more than once and hadn’t missed a wink of sleep over it.
Eve stepped back, frowning her way. “Name me one, Kala. One person who you killed who wasn’t trying to kill you or someone else. One person who wasn’t in the line of duty.”
“Seth says I kill his soul sometimes.” She was going to do something terrible to her brother who had betrayed her in the worst way. And she was also going to hug him because he was an asshole who deeply cared about her.
Eve chuckled but sobered quickly. “You are not what that woman said. I didn’t like her from the beginning, and neither did your mother. Which I suspect is why you didn’t tell her how deep in you were getting with her.”
Kala shook her head. She was going to be honest with Cooper’s mom and then maybe see how she handled that particular truth. “It was more than that. I was seriously considering leaving the team, and Lena was going to help me do it.”
Eve paled. “Ian’s going to kill her. Where are we going to put her? We’re all full.”
Yep, the family tradition. “I thought it would be a good way to gradually break the bonds between me and Cooper so he could find someone more suitable. Someone who wouldn’t drag him down with her.”
She went even paler, and her eyes closed. When they opened again there was naked pain in her brown orbs. “I always wondered if he told you. We were good and then you would barely look at me and your mom said it was because of what happened during the kidnapping and the fact that Cooper broke your heart. But I knew different because you were fine around Alex. It was me you didn’t want to be around.”
“It’s okay. I got over it.” It was easy now to forgive Eve.
“No, you didn’t,” Eve insisted, “and you also didn’t understand what I meant. I never thought you weren’t good enough for Cooper. I worried he couldn’t be enough for you. I worried he would do exactly what he did because at the time it was important to be popular and have the world see him as this perfect son. I know it’s a common feeling among adopted children and it doesn’t necessarily reflect on the parents, but it’s hard to not wonder what we did wrong. What we did to make him think we loved him less.”
“He knows now,” Kala reassured her. “The question is how do you feel about me being with Cooper now?”
“He’s a man,” Eve replied with surety. “It’s completely different now. He’s not an insecure boy, but you have to know that he won’t always do the right thing. He’s human and he’ll screw up sometimes, and he might not always know how to fix things.”
“Oh, he has his ways.” She let a smile cross her face and then frowned. “Unfortunately, my dad caught the end of that show.”
Eve laughed. “Good. Then maybe I can talk him into being easier on Coop. You’re his baby. No man is ever going to be good enough for you, but I think Cooper is, and I know you’re good for him. But what Lena did, sweetheart, that wasn’t therapy.”
“No, it was apparently some form of black op,” Kala grumbled, but she understood Eve’s point. “I know. I’m actually a little hurt by it. I thought it was doing me some good.”
“The talking part did you good, and she used it against you. Now we find someone who won’t. Someone who will guide you in figuring out how to handle some of your more delicate emotions.” Eve stopped for a moment as though trying to figure out how to move forward. “Were you serious about getting screened for depression?”
So she’d heard pretty much everything. Kala nodded. “Yes. I think we both know how that’s going to go. My brain is all fucked up. I owe it to all the people I love to figure out if I can make it better.”
Eve’s head shook, and tears pooled in her eyes. “No. Your brain is perfect. It just needs some help so you can be happier. And you need to do it because you owe it to yourself. That’s what therapy is about. You are worth the work, Kala Taggart. I’ll do everything I can to help you.”