Page 79 of Unruly

“When I got up, you weren’t in bed, so I thought I would come look for you,” she said.

Cross smiled faintly. “Found me.”

“I did.” Leaning down, Catherine kissed the corner of his mouth before standing straight once more. “What are you doing down here this early, anyway?”

“Thinking about some things.”

“When did you wake up?”

“Didn’t sleep,” he admitted.

Catherine stiffened. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“It’s just business and issues, Catherine.”

“Yeah, I’ve got those, too.”

“We don’t talk about it,” Cross said, looking up at her with a grin.

“No, we don’t step on each other’s toes, Cross. Discussing things isn’t exactly the same as trying to push our opinions or presence on the other. Right?”

“Mmm.”

“What was that?” she asked.

He laughed huskily. “Right, babe.”

Cross snatched the cup from Catherine’s hand, and set it to the small table between the bucket chairs. Without warning, the hand at her back pressed hard, pushing her forward. He caught her easily, and before she knew it, Catherine was on her back in Cross’s lap, and looking up at him.

He winked.

“Are you trying to give me motion sickness?”

“Is that a thing this time around?” he asked.

“I don’t want to test it out and see.”

“Fair enough.”

She resituated herself in his lap, so that her legs were tossed over the arm of the chair, and her head rested on Cross’s chest. It was far more comfortable, and she was able to stare out the windows, too.

Cross’s fingers drifted through her hair as he spoke. “You want to go first, or me?”

“You.”

“I figured. Always putting me on the spot, babe.”

“You handle it far better than I ever could.”

“Lies,” Cross said under his breath.

“Is not. How did that meeting go with your guys last night? You didn’t say a word about it when you got home.”

“Because it went over about as well as I expected, Catherine.”

She tipped her head back and peered up at him. “Tell me.”

Cross’s lips flattened into a grim line, but never once did he stop stroking his fingers through Catherine’s hair. “Mostly, they’re pissed off at Zeke for putting them in a position they have never put him in.”