"That's what I've been trying to work out," I admitted sheepishly. "But... I think I know what it is." I wrestled my tits back into my bra, then sat down on the padded mat to stretch out my hamstrings. Archer had done this thing where he put my ankle on his shoulder while he fucked me, and it'd made me realize I needed to work on my flexibility.
"The suspense is killing me," he commented, grabbing a sweat towel to dry his face and chest off. No one could say he wasn't working on his cardio during our somewhat unconventional training sessions.
I grimaced. "Samuel," I admitted. "I'm worried about what's going to happen when he gets back on Friday."
Archer sat on the mat and handed me a water bottle. "He won't hurt you, Kate. I won't let him."
I gave him a dry glare. "No shit. And I wasn't worried about that... more about whether I would be able to actually go through with it. You know?"
Archer gave me a considering look. "With killing him?" I jerked a nod, and he tilted his head to the side. "If you don't want to—"
"No," I snapped, cutting off the offer he was about to make. "No, this is personal. I need to deal with him myself. He sold me, Archer. He possibly had my mom murdered, he tried to have me committed several times, and fuck only knows what he did to my memories to erase them all so thoroughly. But most importantly... he fucking sold me. He didn't care if I died some horribly painful death, so I owe him the same courtesy."
Archer just stared at me with an unreadable expression for a long moment, then the corners of his mouth tweaked with a grim smile. "Sounds like you're resolute on what needs to happen."
I nodded, finding that I was. I just needed to make my peace with my decision.
"Yeah," I said softly. "Yeah, Samuel Danvers dies on Friday. No matter what."
Archer's smile spread wider, and he scooped me up off the floor, then tossed me over his shoulder. "Fuck training," he muttered, carrying me out of the gym. "Let's go break my bed."
Friday morning I woke up with my stomach in a million knots from anxiety. The next day would be my wedding with Archer, but tonight... tonight I'd put a bullet in Samuel Danvers forehead.
Or that was the intention. We'd already learned the hard way that plans rarely went smoothly, so a handful of contingency plans were also in place.
Samuel and Cherry were due to land in the afternoon, then meet us at the fancy restaurant we'd rented out for our "intimate family dinner" that would end in bloodshed. But before any of that, I had something else to do.
I rushed through my shower, then hurried to get dressed before Steele woke up. Kody and Archer were already in the gym, and I knew I was going to have a hard time getting them to approve my request. But... too fucking bad. I wasn't a prisoner, so they ultimately couldn't tell me no.
I hoped.
They both gave me suspicious glances as I entered the gym and perched on the edge of a weight bench to watch them spar.
"We going somewhere today, babe?" Kody asked as he dodged a kick from Archer and circled out of the way. "You're wearing pants."
I arched a brow at him and folded my arms. "You say that like I don't normally wear pants."
Both boys gave me a look at that statement, and my cheeks heated. They had a point... The last few days I'd spent more naked than not. But I was stressed, okay?
"Well, whatever," I grumbled. But still, I felt rather called out. "I actually have an appointment this morning."
"I'll take you," Archer offered. He stepped away from his fight with Kody and started to unstrap his gloves. I shook my head, though.
"Sweet of you to offer, but this is an appointment you can't come to." I shifted my gaze to Kody before he could offer. "Or you. I arranged alternative security for the day, if that's cool with you guys?"
They both frowned at me in confusion.
"What appointment do you have that we can't come to?" Kody mused out loud.
Archer's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Are you getting that IUD removed?"
My jaw dropped. "What?" My voice was a strangled squeak. "No! What the fuck, Arch? We discussed this. No, I'm not getting my fucking IUD removed, and no, I won't even remotely consider it."
Kody's brows shot up so hard they almost hit his hairline. "You discussed this? When? Where the fuck was I?"
My cheeks burned, and Archer gave me a smug smile. Motherfucker was going to find my foot buried up his ass if he kept that shit up.
"This is off the topic," I growled, giving Archer a hard glare. "Point is, I have something to do today and you're not invited. End of story. I came in here to do you the courtesy of keeping you informed when I could well have just crept out without you knowing. Don't make me regret that choice."
Archer folded his arms over his chest. "Who did you arrange as security?"
I let out a small breath, relieved he wasn't sparking the whole kids argument again. "Sampson is coming with me," I told him, "and Cass." I checked my watch. "Actually, Cass will be here any second now. He insisted on escorting me from here instead of meeting me there."
Both Archer and Kody scowled at me.
"Cass?" Archer repeated. "Why Cass?"
I cocked a brow at him. "Can you think of anyone else with skills close to yours who seems to care enough about my well-being to both keep me alive and not try to hit on me? I'd have thought you'd approve of Cass being my bodyguard."
Archer's brow furrowed in a scowl. "I do, except for the fact that he's still Zane's second."
I snorted a laugh. "Yeah, for how long? Even an idiot can see that Cass is the real leader of the Reapers. You said it yourself, Zane has outlived his usefulness."
Archer tipped his head, acknowledging my point.
"Wait, hold the fuck up," Kody interjected. Poor darling looked confused as all hell. "Why am I just now finding out that there's been a conversation about MK's birth control? Are kids an option here?"
"No."
"Yes."
Archer and I glared at each other, having answered the question at the same time.
"Well," Kody murmured, his gaze bouncing between the two of us, "this just got serious."
Archer rolled his eyes and moved away from us to grab his water bottle. "Like it wasn't already, bro."
"Okay, that's my cue to leave," I muttered. I hurried out of the gym and flipped Archer off when he yelled my name out after me.
The front doorbell rang as I was stuffing my feet into ballet flats, and I opened the door to greet the giant, tattoo-covered gangster as Archer and Kody emerged from the gym.
"Take a damn gun, Princess," Archer snapped. In no time at all, he had one out of a hiding place and lifted my shirt to tuck it in my waistband. "You better not be on your bike, Cass."
The big grump just scowled. "What do you fucking take me for, Arch?" He jerked his head over his shoulder, indicating to the vintage Pontiac parked at the bottom of the steps. "I'll bring your girl back in one piece."
"Let's go," I told Cass as I hurried him down to the car before Archer or Kody changed their minds. "Sampson will follow in his own car."