Once inside, there wasn’t a lot of light, and what there was, was coming from candles since the electricity had been turned off. There was almost zero furniture except mattresses that had probably been hauled from a dump. Last, there were a number of smells, none of them pleasant.

And when they made it to the room where B had taken up residence, they saw the only real piece of furniture in the place.

The chair from where she was currently reigning.

She had a standing lamp next to her throwing light. That lamp had an extension cord that ran out the window, so she was stealing the juice from somewhere else.

And her phone in her hand was raised.

Her taloned thumb was moving over it when they came in.

She put her phone down.

And when they stopped in front of her, she declared, “This is the last time you see me.”

Christ, he hoped so.

Hawk nor Cisco spoke.

“You hear me? I’m out after this. And by out, I mean gone. No one gonna yank B’s chain no more,” she kept at them.

“We hear you, B, now why are we here?” Cisco said on an annoyed breath.

“They have a message for you.”

Shit.

He kept his eyes on Brandi and so did Cisco.

“And that message is?” Cisco prompted when she said nothing.

“We fold,” she said.

Hawk stood still and silent.

Cisco did the same.

Brandi said no more.

They didn’t ask for it because they both knew no more was to be said.

In unison, they both turned around and walked out.

Joe had them on the road, taking them back to where Hawk had left his Camaro when Cisco spoke.

“You believe that?” Cisco asked.

“Absolutely not,” Hawk answered.

Cisco sighed.

Hawk crossed his arms on his chest.

They were feeling the pressure.

Which was good.

But that was horseshit.

No one was laying down their cards.

The game was still on.

*  *  *

Pepper

“You’ve gotta go.”

His breaths were still labored.

So were mine.

But his face was in my neck so I could feel his.

They felt beautiful.

He was also still inside me, mostly because he just came.

And so had I.

That felt even more beautiful.

“Sweetheart,” he whispered.

This shouldn’t have happened.

This never should have happened.

I pushed against his chest.

“Auggie, you have to go.”

He lifted his head and looked down at me through the dark.

“Pepper, that was good.”

No.

It was so good.

Frantic, I-can’t-wait-to-be-inside-you, I-can’t-wait-to-get-you-inside-me, wall sex right inside my front door?

That was not about ending a dry spell.

That was about Auggie.

Auggie and me.

Auggie and me and how unbelievably fucking good we were together.

On this thought, with a fair sight more desperation, I pushed again at his chest, trying to squirm away from him.

He kept hold.

And put his mouth to my ear.