The Scarlet Assassin

Chapter Thirty-Six

The sun leaked through the drapes of the window.

I woke up panting, having been drawn from sleep by another dream. An arm was wrapped around my midsection, and a snoring Sorin pulled me unconsciously closer to him. Realizing that I hadn't woken him up, I sighed.

Being careful as to not wake him, I shimmied from his grip and pulled myself to the edge of the bed. My nightgown still sat on the floor. I reached for it and began putting it over my head and-

"Mm, Vera." I turned and looked behind me. Stretching, Sorin was just waking up, a smile on his lips. "Come back to bed."

I grinned. "We need to go over the plan for the next four days." From somewhere in the house, I heard the faint sound of a sizzling stove, and I knew the others were up. "We need to be prepared-" Arms wrapped around my stomach and pulled me onto the bed. Sorin's lips immediately brushed mine. I giggled and shocked myself with how girlishly and carefree it sounded.

"Let's just stay here," he whispered, kissing me. His hand grasped my thigh, pinning it to his side. I smiled and pushed him away.

"As wonderful as that sounds, there's work that needs to be done." I slipped from his grip and climbed off the bed, leaving Sorin pouting.

"Come on, little assassin. Ten minutes?" I grabbed my robe from its spot on the floor and tied it around my body.

"Nope." I smirked.

"Seven?"

"I'm leaving."

"Four minutes?" I had already reached the door.

"Are you coming?"

"Two."

"I'll see you downstairs," I laughed, opening and closing his door.

Downstairs, I was surprised to see Ace, Carter, Sophie, and Rafe all in the kitchen. Well, really, I was just surprised to see Ace and Sophie, who were ignoring each other's existence, not ripping each other's throats out.

Carter and Sophie were making breakfast, and Rafe was helping Sophie with whatever task she was doing–from the smell, I assumed she was making muffins. Ace sat on the barstool, drinking what looked like orange juice, but really, you could never tell with her. She looked deep in thought, her head resting on her palm that sat on the counter, but I chalked that up to her inventor brain that was always thinking and never resting.

As I sank down onto the barstool next to Ace, I made the smart move not to acknowledge her. I'd noticed when she's in these little thought bubbles of hers, disrupting her usually leads to a catastrophic end. I was not in the mood to have an argument right now.

In front of me, Carter was cooking bacon on the stove, minding his own business as Rafe and Sophie bickered about the muffins. They hadn't noticed me coming down the stairs, and they didn't notice me now.

But Ace had.

"I hate Solstice," she said, still looking forward. She picked up her cup filled with the supposed orange juice substance and pressed the rim to her lips, sipping carefully, thoughtfully.

I had forgotten today was Solstice, and upon remembering, my good mood was instantly drained. Ace didn't seem to need me to respond to know that I too despised the holiday. She handed me her glass which felt oddly more like an obligation than just a nice thing to do.

"Be warned, it doesn't have alcohol in it. This place has seven bedrooms and not a single drop of damned wine." I drank it anyway, taking no more than a sip but wanting to down the whole cup. I'd pretend it had alcohol in it if it made me feel better.