Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 135792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 679(@200wpm)___ 543(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 135792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 679(@200wpm)___ 543(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
“Hey. Liv. It’s me. Are you okay?” Knox asked, his blue eyes alert and spearing right through Liv. It was so good to see them again, no longer drifting away from life but focused, and so alive that he clutched at Knox and buried his face in his chest. Reality set in, leaving him scowling with embarrassment.
It was just a dream.
Fuck.
How the fuck could it have felt so real?
“Yes. Yes, I’m fine.”
Knox hugged him. “Zombies again?” He laughed, but stroked Liv as if he were a baby in need of comfort.
The sunshine hitting Liv through the small window pulled him farther into a reality that smelled of coffee, bacon, and something sweet, but the sinking feeling in his stomach was still there. Vlad coming for him from the underworld. Knox dead.
Knox could have died that day. Liv was sure of it, and yet… what if he’d acted too hastily? What if Vlad could have been appeased?
“Yeah, yeah, zombies. Too many horror movies, right?” Liv lied just like he had back on the train, when Knox had woken him up from a similar nightmare. He didn’t want to be a wuss about something that could no longer be changed. The only way was forward, and yet, doubts and guilt were still very much alive at the back of his head and crawled out when his guard went down.
He was a murderer.
Was it fucked up that he didn’t want to confess to what had happened and take responsibility? Did that make him a coward? Knox had said he wouldn’t let him take the blame, so confessing might have meant Knox ending up in trouble too, but what if that was just a weak-ass excuse for being afraid of prison?
“I’ve got just the thing to help with that.” Knox beamed at him, then reached for a tray. He put it between them on the bed, presenting a breakfast Liv hadn’t even dreamed of.
Two plates stacked with pancakes, topped with bacon, drizzled with maple syrup, and a cup of coffee each to go with it. The food was so hot steam was still rising off it, and Knox looked so proud of himself, Liv could eat him instead.
“What is this? Where did you—?”
“I made them. And not from mix. It’s all from flour, milk, and stuff,” Knox informed him breathlessly as his arm snuck its way behind Liv’s back.
Liv’s stomach gave a loud grumble that made them both laugh. Having such a good appetite after the kind of dream Liv just had felt almost obscene. A part of him worried it meant he wasn’t a good person.
“I had no idea you knew how to do that.”
Knox grinned, grabbing his plate. “Ezra taught me. But I did all the cooking myself. I mean, he fried the bacon, but that’s easy. I just… we’ve had a rough time. I wanted to treat you.” He glanced at Liv as if he were unsure of something, and now that Liv saw him in this new light of fuckable, he couldn’t help but think Knox was as sweet as that maple syrup.
So maybe it was a good thing he’d stepped in and saved him, no matter the cost?
“Wow, that’s… unexpected. But nice,” he added right away as his chest bloomed with warmth.
Knox filled his mouth like a hamster but managed to somehow still appear thoughtful. “Do you think it’s weird? That I wanted to cook for you? I just feel you… deserve the best shit.”
Liv swallowed a fluffy morsel with salty bacon and syrup. It was absolute heaven, and not something he’d ever expected from Knox who’d so far only proven himself to be the King of Barbeque. He wasn’t sure what to answer without accidentally insulting him.
“It’s just… not something you ever did for me. No one has, really. Just my mom, when she’s around, or girlfriends,” he muttered, stroking Knox’s back when a flash of discomfort passed over his face.
Knox swallowed another portion of food, but didn’t shy away from looking right into Liv’s eyes. “Yeah, but you said it yourself, it’s just us now. I want you to get what you need. I want… to take care of you. Whether it’s breakfast, or fighting the zombies in your nightmares.” He smiled and leaned in for a quick, maple syrup-sticky kiss.
Liv gradually relaxed into his embrace, and his heart calmed down too, but even the sweetness of syrup couldn’t chase away the ghost of Vlad. He might just haunt Liv forever, beating him to death as Knox watches, bleeding out.
But faced with Knox’s care, it was easier to ignore the shadows, no matter how baffling this new tenderness was. Throughout Liv’s life, he’d been the one to take care of people. Bringing Dad cigarettes and booze when he didn’t feel like getting up after a bender. Sending Mom cash and letting her stay on the couch when she appeared at the door out of nowhere, after months of silence. Making sure Knox was fed and took his meds. Taking care of all his many girlfriends and their problems.