Rea was covered in mud, sand, and clay. In his entire life, he was sure he'd never been this dirty. In his whole life, he was also sure he'd never been this depressed.
The flats of his palms brushed sand from his face. He used his fingers to dust chunks of mud from his hair. Keith was going to holler at him when he saw the mistake he'd made in the new hallway.
Cursing his distracting thoughts and his poor ability to focus on the underground building, Rea opened the door to his bedroom. After he entered, he slammed it using his boot. A slab of mud fell to the floor. He ignored the mess.
The door closed with a loud thud, and Rea closed his eyes. He relaxed against the wood panels. He really liked building underground. He loved leaving the training and guarding to Keith. He had all the spare time he wanted now. So, why wasn't he happy? He knew the answer. He wasn't focused on building because he was thinking about her. He wasn't happy about having the time to himself because of her as well. Spare time was useless if he didn't have Karma in his room waiting for him. Freedom from training men was what he'd been after his whole life. Now that he had it, he didn't have anything to use it on.
He thought about going to the Equator to find her. Maybe she was somewhere having the time of her life. He pushed that thought away. She said she would come back. He had to wait.
His fingertips scratched at the whiskers he'd forgotten to shave earlier as he considered all the words he would say when she came back. This time, Rea would say the right thing.
On the day she left, she had said she would return. He should've told her he loved her then. If he had said the words, then maybe he would have no regrets.
Frustration was a living, breathing creature in the room with him. Rea let it wrap its claws around him. His hands went to the bottom of his shirt. He swept the garment over his head. Rea threw the top to the foot of the bed without bothering to turn on the light. He raked his hands through his hair to dispel some of the mud and then reached for the light switch in the bathroom.
"You enter a room without turning on the lights? I'd think you'd know better by now. Someone might be waiting here to kill you." Karma's voice washed through him like the hottest, most relaxing shower he ever had. Keith had told him to be patient. Her father had said she would be back and to have faith. He'd tried so hard, and now like magic, she was here. She clicked on the sun lamp by the bed. The light cast a warm, comforting glow over where she stood next to his bed.
After she left here, Rea had taken the vent cover off, wishing that she would come in again. He'd added softer sun lamps around the room and a new blanket. He wanted her to like them. He had prayed every night that she would sneak into his room one last time. Since she'd left, everything he'd done was as if she would return and would stay. Her staying was all he had thought about.
She glanced up at the light, the vent, and then back to him. He kept his eyes glued to her. She looked healthy to him. She looked fit and not bleeding.
"Are you hurt at all? Shot or injured?"
"I'm not hurt," Karma said slowly as her eyebrows knitted together.
"Good." Rea crossed the room and crushed her to him. He held her so tight he thought he was making it hard for her to breathe. He could feel her cheek pressed against his chest. Her body close to him was enough to make him feel alive again.
"I'll say it," he whispered into her hair.
"Say what?"
"I'll say that I should've never told you to leave in the first place. I hate when you're gone." He breathed her in. "I'll beg this time."
Karma laughed lightly. The sound was muffled against him.
He let go of her and looked down at her beautiful dark eyes. Running his hand up into her hair, he pulled out her ponytail. He wanted her ready to go to bed. He wanted her to climb into his bed more than anything. Her hair would be around her shoulders, and she would take off her bodysuit and never leave.
A chunk of mud fell to the floor from his hair.
"Why're you so muddy? Bad training day?" She took another piece of dirt clinging to his locks.
"Your dad took over the training. He plans to bring The Seemyah here to guard the base full-time. I'm overseeing the transition, but the men are solid. They don't need me much. I'm learning underground building." He wanted to add that he loved her, but he wasn't sure if he should blurt the statement out like that.
"You agreed to have The Seemyah on the bases?" Karma asked offhandedly.
She didn't fool him. She was interested in what had been happening while she was away.
"It was put together by Gears, Eric, Keith, and I. I told Eric to hire The Seemyah as his official government protection. He asked for my advice, and that's what I thought would work. Keith is his head security officer. The family helps safeguard the bases when they aren't on security detail with Eric. No more contract killing. They're going legitimate."
Karma raised her eyebrows but didn't say anything.
"Eric told the Prime Minister he would take the job, but only if he had his security detail with him. The Prime Minister agreed. This way, Eric feels safe, and Keith has a respectable job for all of the family. The Seemyah are working, and I get to learn underground building, so I can take over Davis Construction."
"Except it looks like building is harder than you thought." Karma pulled away from him.
Rea let her step past him. He eyed her cautiously, and he measured how close she was to the ventilation grate.
"It's rough going, but only 'coz I have a hard time keeping all the instructions in my head. Keith wants me to master this, and he yells at me a lot, but not like my dad."
"He can be hot-headed, but why can't you keep the instructions in your head?" Karma had her back to him and was looking at the new blanket on his bed. The quilt was a heavier material with a purple diamond design. She bent over and traced the pattern with her fingertip.
"I never think about anything other than you." It was a now-or-never moment. He stopped procrastinating. "I love you." Now he would have to find out if she still loved him. "Do you think you could still love me? Maybe even grow to love me like you used to?"
Rea's heart was about to beat out of his chest. The pounding was so loud he thought she must be able to hear it. He had to know if she was here to be with him or not. If she was, then this time, he was with her all the way. If she told him she needed to decorate every wall in his room with weapons, then he would start hanging them. He remembered what Gears said. He'd be damn happy to have a trigger-happy girlfriend. Good or bad shot, he wouldn't care as long as that woman was Karma.
When Karma didn't respond, Rea tasted abject fear. He'd made too many mistakes.
"Karma, say something."
Karma turned around and held out her gun and clip. "I like it better when you call me Kitten."
Rea held his smile while he took her gun and set it on the table. He walked over to where she stood and wrapped his arms around her again.
"Stay with me, Kitten. Or if you want to leave, take me with you. I'll abandon the bases for you." He buried his head into her hair and thanked whoever was looking down on him.
"I think I'll stay… but am I staying as your girlfriend?"
"No."
She immediately tried to pull out of his embrace. Rea wouldn't let her go and waited until she gave up moving. He could tell she was annoyed because she was no longer hugging him back. Now her arms fell limp at her sides.
"I don't think you should stay here as my girlfriend. Your father said if I didn't marry you when you came back, he'd kill me. He meant it. He would literally kill me. He told me he'd cut me up into little pieces and hide the body where no one would ever find it."
Karma burst out laughing and hugged him again.
"Kitten, how can you laugh?" Rea pretended real alarm. "Your dad was serious. Gears told me your dad said he was going to kill me and make my death look like an accident."
Karma laughed even harder. It drew out the smile he'd been trying to hold back. He grinned at her. She was even more beautiful than he remembered.
"I hate to tell you this, but I think it sounds like we should get married." She smiled up into his eyes.
"I better not take any chances with my life, especially now that it's getting good." Rea nodded. "Keith is basically forcing me at gunpoint to build you a home on the other end of the water base. The rooms are going to be big enough for the two of us, and maybe if anyone else should come along…."
"Like if Gears wants to move in with us?" Karma asked. "I overheard a few guards saying dad calls Gears a real Davis now. I think he adopted him."
Rea chuckled. "I don't think that's what your dad had in mind."
"Rea." Karma pulled out of his embrace. "Do you know what you're asking me? I mean, all jokes aside, I have a colorful past, and the last time we tried to make this work, it didn't go so well. Both times, actually."
"I'm going to make us work. We're going to be a real 'we' this time. I love you. Say you love me too. Say it like you used to."
"Fine, I love you."
Rea slanted his eyes at her skeptically.
"Okay, I love you a lot?" She smiled a little when his face was still solemn.
"No."
"I love you more than anything in the whole world. I'll stay here with you. We'll work everything out. We can be a we. It's the least I can do since you're building me a new home and all."
Rea laughed. "That's the truth."
He kissed her. His face was muddy, but he couldn't wait even one moment longer. Her tongue entered his mouth. He gripped her thighs as he crushed her to him.
When they finally parted, he tugged her to the bathroom. From past experience, he was sure he could convince her to take a shower with him. He glanced down at his pants. He'd have to make sure he wasn't wearing anything he liked when he got into the shower.
"Karma?" He paused with her following behind him. "You could've had your freedom. Why did you come back?"
Rea turned to look into her eyes. There was no doubt in his mind she loved him and wanted to stay as she said, but still, he was curious as to why she decided to give her freedom up for him.
Slipping her arms around him, Karma paused. She studied his face.
"I guess I came back because… you're one lucky man."