Us Deadly Few (Us Dark Few, #2)

by Alexis Patton

To all those who are clouded with anxiety. May you dream under the moonlight. And find solace beneath the stars.

Because appreciation rarely comes until what you thought would never leave is gone forever.

So, she let everything go the only way she knew how… Khalani clenched her fist and punched him directly in the face.

“I’ve thought of a million ways to tie you up since the day we met. Still wanna make that dare?”

“I already keep an eye on you while you sleep.” “Sounds unhealthy,” she deadpanned. “Probably.” “And psychotic.” “Stop with the compliments.”

A woman’s worth isn’t in her beauty. It lies in her resilience.

“Even those who feel the most can feel empty. Do you want to know what it means to be alive? It’s not perfection. It’s not being okay all the time. It’s having fears. Feeling like you aren’t good enough. Trying every day to be better. Your tears reflect how beautifully imperfect you are. What could be more human than that?”

She used to think friends were people you felt comfortable with. But she believed friends were the ones who silenced your doubts.

“Interesting. I didn’t hear any screams last night.” “What’s that got to do with anything?” she asked. “Anyone who knows what they’re doing would make your vocal cords raw.” His dark eyes pierced hers. “Either he’s lying, or it was the most boring lay of your life.”

“What if I’d rather share your pain than have you bear it alone?”

Love wasn’t just an emotion in your heart. Love was an offering of yourself. When you loved someone, you gifted them a part of you. And if they left, you could never get those pieces back.

“I used to believe the moon was the most beautiful thing on the surface,”

“Because if she gets another scratch, you’d need a much bigger gun to survive.”

“The only thing I’ll be is your mortician if you don’t stop talking.”

“I should eviscerate your teacher on principle alone.” “Jealous?” she seethed. “Do you want me to detail the one hundred ninety-seven ways I thought of killing him, or the thousand ways I plan on punishing you?” “That’s oddly specific.” “Keep provoking me, Kanes. See where that gets you.”

Repeat after me: Your enemy threatening to maim others on your behalf is psychotic and troubling, not attractive.

Peer closer and you’ll see all the battles buried in my skin.

“I know you have the biggest heart, because in another story, I would’ve wanted you to be my ending.” Takeshi didn’t speak for the longest time. The old Khalani would’ve regretted those words the moment they left her mouth, but she didn’t. Her feelings reminded her that she was still human. And like a candle flickering in the dark, Takeshi let his bleeding heart spill on the floor next to hers. “In another story, you would’ve been my beginning.”

You are more than your mistakes.

“Nothing to do with me?” Takeshi’s voice was so deep it was unrecognizable. “The moment you laid a hand on her, you chose death.”

“You don’t deserve to look at something beautiful before you die,” Takeshi growled.

I often wonder if the world changed me, or if that decision was my own.

“You’re never a burden,” he stated. “I know you can handle everything life throws at you and punch back even harder. But if something happened to you—” Takeshi cut himself off, his muscles clenching before glancing away.

“It means that no matter how many times I told myself we were done, I knew I’d never be over you. You’re the kind of special no one ever forgets.” His pitch-black eyes bore into Khalani, demanding that she listen.

“I’ve tried very hard to keep my distance, but my control slips by the minute. When you look straight at me, all I want to do is finish what we started that night in prison and make you completely mine. So let me make one thing clear. It doesn’t matter what happens between us. From now until the day I bleed out, I will always want you. I will always keep you safe. Even if you weren’t mine,” he gritted his teeth, “I would still protect you. Just know that if anyone gave you so much as a paper cut, I would end their existence.”

But love doesn’t have an ending. Love endures. It walks this earth with no face, concept of time, or reason. It simply is. And simply will be. That was the thought going through Khalani’s head when she closed the distance and kissed him.

“I’m enjoying the view.” “And what do you think?” “I think you’re mine.” Oh. My. God.

“Oh my God,” she rasped, out of breath. “No. Just me.”