He rolled over on the couch toward the table, the blanket pooled at his waist as he sat up, his bare tattooed back displayed.
"Yeah?" Lars said, answering in a voice that wasn't so much quiet as weary.
He stood, phone in hand and walked a couple steps. His eyes met hers as she sat up in bed, making no pretense of being asleep.
"Ok, I'll be down in fifteen minutes," he said in a normal voice and then laid the phone on the table.
He looked at her and a flicker of recognition passed between them. She didn't know what they were to each other and he didn't either. They were in a no man's land of emotion. Not friends but not enemies, no longer lovers, just floating above a cesspool of emotions with no real place to land.
"I need to let the guys in downstairs," he said in a calm voice that made it clear he was done fighting. It was as if he couldn't expend the energy to figure out what they were right now or what he wanted them to be.
"Should I come?" she asked, not for him but because whatever was going on, she still felt a loyalty to the guys. If something was happening that they might need her help for, she was going to be there, regardless of where she and Lars ended up.
He hesitated before he finally said, "Yes. That's a good idea."
She climbed out of bed and dug out a pair of jeans from the bag she lived out of, a harsh reminder that she was a visitor in his home. This situation had always been temporary. She should have realized that but she'd wanted to believe that it could be different.
"What are they coming over for?" she asked as he moved around the room. She knew what she was doing, clinging to find some normal ground between them, even if it was a conversation about other people.
"Karma, Fate's girlfriend. There's something going wrong with her tattoo," he said, also acting like yesterday hadn't happened.
"Something can go wrong with them?"
"It has nothing to do with the type you have. There are some other factors involved where Karma is concerned."
"Oh."
"It might be nice just to have another female face there," he said.
Another female she'd never met. If she was having a problem, she wasn't going to want to make idle chitchat with some woman she'd never met before. He either didn't know women well at all, which struck her as highly unlikely from what she'd gathered of his past, or he was making excuses to have her participate. And why would he want her there?
Because Karma would be there. This wasn't a truce or a cease-fire between them; he was setting her up for a fishing expedition. If she had to take a wild guess, Karma had a way of telling if someone was a good person or not, just like Cutty got hunches.
The truce idea, now blown to little pieces like a grenade had gone off on it, took with it her desire to participate. She forced herself to finish getting ready and follow Lars down to the shop anyway.
They'd just reached the door when Cutty arrived. He greeted Lars and then gave Faith a humble smile. She smiled back even though she knew he was the one who'd supplied the report to Lars.
When they walked in she spotted an old man walking around the place who would've made someone in their eighties look like a spring chicken. He was sporting a fedora and a sports jacket like it wasn't boiling outside. She watched as he stopped in front of some tattoo books as if he were contemplating getting a piece.
"Who's that?" she asked Cutty.
"That's Paddy. He's upper management for the agency. He's tight with Karma."
Karma walked into Dead Ink shortly after. Faith knew it had to be her, as Fate walked in beside her, his fingers wrapped firmly around the dark beauty's hand. She was earthy and sensual and everything Faith felt she lacked. And it was achingly clear Fate loved her.
Watching the way Fate was so protective of Karma made Faith look at Lars, and the difference felt like ice picks stabbing at her.
"Hey," Lars said, as she watched him walk over to Karma and Fate.
Karma looked toward her and immediately started in her direction but Lars stepped in front of her. He dropped his voice so low that even with her better senses she couldn't hear what was being said. It was probably instructions to Karma to get a read on Faith, try and out her as the horrible person he believed her to be.
Karma looked over at Fate, and Faith saw a look pass between them that she couldn't read. Fate shrugged. Karma shook her head in response, as if her patience was wearing thin. All Faith could think of was how amazing it must be to know someone as well as they did each other. The man she'd just slept with didn't even know if she was going to try and murder him tonight.
Lars was talking again. Every second he spent trying to convince Karma to do what he wanted, another dollop of resentment piled on.
"Yes. Now step aside. I feel like you're a dark cloud hovering over me," Karma said. They were the first words Faith could make out from their conversation.
Finally, Lars stepped aside, having gotten what he wanted, someone to vouch for Faith's unworthiness.
Karma headed toward her, noticeably breathing heavier and looking annoyed with Lars. Faith didn't blame her. She was annoyed too.
Faith fidgeted under the appraisal of this woman who looked like she could kick her ass and would determine what Lars believed of her.
Karma stopped in front of her but didn't look like she was ready to condemn her. She held out her hand as she said, "I'm Karma. You must be Faith."
"Hi," Faith said, as she tentatively took Karma's hand. Faith's eyes darted to the men behind Karma, watching. "Can they hear us?" Faith asked.
"Probably. But I think the office is sound proofed," Karma offered, surprising Faith and making her think maybe this woman could be an ally.
Faith gave a short quick nod as her eyes darted to Lars and back to Karma. She headed toward the back but before they could enter the office, Lars blocked Karma's way, probably wanting a front row seat to the witch-hunt.
"Where are you going?"
Karma looked to Faith, and she knew what the woman was expecting. She thought Faith could back Lars off. What Karma didn't understand was he wouldn't listen to her. Nor did she feel like speaking to him at the moment.
"We want a minute to talk without all of you guys hovering," Karma replied, when Faith didn't say anything. When Lars didn't move she continued, "We're fine. Get out of the way," she said, waving her hands and demonstrating she wanted a clear path with him out of it.
Faith took a step away from them, losing whatever patience she had, and walked into the office alone, not caring if she stayed that way.
Karma followed her in seconds later and closed the door behind her.
"How are you doing?" Karma asked.
Crappy? Shittier than I ever thought possible? "Getting by. I'd heard you were human first?"
She nodded but remained silent. Faith grabbed a pen from the desk and flipped it end over end. "Does it get better? I mean, it's not bad, I just feel … "
"Lost?"
Faith looked at Karma and could see the understanding she'd been looking for. "Kind of."
"It gets a lot easier." Karma tilted her head towards the door that closed them off from the guys and gave them a thin layer of privacy. "I'm not sure if they start seeming less crazy or we get more so, but you'll adjust." She walked around and propped a hip on Lars' desk. "You two involved?" she asked.
The way Karma asked led her to believe she already knew something. But to call them involved? Faith still was but she wasn't sure about Lars. "I don't know what you'd call it," she answered, somewhat evasively.
"He's very protective of you. I've never seen him act like that."
"He also thinks I might have been the scum of the Earth in my mortal life, so I'm not exactly sure why." Faith let out a laugh, even though nothing she had just said was funny. Sometimes it was easier to pretend things were a joke.
Karma stood up and took a couple steps around the small room. "There's an easy fix to that."
She knew exactly what Karma meant. It was what she had assumed; Karma could read whether someone was a good person or not. She sat down in Lars' desk chair and let the idea sink in. Wow, was it tempting. One word from Karma and Lars would suddenly trust her. She could walk out of here and things could be completely different between them. But what a way to start over.
She shook her head, defeat surely written all over her as her shoulders slumped, knowing she was going to decline. "I know what you do. And I know if you told him I wasn't a bad person, he'd believe you. But do you know how that feels? That he needs to hear it from someone else?"