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She furrowed her brow. “What are you doing here? It’s, like, four in the afternoon.”
I chuckled. “Think I only dwell at night, Bambi?”
She smiled softly for me. “Maybe.”
My eyes slid down her body. “Did he hurt you?”
“What do you mean?”
My eyes snapped back to hers. “If you have to quantify the statement, you might as well tell me what he did.”
She grinned. “Quantify. Big word for Fistman.”
I paused. “Fistman?”
“It’s either that or Buckaroo.”
“I’ve grown partial to Buckaroo.”
She smiled. “Then that’s a big word for you, Buckaroo.”
“Just because I don’t use them doesn’t mean I don’t know them.”
“Seems I still have a lot to learn about you.”
I nodded. “Right after you tell me whether or not Benji hurt you.”
And when her face fell, I braced for the worst.
Because if he had hurt her, my morals were clear. An eye for an eye. That’s how I lived my life. If someone hurt me, I hurt them. If someone stole from me, I stole from them. If someone killed someone I loved, I gave them that fate right back. That’s how the Red Thorns operated. ‘Rogues in Arms.’ Taking up swords and guns and war for those who couldn't fight themselves. Exacting revenge as we saw fit, making money as we could, and making sure this world always stayed at an even keel around us.
If Benji had hurt her, he’d suffer the same fate. Something I needed to prepare myself for.
I held my breath as her lips parted to speak.
27
Dani
“No, he didn’t hurt me. He just scared me.”
I watched relief flood Max’s face as he sighed so heavily I thought he might’ve been holding his breath.
“I’m sorry,” Max said again.
I shook my head. “It’s not your fault.”
“He’s my responsibility.”
“He’s not a child. He’s his own responsibility.”
He snickered. “You don’t understand.”
I cleared my throat as my heart winced. Was it possible for hearts to wince? I wasn’t sure, but that’s what it felt like. The struggled beat that finally rang through my body caused me to grow dizzy. His words stung because, well, he was right. I didn’t understand. Max and I came from two very different worlds. Two very different walks of life. I couldn't even begin to understand what re
ality looked like through his eyes. What kinds of pressures he had on his shoulders. For all I knew, nothing was the same between us.
“Well, uh, thank you. Again.”
