She exhales and braces her hands on her thighs.
I frown. Phoenix is genuinely upset about this. She truly cares about my safety and well-being.
I try not to spend too much time on that thought, despite the irresistible temptation. It poses a dangerous threat.
To my heart.
To Phoenix’s own safety and well-being.
“I’m very serious, General,” I say, as lightheartedly as I can manage. “Talbots sent a message. Message received, clearly. That’s all I’ve got for you.”
Phoenix’s gaze hardens and she presses her lips into a thin line. If I looked closer, I’m pretty certain I could see the steam coming out of her ears.
“Thatmotherfuckingfamily,” she says through clenched teeth. She frowns then. “Wait. Was this supposed to be a message to me again, or you?”
“Unfortunately, this time the message is for me.”
“What about?”
I avert my gaze. Not sure I want to share.
“Jax, come on,” she says, her voice softer now. “I thought we were supposed to be a team. Cursed Trio, remember? I think after everything we’ve been through, there’s nothing you can’t share with me.”
Slowly, I turn to face her. I jerk my chin. “Did you bring the deck tonight?”
She blinks. “What?Ah, yeah, of course.”
“Want me to deal, or you take the reins?”
Phoenix rolls her eyes again, and I chuckle.
“I hate this fucking card game. I’m so bad at it,” she mutters, but pulls out the deck from her pocket and tosses it at me. “At least you could teach me how to win.”
Now that I have something to keep my hands busy with, I can think easier.
“I have been trying. You asked me not to let you win, and show you how it’s done. That’s exactly what I’ve been doing every time we play.”
She settles down more comfortably on the floor, tucking her crossed legs under her.
“I guess I suck as a student, then,” she says, watching my fingers shuffle the cards. She looks up, and our gazes meet. Myheart skips a beat. “Don’t think I’ll leave the subject alone just because we’re playing cards.”
I smirk. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
Once I’m done shuffling the cards, I deal her a hand and then one for myself. I put the deck face down on the stone floor.
Phoenix picks up her cards and inspects them. “Can you remind me again how you always know when you have the winning hand?”
“You can never know for sure. You can only guess, and calculate your odds,” I say, glancing at mine. “Remember, it’s all about calculating the possible combinations your opponent might have that would win against your best hand.”
She shoots me an unfriendly glance. “Yeah, no shit. Last time, I thought I would win against Noire because there was only one combination he could have had that would have topped my hand. And guess what? It turns out that’s exactly the hand he had!”
I chuckle and shake my head. “That’s something one might call an unlucky hand, darling.”
She reorders her cards. “Turns out one might have an unlucky hand every time they play.” She breathes out a laugh. “Since I was a child and first played this game with my family, I can count on both hands the times I won!” She shakes her head. “Unbelievable.”
I settle more comfortably against the wall. The warm calm seeps into my bones and aching muscles when I’m around Phoenix.
Every morning when I open my eyes and the first thing I see is the ragged stone ceiling that reminds me where I am, I wait for the nightfall.
