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“I need to tell you something. Something really important. You aren’t safe. If you aren’t in town, can you meet me at Brouchard’s tomorrow night?”
“I don’t know,” Donni said. “I don’t think I trust you.”
“Please. You’re in danger. I’d tell you more, but I don’t trust the phones. Not now.” He hesitated for a long moment. “And—uh—don’t bring Rafe.”
The phone went dead in her hands.
Don’t bring Rafe.What an odd fucking thing to say.
And why wouldn’t he trust the phones?
“Who was that?” Rafe was holding a shopping bag. Some of the crossness had left his expression, but his eyes had narrowed at the sight of her phone.
“Wrong number, I guess.” She stuffed her phone in her purse. “Did she make you pay?”
“I showed her my driver’s license and Wikipedia page. I got an apology and several free book plates. Several of which I’ve signed and left here.”
“She probably thought you were going to get her fired,” Donni said. “I thought you were gracious in victory.”
“I am,” he said. “But only for you.”
It was quite cold by the time they left. Donni was feeling a little sick to her stomach. She was happy to be back in the car, free from the strange thermal marbling the fog seemed to be leaving on her skin, making her feel both too cold and too hot.
As he started the engine, he looked over. “Did you have fun tonight?”
“You didn’t exactly leave me much choice, Raffi.”
She saw him flinch. Like he’d forgotten he’d blackmailed her into coming here, and that their entire relationship now was hinged on a lie.
“I see,” he said, in a tone she couldn’t interpret.
The weight of his jacket on her shoulders became nearly oppressive. Still, she was afraid to take it off. Seeing his reaction left her feeling curiously exposed herself. It made her wonder how her own body might betray her. Even the best actors could fall for their own bullshit.
Rafe pulled up at a Best Buy. He didn’t ask her to come in with him and she didn’t offer. Instead she sat alone in the dark, toying with her phone, watching the windows fog up the way they had before, when she’d made him come with her mouth in a strip mall parking lot.
The condensation obscured the buildings beyond a thin misty veil, making her feel cut off and claustrophobic.
She had the strangest feeling that she was being watched.
Chapter Sixteen
Desperate Animals
I have you exactly where I want you.
His words echoed ominously in her ears, piercing through the fog of the alcohol as they returned to her hated house. It served as both a reminder and a warning: no matter that he stayed his hand, he still had her gripped in the fist of it. She could wake and find that same hand wrapped around her throat if she wasn’t careful. With him, there would be no mercy.
If she were braver or slightly more sober, she might have asked him why he bothered holding back at all. Why extortion was acceptable but, in his twisted mind, brute force was not. Why was he making this feel like seduction when they both knew she had no choice?
But she remained stubbornly silent as he walked her up to her room, determined to give him nothing. Part of her was afraid that he thought hewaspunishing her, despite his assurances to the contrary, and questions like these might drive him to do worse. An even larger part of her was afraid that his answer might rock her to the core, further tainting these poisoned waters that they were already swimming in, until this bleak sea of suspicion and desire dragged them under, leaving them to suffocate and drown.
I guess I’m a morbid drunk, she thought, as his presence slipped away. She stripped down to her underwear and pulled on her sleep shirt, and it was only then that she realized that she was alone.That’s funny. I always thought I was a cheerful drunk.
The shadows crept closer and she dove beneath the covers, letting out her breath when her dog jumped onto the bed to rest at her feet. She fell asleep waiting for the click of the latch but when she woke up, she was alone. That was odd. At some point during the night, she could have sworn there was someone there with her. Touching her.
Donni shuddered.
She rose and fed her dog, before changing into a bedazzled Depeche Mode shirt and a pair of black cigarette jeans. After a moment’s hesitation, she popped on her reading glasses, as well.
