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Her eyes widen as she slowly glances up at me. “You did not.”
I throw another one at her. “I did too.”
June latches onto a fistful of fries and chucks them at me. She bursts into laughter, and it completely fucking paralyzes me from even reacting to the fact that I have French fries all over me, one of them stuck in my hair.
I pluck a fry off my lap and fling it at her. “You’re lucky I’m here to protect you, otherwise, I’d kick your ass.”
She catches the thing mid-air and pops it into her mouth, grinning from ear to ear. “You’d lose.”
“In your dreams.” My finger twitches to reach out and brush the hair from her cheek, tucking it gently behind her ear. I imagine the warmth of her skin against mine.
Soft…porcelain…scarred.
I sigh at the mark the blade had left behind, the one from the man that I helped her kill. He deserved that death ten times over for harming a hair on her head.
June brings her hand to her mouth. "What? Do I have something on my face?" She snatches a napkin and wipes at seemingly nothing.
“No. You’re…” But I don’t finish my sentence. I don’t tell her that she’s perfect. Instead, I tell her, “Actually, you have a booger hanging out of your nose.”
“Oh my God, do I really?” She pats around her nose and then reaches forward and shoves me. “You’re a jerk.”
I revel in the reverberation of her touch long after it’s gone, wishing like hell I could duplicate it and put it on repeat. I nod toward the wrap she’s only taken a couple bites out of. “Eat your food.”
“Or what? You’ll feed it to me like this morning?” She raises a brow, clearly calling my bluff again.
“I’m starting to think you like me feeding you.” I lean my arm over the back of the bench. “How about this, you either eat, or you tell me what’s bothering you.”
“I hate you, you know that?” June deadpans.
I take a bite of my burger and nod. “Mmhm.”
She fingers some of my fries, looking for the specific kind she likes. Squared-off edges, extra crunch, the perfect amount of salt.
I pick one up and hand it to her. “Here.”
She narrows her gaze but takes the offering anyway. “I don’t need you.”
Her words knock the wind out of me, even if I was already aware of the truth. “Thanks for the reminder.”
June sighs. “That’s not what I meant, Simon.”
Fucking Christ. My name, her lips, a beautiful melody to my ears.
“Then what did you mean,June?”
She points between us. “This. This arrangement. The wholebodyguardthing. It’s not necessary. I’m not in danger, not any more than any other random girl in this city is.”
“You’re mistaken.” I sip my coffee and continue. “You’re shacked up with three of the most notorious criminals on the entire west coast. Anyone who’s anyone knows who you are. Could spot your face in a crowd.”
“So what? That doesn’t mean I’m in danger.”
“And it doesn’t mean you’re not. The risk is too high. It would be foolish to underestimate the threat level.”
June drags her food off her lap and stands up. She huffs and runs her hands through her hair. “This is fucking stupid.” She turns toward me. “All because what, I got shot?” Her chest heaves up and down. “That was my fault, because of me. I had it coming. It wasn’t some random attack; it was because I tried to fucking kill you.” Her hands shake. “I deserved that. But this?” She rocks her head back and forth, tears welling in her eyes.
I'm on my feet in an instant, going against my better judgment, and latching onto her shoulders. "Look at me, June."
“This isn’t what I wanted.”
