AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I wasn’t particularly concerned about Utah blasting his way through Memphis. I hadn’t spent that much time around him, but there was absolutely zero chance of him shoving her out of the way just to get to the psycho in front of me. While said psycho in front of me presented a real risk of tossing me across the room just to get his hands on the person currently upsetting him. Jersey wasn’t even looking at me. His eyes were locked directly over my head from the moment that Utah stood from that chair. I looked at the other two over my shoulder when I heard Memphis whisper again.
“Please, don’t make it worse,” she’d said. Utah’s eyes dropped from Jersey in an instant when she placed her palm against his chest. He stared at her hand for a few seconds like he was worried that if he didn’t keep an eye on it, it might pull off some inconceivable magic trick.
He sighed when he looked back at her face. “Come on, Indy. We’ve got things to do today.”
“Do we?” Indy asked, looking around the room.
“We do now.”
Jersey smirked and while I somehow both loved and hated that he was a cocky prick, the last thing that we needed was an actual face-off between the two titans in the house just then. I smacked him in the chest to force his attention back to me.
“Cut it out, J.”
He smiled and put an arm all the way around my shoulders to pull me into him until he could lay his cheek down on the top of my head.
“Just because there’s an audience here to save you now, that doesn’t mean I won’t put you in your place for it later when we’re alone again, Fancy Face,” he whispered.
“I know that whole moment was kind of my fault, but did it leave anybody else slightly aroused?” Indy asked Utah while they walked toward the door.
“Kind of your fault?” Utah repeated and held the door open for him. “It was entirely your fault, Indy. Go.”
Jersey let go of me, and Memphis turned back to face us once the other two were gone.
“I know you’re working through a lot right now, Jersey, but Utah is not your enemy,” she snapped. “He didn’t have to help, but he did anyway.”
“Since you brought it up, why is he helping?” Jersey asked. “Why did either of them choose this side?”
This felt like it was about to be a terribly uncomfortable conversation. One that these two probably needed to have the chance to sort through alone.
“So,” I said to no one, since they were both pretty well ignoring my presence by that point anyway. “I think I’m going to just — go anywhere else.”
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
jersey
Memphis waited until Trista’s footsteps weren’t audible from the hallway anymore before she glared right back at me. I hadn’t spent much time with or even around any of these people who’d moved into my house, and while Memphis stood here staring at me like she had every intention of smacking the shit out of me, I almost felt guilty about it. Of everyone here, I probably should’ve made a noticeable effort to at least be near her before this moment. She was the only thing that’d kept me tethered to this world for years.
“We needed help, Jersey,” she hissed. “Trista and I never could’ve done that alone.”
“That didn’t answer my question, Memphis. Why are they here? What’s in it for them? And how in the absolute fuck could you decide to trust anyone else in that organization after Texas and Chicago?”
Probably wasn’t the way I should’ve been talking to the girl who’d tethered me to this world for years. I couldn’t begin to guess what was wrong with me.
“Indy and Utah were in that organization, yes. But they did not do what you and I did,” she said. “They handled different jobs. Indy was one of the first Judges who ever talked to me. He’s different, Jersey. I know you don’t believe that. I know you don’t have any reason to believe that, especially now. But I’m asking you to believe me. Think about the things that’ve happened to you over the last six years, and all that you’ve learned about it in the last couple months. None of it happened the way that you thought it did. Now, imagine what those two might’ve had to experience to put them into this organization. It could be even worse than what you lived. And maybe that’s why they’re here.”
It took all of about a quarter of a second before I felt like an absolute dumbass for not seeing it before.
I couldn’t get across that kitchen nearly fast enough to crush her tiny body against me.
“I’m going to say this as clearly as I know how,” I said against the top of her head. “Are you listening?”
She tried to nod her head, but she really couldn’t move through how tightly I was holding her.
“I simply could not fucking care less about the life experiences of those boys, and I don’t foresee that changing. I don’t know them. I don’t want to know them. But if you need to tell me what our President did to you and your world, I’m right here, honey. And we both know I’ll kill everyone on this continent if that’s what it’ll take to make you feel better about it. Just say the word, boss lady.”
Her body stiffened and I could hear her swallow. “I don’t think it’s that easy, Jersey.”
She pushed out of my hold and turned away from me quickly to wipe both hands across her cheeks.
