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“I think I’ll deliver them myself,” I answered with a smirk. “Only if that’s okay with you?”
She huffed out a laugh. “Given that you not only hauled your ass out of bed on Saturday to come down to that hellhole and help me out, but also I haven’t had a single text or call from Danny since then means I owe you one.”
Aspen was beautiful.
Long black hair, warm green eyes, and a smattering of piercings that give her a little edge. But Aspen was more straightforward, tell it like it is, even if it hurts your feelings. She was also silently smug in the way she looked at me. She definitely didn’t have Cassie’s positive energy, the way the atmosphere practically fucking sparkled around her and the unpredictable twinkle in her eye that kept you on your toes. Being around her was like a rollercoaster. And though I wasn’t completely sure what was coming around the next turn, I wasn’t ready to get off.
Not yet.
“She works at a little flower shop called Leaf It To Me.”
I let out a soft laugh and scrubbed my hand over my face. “Of course, she fucking does. The flowers.”
Aspen pointed to the left with a knowing smile. “It’s a few blocks that way.”
“Thanks,” I said, taking a couple of steps back.
“Treat her good… Mr. Shaw.”
I didn’t get the chance to respond, the door closing with the subtle warning still in the air. So Aspen knew who I was.Had she told Cassie?Guess I was about to find out.
“Just cruise the block, I’ll give you a heads up when I need you,” I told Simon as I climbed out of the car and walked over to the flower shop. It was what I imagined, just like she’d described the store she wanted to have in the future.
The old-style building.
The overgrown flowers.
The hanging sign outside.
The second I stepped up in front of the door though, I could feel that things were off. There were a couple of pieces of broken glass on the floor in the doorway, and I couldn’t help but storm forward, my muscles tight and on alert. “Cassie?” I called loudly, my voice scratchy and thick with concern.
The mess inside had me holding my breath as I peeked cautiously around the corner while dumping her clothes and pulling my cell phone from my pocket.
The shop was small, and probably at least half of the things inside were destroyed and strewn all over the place. I was expecting the destruction, but what I wasn’t expecting was the man’s body propped up against the counter, his shoulders slumped, chin to his chest, and blood pooling around him.
“Fucking Christ,” I cursed, taking another step. “Cassie!”
“He’s dead, isn’t he?”
I stepped inside, glass crunching under my shoes. I tried to keep my back close to the wall and not move anything, and I slipped around the small corner to where the shop window jutted out toward the street further than the door.
I didn’t want to disturb anything.
We’d have to call the cops soon if they weren’t already on their way. And I wasn’t about to have either of us locked up for messing with any kind of evidence.
The second I locked eyes on Cassie though, I took one large fucking step over everything, reaching for her cheek and stroking back the mess of hair that fell on her face. “Tell me you’re okay,” I said sternly, hooking it back behind her ear while I ran my eyes over every inch of her face, her arms, my hands skimming over her waist.
There was a mighty shiner across her temple and cheekbone, bruises on her arms, and a cut on her hand that was still dripping onto the floor.
“Mmm,” she murmured, though her eyes were glued to the body across the room.
“Cassie, I need to hear you say those words, beautiful girl,” I ordered, hooking my finger under her chin and trying to pull her gaze back to me.
If I had any guess of what happened here, it would be she’d just fought for her fucking life, and I needed to make sure she was okay before anything else happened because things were about to get fucking crazy.
She licked her lips, finally turning her eyes to meet mine. “I’m okay,” she whispered, the words barely audible. “He’s my ex, he saw the pictures of us—”
“Shh,” I soothed her, wrapping my arm around her neck and pulling her into my chest. “I’m gonna sort this, but I need you to trust me, okay?”
