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Her face softened, and some of the surprise and amusement fled from it. “I’m sorry. That must be hard. How come you didn’t meet the other two?”
He huffed a breath through his nose and looked out at the scenery surrounding them. “I’ve seen Nash and Cole only once. Cole threw me out—literally—and told me not to come back.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “After that, I never bothered to get in touch with Dare and Dallas.”
“Oh my god.” Her mouth hung open. “That sonofabitch. How could he possibly have anything against you?”
“Honey, he’s far from a saint.” His tongue burned with the urge to tell her about his family’s involvement with the takedown of Lionsgate, but the information felt foreign. It wasn’t his story to tell. And really, he didn’t have anything to do with his brothers. What right did he have to share their accomplishments? None. But whatever Savannah asked about, he’d divulge, because for some fucked-up reason, he wanted transparency with her.
Even if it was one-sided.
She reached out and rested her hand on his wrist. “Their loss. You’d be a cool little brother.”
“You think I’m cool?” He bobbed his eyebrows.
She pulled her hand away and laughed, but he caught her fingers. Her smile froze but didn’t vanish. “You’re all right,” she conceded. “The tattoos and gun carry a lot of the weight, though.”
His laugh boomed out. “Oh, come on. I think carrying you through a forest has to count for something.”
She held out her thumb and forefinger and created a tiny space between them. “Little bit.” Her eyes sparkled, and then, as if a cloud had blocked out the sun, they darkened. “I’m going to see what snacks you got. Then we’ll do a final tally.”
She stood, and his chest tightened. Part of him wanted to grab her and pull her to his lap. The other wanted to take a cold shower. Neither would end the battle inside him.
CHAPTER 11
Savannah dug intothe bags on the kitchen table. Although her back was to Toth, her skin vibrated as he entered the room.
She’d been careless—acted out of character. But god, she couldn’t fight the pull inside her chest whenever he smiled at her. Or got within arm’s reach. So messed up. If they weren’t basically living together for the next six days, she’d just avoid him and surely all the flirtation would stop and he’d move on. But being so close to him physically, spending countless hours with hima day...
She’d never had a man’s focus like this. Jace had always been busy with friends, had rarely spent time with her. Not that this had been a bad thing. She’d learned very quickly that Jace was as predictable as a tornado and if something set him off, he turned downright cruel.
She shook off the memories as if a spider had crawled on her skin. Sometimes she wondered how her life would have turned out if he hadn’t—
“Cold?” Toth approached. Even though he didn’t touch her, the electricity of his body synced with hers.
She shook her head. “I’m fine.”
He delved into one of the bags and pulled out three bars of dark chocolate. “This what you wanted?”
Snatching one of the bars, she moaned. “Mmm. Thank you.”
His mouth twitched, and she studied the curved line of his jaw and straight nose. His demeanor had changed, as if talking about his past had opened a wound. “Had I known chocolate was the key to your good side, I’d have bought you some a month ago.”
“Oh, come on. I wasn’t that bad.”
He chortled. “I thought you were going to murder me.”
She rolled her eyes. “That’s a little dramatic.”
“Why’d you always have an attitude, then?” He pulled out a bag of chips and popped it open. “Want some?” He turned the bag toward her.
“No, thanks.” Like a termite, his question dug into her mind. A wave of embarrassment filled her. “You probably thought I was a bitch.”
He grabbed a handful of chips. “Well, I wouldn’t go that far. But I took you for a man-eater.”
A brittle laugh broke out of her throat. “What’s that even mean?” If only he knew how long it’d been since she’d had sex.
“That you chew men up and spit them out.” Amusement flashed in his eyes, and it seemed he wanted to know more. “To be honest, ya scared me a little, and I still think you’d be a dangerous one to get involved with.”
Her mouth went slack. “Wow, don’t hold back.” Sarcasm hung from her words, but in truth, his honesty was a courtesy not many men in her world gave her. “I’m not a man-eater,” she said with a shrug, as she removed three packages of berries from a bag. “In fact, I veer away from your species as much as possible. If I didn’t act tough in Sinners Cartel’s world, I’d wind up dead. My father’s colleagues think I’m a bitch, and it’s safer that way.”
