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“No, sir. Your word is law.”
“Don’t be a smart-ass.” An alert comes through on my phone—the door to my apartment was used. That means she’s back from visiting Jase in his suite. “Now, if you’ll excuse me. I have to explain this to her, so she doesn’t get the wrong idea about me disappearing tomorrow night.”
“I still think it would be a good idea for her to come along.” Dallas’s voice follows me out the door, but I don’t bother responding. We’ll only end up talking in circles again, and my position won’t change.
Nobody knows better than I do how crucial it is to draw out whoever has decided to throw away their life by fucking with mine. I will not sacrifice her. And I won’t spend the night constantly looking after her when I need to be watching my back. The idea of having eyes in the back of my head is cute and everything, but that’s not how it is.
And while I trust them with my life, do I trust them with hers? Especially when I know damn well she’ll probably end up wandering off. She’s that predictable.
Predictable enough that the sight of her curled up in one corner of the sofa doesn’t come as a surprise. What is surprising, though, is the dark TV. “What are you doing?” I ask as I approach. “Just sitting here in the dark? Is everything all right with Jase?”
“We had lunch. It was good.” Her response is short and sweet. No eye contact. Something is definitely up.
She pulls the sleeves of her hoodie over her hands before wrapping her arms around herself like she needs protection.
“You don’t look or sound like it was so good. Did something happen?”
Her head swings back and forth. She still won’t look me in the eye. “No. I’m just bored. I’m tired of watching TV. But you know that already.”
Is that all it is? “Am I going to regret having him stay here? Because if he’s upsetting you—”
“He’s not, okay?”
At times, I would swear she’s doing her best impression of a moody teenager. This is one of those times. And all at once, my temper threatens to flare up. Nobody speaks to me that way.
But fighting isn’t the answer. I have to be the bigger person. “All right, then. Have it your way. Sit here in a silent room by yourself.”
She lifts her gaze, studying me from beneath her thick lashes. Suspicious. “Why? Where will you be?”
“There’s a fundraiser for disabled veterans and their families,” I explain. “Dallas and Griffin will be coming with me. We were hoping…”
Wait. What am I doing? She doesn’t need to know. Why is it my impulse to open up and tell her information she doesn’t need to know?
“Hoping what?” Dammit. If I open up even a crack, she’ll push her way through. I know better by now, or I should. “What’s the plan?”
I could lie. I could calm down and deny everything. I could also hit myself over the head repeatedly with a hammer. It would get me as far with her and give me the same splitting headache.
“We were hoping to draw out whoever is behind all of this.”
She sits up straighter, gripping the cushion under her like she’s using it to keep herself steady. “You’re going to put yourself out there like that? What happens if whoever’s after you is there?”
“Then we get rid of them. We wait for them to show themselves, and we take care of business. That’s what it has always been about.”
“And what happens if you don’t come back?”
“I’m going to come back.”
“And if you don’t? I’ll just be sitting here waiting forever for somebody who never comes back? No way.” She leaps to her feet, teeth gritted, jaw jutting out. “I’m coming with you. I’m not letting you do this alone.”
“Do you hear yourself? Absolutely not. I would never expose you to that.”
“News flash: I’ve already been exposed to plenty of danger. Did you ever think that maybe I would like to set eyes on whoever is doing this? They’re kind of screwing with my life, too, or did you forget about that part? They were going to kill me. They tried to blow up my brother. I think I at least deserve to get a look at them before you… do whatever it is you’re going to do.”
I notice that takes a little of the fire out of her. Imagining the truth of what this situation is inevitably leading toward.
“Right. And I’m sure you would stay by my side and listen to every word I said.”
“I would!”
