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“The fuck? The Paul kid? What about him? He’s nothing. He’s not even patched in.”
“So, you don’t mind giving him up,” Izzy countered. “After all he’s not a brother.”
She emphasized the word so hard Prior’s jaw twitched. She was right, though. Prior had few loyalties. Not anymore. And somewhere in that pitch black heart of his, he knew what he owed Izzy and Caleb for pointing it out.
“What do you want?”
Izzy explained and Prior agreed to turn over the kid and anyone else he was with.
“I’ll call you in a day or two,” he told them and stalked away toward his bike.
After he was gone, Easy let out a slow breath. “Jesus H. This bounty hunting thing is some real shit,” he said to Izzy.
“It can be,” she replied, slipping the recorder into her jacket pocket.
Caleb finally lowered the gun but couldn’t bring himself to put it away. His nerves were raw and he could feel his anger bubbling just below his skin.
“Doc?” Easy asked as Caleb moved away from them and headed toward the car.
He yanked the passenger side door open and gestured with the .45, though his finger no longer hovered over the trigger. He glared past Easy toward Izzy.
“Get the fuck in the car.”
Chapter 25
Izzy sat beside him in uncomfortable silence as he drove them home. She would have preferred to talk about what had happened, and how to keep it from happening again, but Caleb definitely wasn’t feeling chatty at the moment.
To test the waters, she said, “Caleb?”
“Don’t,” came the harsh response.
Izzy frowned. While she wouldn’t call herself a talker, at least not for the mere sake of talking, she was, by nature, a strategist. She wondered how long he was planning to sulk. With her luck probably all night, though hopefully not for the rest of her time here.
They were close to catching Paul, closer than they had been at any rate. Soon he’d be behind bars and she hoped to at least have a conversation with the brooding man beside her. A conversation that ideally wouldn’t include juvenile labels like “boyfriend” or inane phrases like “taking it to the next level”. But she wanted to come to some kind of understanding with him.
He pulled into the drive and yanked the parking brake hard. Izzy unbuckled her seatbelt and followed him to the house. He unlocked the front door and stepped past her. He turned on the light, waited for her to come inside, and shut the door behind her. He took out his gun and placed it on the kitchen table, then he slid his leather jacket off and tossed it over the back of one of the chairs. He turned and walked past her toward the living room.
“Sleep on your own tonight,” he told her. “I’ll take the couch.”
“Bullshit,” Izzy countered, refusing to move toward the bedroom. “You’re coming to bed with me.”
Caleb’s eyes grew impossibly dark, but she wasn’t cowed. She understood he was irritated. The meeting with Prior could have gone more smoothly. But she and Caleb were still feeling each other out, learning how to work together. She’d already decided to split the reward money with him, though she hadn’t told him yet. It meant she’d have to take another high priority skip in order to have the bills covered, but she was hopeful it would pan out. She watched him grind his teeth at her refusal to follow his orders.
“Fine,” he growled. “You take the couch.” He moved toward the bedroom, but she stepped in front of him.
“You’re not walking away from me,” she informed him.
Caleb ignored her and tried to move around her. Continuing their dance, she blocked him again. He finally regarded her for a long moment.
“I can pick that door in less than ten seconds,” she reminded him. “You’re not walking away from me,” she repeated. “You’re not shutting me out.”
His hands flexed as though he longed to touch her. Izzy welcomed it. After walking the high wire tonight, it would be good for both of them to blow off a little steam.
Caleb leaned down into her face. “You need that door between us, Izzy,” he said. “You need more than that door. You need miles between us right now.” He paused. A measured silence stretched out between them before he said, “Get the fuck out.”
“Fuck you,” she replied. “I’m not leaving.”
His hands flexed again and he licked his lips convulsively.
“You want to put your hands on me, Caleb? Do it,” she challenged.
He shook his head and looked away. “You do not want that.”
“I think I do,” she argued and slid her leather jacket down her arms. It landed in a heap on the floor behind her. “In fact, I know I do.”
“Izzy,” he warned as she grasped the hem of her shirt and pulled it up over her head.
