“That’s what worries me,” she said and poured two glasses of iced tea. “No one is always fine, girl, not even you. That means you’re internalizing it.”
“It’s how I deal, T, but I’m trying.” She opened her mouth to argue, but I held up the box I carried in to stop her. “Now we can talk about that, or we can talk about the wedding gifts I found while I was away.”
She smiled, and when her gaze slid to the box for the third time, I shoved it across the table. She pulled out the vintage twenties style veil and gasped. “I love it!” When she spotted the light blue gothic style garter the waterworks began. “Thank you!”
“You’re welcome” I said, chuckling a little. “How have you been?” The hairs on the back of my neck stood, and my spine went stock still the longer it took her to talk.
“Well, Cash has been worried sick about you.” She gave me an admonishing look, but I willed my entire being to stay still.
“I figured he would be, but I just needed to get away.” I wouldn’t apologize for that, not even to Talon. I listened with a sickness I couldn’t name in my stomach as she told me about Roddick. “Is he okay?”
She shrugged. “Mick says he will be, but tensions are high in town, and they’re talking war.”
“Looks like my timing is spot on, as usual. Great.” I stood and hugged Talon, letting her squeeze me tight because I knew she worried about me. “I probably have a lot of stuff waiting for me at home, so I’d better get going. Gotta make that money.”
“Come back tomorrow for dinner,” she ordered in that tone that told me that arguing would be pointless, so I waved and started the engine. I stopped at the store and picked up a few things before stopping at the club.
“Hey, Roddick, how are you?” He looked like shit, pale with red-rimmed eyes.
“I’ve been better, kid. What are you doing here?”
“Talon told me you were hurt, so I came to bring you a few things.” I unloaded the box of his favorite snacks and the tablet he kept hidden behind the bar. “Might make
recovery less boring.”
He laughed and looked at everything. “Thanks, Minx.” He tore open a box of Suzy-Q’s and bit into one of the chocolatey cakes with a loud moan. “I’m sure Talon told you what’s been going on, so you know why I’m going to have the prospects man the bar this week?”
It was clear I was no longer needed, and that was just fine with me. These guys had become like a weird, horny family to me, but they weren’t the first family I lost. If I was smart—and I liked to think I was—they’d be my last. “Fine. I need to go so, feel better.”
“Minx wait—”
“It’s fine, I get it. Take care of yourself,” I told him and rushed from the room, through the club and back to my car. I knew what had to be done now, and it made me glad I’d picked up a few bags of groceries for myself. I spent the next few days holed up at the cottage, sewing and studying, studying and sewing. In between I would eat and sleep while music played constantly. I was always busy and it was always loud, just how I wanted it.
By day three my mind began to wander to Cash, wondering if he was okay or how pissed off he was. But I knew the truth was he’d already given up on me like everyone else had, only this time I couldn’t blame him. I pushed and pushed and in the end, he realized what I’d always known—I just wasn’t worth the effort.
Keeping weird hours and an impossible workload had taken its toll, and I fell asleep in the middle of the fourth day of confinement. I woke up to someone pounding on the door with the strength of ten men and instantly I went on alert, running to check the surveillance before pulling the door open. “Yes?”
He looked at me, green eyes furious yet relieved, and pushed his way inside, slamming and locking the door behind him. I wasn’t worried because I knew he wouldn’t hurt me, but still I took a step back. “Don’t run away from me.”
“I didn’t run—”
He cut me off. “You did. You fucking did.” He toed off his boots and pulled me into the living room where he wrapped me in his arms. “You told me about your past, freaked out, and ran.”
Okay, now he was pissing me off. “So what if I did, Cash? I’m not your responsibility just because we had sex a few times.”
“I refuse to even respond to that bullshit, Minx. Lie to yourself, sweetheart, but don’t ever fucking lie to me.” His voice was low and daunting as he brushed a whisper-soft kiss against my lips, so achingly tender I felt my eyes begin to sting.
“What are you doing here?”
“As soon as I found out you were back in town I came to check on you. Though it would have been nice to get a call or a text. Maybe a smoke signal.” He leaned in and kissed me again and this time it was all hungry and frantic, demanding and desperate. I couldn’t resist his kisses if I wanted to, and I didn’t want to. I missed him, and I told him so with my mouth. My tongue. “I’m glad you’re okay, Minx, but goddammit I want to paddle your ass for making me worry so long.”
I rolled my eyes up at him and smiled. “Promises, promises.”
He tossed me over his shoulder and carried me to the bedroom where he tossed me on the bed and kept his promise. “I told you, Minx, I’m a man of my word.
I was starting to see that.
***