I chuckle. “The latter.”
Movement over my shoulder catches my attention and I do a double take. Jax stands in the living room, an unreadable expression on his face. Blake turns around and Jax's eyes dart to his. Neither of them blinks. My cheeks heat in agitation, tension pulsing in the space between us all.
Jax shakes his head and walks toward his office. Blake turns back around and huffs, looking out over the city. We stand in silence for a while. I have a hard time relaxing around people in general, but slowly, the tension dissipates from my shoulders. Being around someone for a long period is going to take some getting used to.
"So . . . you're rather pretty for an assassin," Blake says, studying my face.
I take a stiff breath. "Have you met many assassins?"
"No, I can't say I have." He chuckles.
"Then how can you know they aren't all pretty?"
"I doubt any of them could be as pretty as you." His voice is deep and husky as his lips curve up at the corners.
My face heats.
What is it about his voice? Damn it!
I clear my throat. "How'd you get into the human trafficking stuff?"
"Unhappy circumstance," he grumbles.
"That's a rather evasive answer."
"I dealt with a situation a while back. It opened my eyes. I couldn't stand by, after learning what I did, and do nothing."
"Trying to be every slave's white knight?"
"You go undercover. Don't you think they deserve someone to save them?" He turns toward me, his gaze penetrating right through me.
"Some people are beyond saving." I look down at my hands.
"Like you?"
I bring my eyes to his, my chest tightening. "What makes you think that?"
"You're probably the most smart-mouthed and guarded person I've ever seen. The walls you have up are damn near visible."
"Your point?"
"Who's your white knight?"
A dark, sinister laugh escapes my lips. "I don't need a white knight, Mr. Mason. I can ride a horse my damn self. For some, it's better to be alone anyway."
"No one should be alone," he says, briefly biting his bottom lip.
That's hot.
"I should."
"Why?"
"No one wants something that's already broken." I push off the railing and move into the house, my hurried steps echoing off the wooden floor.
I all but run to my bedroom and shut the door, putting my back against it. People like him will never understand. Blake scatters my wits and it's pissing me off. White knights and all that bullshit are nothing but fairytales told to little girls so they don't know how cruel the world really is.
Reality is something I learned young. Other women may find love, but not me. No, men only want one thing from me, and it has nothing to do with my intelligence. My hands shake and I fist them in my hair, trying to calm my nerves. Even if being with someone was an option, it wouldn't take long for him to give up.