Page 53 of Dagger

“Hi,” he grunted and shoved his hands deep into his pockets.

“Good afternoon,” I replied, trying to keep my tone friendly and upbeat. “What sweet treat are you in the market for today?” I shook off the uneasy feeling he gave me and kept my smile in place.

He eyed the options carefully as if they might jump up and bite him. His posture was unusually stiff, and I found myself backing up just a little.

I pointed to the lemon bars. “The lemon coconut bars are really good. They were my dad’s favorite.”

I ignored the pang of sadness that hit whenever I thought about my dad. He was a flawed man with too many demons, but I loved him as much as I hated him.

“I’ll take six,” he said in a monotone. I couldn’t see his eyes as he was wearing dark sunglasses but there was something cold in his demeanor. I bagged them up and handed them to him as I took his money.

He turned and walked away.

“Hey, you forgot your change,” I called after him.

He didn’t reply.

“Do you know that man?”

Dani’s voice startled me, and I tried to calm my racing heart before I turned to face her. “I don’t, but he seemed annoyed.”

She nodded. “Yeah, he seemed mad, like when Daddy is trying to pretend he’s not mad.”

She wasn’t wrong. I hadn’t dared give name to his emotions, but it felt a lot like anger, and it felt like it was directed at me, but since he was a complete stranger, I figured he was upset he had to spend money twice on school supplies. “Maybe he’s having a bad day and really needs those coconut lemon bars?”

She giggled. “Maybe. Did you sell lots of yummies?”

“Yep. You want one?”

A small smile spread wider and wider as she nodded with excitement. She tiptoed back and forth until she made her choice, a chocolate cookie with white chocolate chips and nuts. “This one?”

“All yours,” I assured her. “On me.”

Dani bit into the cookie with a loud moan, savoring the bite until she finished chewing. “Are things okay with you and Dad?”

Her questions surprised me, but I nodded, thinking that this conversation was yet another reason getting with Dagger had been a bad idea. “Yeah, things are fine.”

She didn’t look like she believed me, and who could blame her. “Okay.” Her skepticism was heavy. She was a sweet little girl who trusted the adults in her life even when she shouldn’t, and I felt like absolute garbage for abusing that trust.

But when the school day ended and Dagger picked us up, the atmosphere in the car was positively icy. He kept a white-knuckle grip on the steering wheel while his jaw remained clenched, and his gaze was so focused on the road I wondered if he was even seeing it.

He wasn’t the only one who had nothing to say. Less than nothing, in fact. I kept my gaze on the passenger side window, watching the town of Steel City as it whipped past. Before we even got back to his place, exhaustion hit me again. I was putting it down to my current situation. It came in fits and starts, keeping me in bed longer than usual and causing my bedtime to get earlier and earlier.

The next morning, the universe decided to treat me to a never-ending wave of sickness. I’d sampled quite a few of the home bakes yesterday, and I wondered if one of the teachers’ hygiene standards hadn’t been up to code. The nausea wouldn’t quit, but I sucked down a bottle of room temperature sparkling water and left the house earlier than usual. I made it to school with forty minutes of peace and quiet before any teachers arrived, never mind the students. A sleeve of butter crackers later and I only felt like lukewarm garbage instead of the hot variety.

“Miss B, I missed you this morning!” Dani rushed to my desk wearing a big grin. “Daddy made waffles this morning. With caramel syrup!”

“Wow,” I replied, shoving my nausea down deep. “How nice for you!”

Dagger stood at the door with his gaze burning a hole in my face. “You want to go run off some of that caramel syrup before class starts?”

She nodded and took off for the playground, but too late, I realized my mistake. Without Dani, it was just me and Dagger.

“Sinclair,” he began. “I think we should clear the air.”

I shook my head. “I thought we had. We need to keep this professional. You’ll figure out who this person is, and when you do, we’ll go our separate ways except when it comes to Dani. It’s better that way. In the meantime, I think it’s best I go back to my own home.”

His nostrils flared. “Is that what you really want?”

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