Page 15 of Property of Bones

For some unknown reason, I pull out my phone and scroll until I find Jack’s name. Riley put both his and Tank’s numbersin my contacts last night…just in case. She’d saved his asBones, but when I got home… I changed it.

I don’t really know why he introduced himself to me with his real name, but I’m not mad about it. Maybe he only likes it when his friends call him Bones. But that’s okay. I really like Jack.

Would he think I’m weird if I texted him?

Probably.

I shrug anyway and start typing.

Me:Is it wrong that I don’t want to think about how cruel people can be?

Pocketing my phone, I grab my clipboard and start my rounds. I need to check shelf inventory to see what we need to focus on first.

Fifteen minutes later, my phone beeps.

Heart tripping over itself, I yank it out faster than necessary.

Jack:World’s full of cruel people, doll. Always has been. Always will be. But I’m glad you don’t see it. Means you ain’t lived it firsthand. And I’d rather you keep seeing the world soft, even if the rest of us know better. Don’t want nothin’ to steal that smile off your face again like it did yesterday.

I blink at the screen, something tightening in my chest so hard it almost hurts.

Jack isn’t a man who says things he doesn’t mean. I know that instinctively. Every word he’s sent feels like it’s carved from stone. Heavy. Real.Protective in a way I’ve never felt before.

I swallow the lump rising in my throat and smile. This time, it’s not tight. It’s not brittle.

It’s real.

Me:Thank you, Jack. I needed those words more than you know. I’m grateful you were close by yesterday. Not sure what I would have done.

I watch the three lines bounce as he types back.

Jack:Me too, baby. Now quit standin’ around and get back to work. Got shit to do.

I stare at the screen, heat climbing up my neck.

Rude.

Wait.

Baby?

Chapter Seven

Bones

She’s a distraction I can’t afford. One that will eventually cost me my life or the lives of the people I protect.

“Damnit, Bones. Where the fuck are you?.”

“Five minutes out,” I say.

I can practically feel Spike’s frustration through my earbuds as I turn my bike around the corner. I was too busy watching Sunny work that I forgot about Spike’s…appointment.

“I don’t have the patience for five more fucking minutes,” he growls. “Just meet me there.”

“Don’t you leave that compound without me,” I snap, already knowing it’s too late.

“Already out the gate,” he mutters. I hear the iron grind of it shutting behind him. “You’ll probably beat me there.”

---