Page 71 of Shadows of You

My gaze jerked away from the hall and toward him. “Of course, I can.”

“You sure as hell aren’t acting like it.”

My back teeth ground together. “She should’ve said something.”

“Maybe. But you don’t need to bite her head off because of it.”

I gripped the table, the worn edge biting into my palms. “I know.”

Lawson sighed. “Take a walk if you need it. There’s no shame in having to pull it together.”

I glared at him. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“Fine, but you need to wipe that look off your face.”

“What look?”

Lawson picked up his mug of tea. “The one that says you’re about to go on a murder spree, taking out anyone who looks at Aspen wrong.”

I bit the inside of my cheek and then forced a smile. “How’s this?”

Lawson blinked a few times as he stared at me. “You look like a feral clown or something. Pretty sure that’s going to give me nightmares.”

I socked him in the arm.

“Hey, don’t hate on me because I told you the truth.”

Footsteps sounded on the hardwood, and I tried to find that mask again. The one that allowed me to keep everything I was feeling on the inside.

Aspen slid an envelope in front of Lawson. “Here.”

He pushed back from the table. “I want to grab gloves and an evidence bag really quick.”

Aspen winced. “I didn’t even think about the fingerprints thing.”

Lawson squeezed her shoulder. “It’s okay. You didn’t know what was inside.”

He headed through the living room and out the front door, leaving Aspen and me in silence.

She wound her way around the table and slid into her chair again, not saying a word.

“Are you okay?” I asked softly.

She looked up, studying me for a moment. “I like you better when you’re not hiding.”

I blinked. “What?”

Aspen drew a circle in the air that encompassed my face. “I like authenticity better than fake politeness.”

I swallowed hard. “I scared you.”

She shrugged. “You startled me. There’s a difference. You were angry. Because you care. I like that better.”

I moved on instinct, covering her hand with mine and gripping it tightly. “I was fucking furious. Almost decked Law when he told me what happened at The Brew. Want to kill that waste of space in prison and do it slow. There’s so much anger in me it nearly burns me alive. And it’s always been safer if I keep a lid on it.”

Aspen’s green eyes stayed locked with mine as I spoke. She didn’t waver, didn’t look away, not even for a second. “You have to let it out. If you don’t, it’ll eat you alive.”

She wasn’t wrong. I’d been letting it devour me for so long I was used to living in the agony. “I don’t trust myself to do that.”

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