Page 77 of Into These Eyes
She doesn’t stop. As her car comes into view, she reaches into her handbag. Her vehicle’s mirrors glide out and the indicators light up in the descending darkness.
As she wrenches the door open, I slam it shut and place both hands on the window, caging her in. She whirls around, her chest rising and falling rapidly, her back pressed against the car.
Lightning flashes. Her eyes flare with defiance, the tension between us crackling with as much energy as the approaching storm.
“Jamie, don't—”
“I’ll be fine. More than likely it was just neighbourhood kids having some fun.”
“You don’t believe that.” It’s only now I realise how close I am to her, how menacing I must appear.Fuck. I’m doing a great job of making her feel safe.
“It doesn’t matter,” she says. “I’ve looked after myself my whole life. This is no different. I’ll be fine.” She stares up at me, waiting. When I don’t move, she places a tentative hand in the middle of my chest and adds a little pressure. “Gavin, I need to go.”
Not wanting to add to her distress, I take a step away. She quickly turns and opens the door. Before she can slip inside, I wrap my hand around her firm little bicep. She freezes.
“Promise me something.” She’s stiff as a board but doesn’t pull away. “Give me a little time. Don’t go home until you hear from me.”
Beneath my fingers I detect the slightest relaxation in her muscle. When she gives a slight nod, I release her.
Once her car disappears, I remind myself that last time I asked her to promise me something, she kept her word. All I can do is trust she’ll keep this one, too.
By the time I’m inside Benny’s caravan, the first fat raindrops tink against the thin metal.
Pacing back and forth in the tiny space, I quickly explain Jamie’s visit. When I finally calm down enough to stop moving, Benny cocks his head. And smirks.
“I don’t see how any of that’s amusing,” I grit out as I take the seat across from him.
“For someone who’s s’posed to be smart, you’re as thick as a fuckin’ brick.”
“What the hell’re you talking about?”
He leans forward, eyes sparkling. “Let’s go back to before she told ya about the threatenin’ letter for a second. So, she comes to ya, offerin’ a place to live, ‘cause she doesn’t think ya deserve to live like this.” He gestures around the caravan. “And she just hoped ya’d take her up on it?”
“And I told her why I can’t do that.”
“Ha! Usin’ me as an excuse. Pathetic.”
“You’re not an excuse.”
Waving a dismissive hand in the air, he continues. “Dickhead,she wants you.”
I let out a harsh scoff. That’snotwhat she’d been thinking.
“Fine,” he says, leaning back. “Guess women these days think nothin’ of askin’ ex-cons to come live in their homes. Yeah, I’m the idiot here. Not the dummy sittin’ across from me who told herno.”
I drop my head in my hands and fist my fingers in my hair. The thought of abandoning him gnaws at my gut, but if I tell him that, he’ll feel like a burden, and I knows that’s the last thing he wants. I want to tell him what he means to me, but he’s from an era where men don’t reveal how much they appreciate one another, so I keep my mouth shut.
He doesn’t.
“If the threat’s from Reid, how’re ya gonna feel if he does somethin’ to her?”
My head snaps up. He looks me dead in the eye and raises his eyebrows.
Fuck.
He doesn’t need to say another word. He knows me too well.
Even though I’ve lied to Benny about the plan to kill Reid, if that prick tries to harm a hair on her head, hewillbe a dead man.
