Page 45 of Tempt Me
“Tough shit,” I growl and slam the car into gear, shooting out of the driveway like a bat out of hell, the gates already wide open but closing as soon as my ass is clear.
“Where are we going?” Jez asks.
Glancing at him in the rearview mirror, he is a short, stocky man with cropped blonde hair, I ignore him.
“Just out,” Rue mutters, staring out of the side window, lost in her own thoughts.
My concern for her grows deeper. She has been through hell the last week, but whatever happened earlier has her deeply worried.
Steering the car on the road to Grove City, I say, “I’m taking you to Serena.”
She meets my gaze in the mirror. “Why? I said that was just a ruse.”
“You need to see her.”
Her jaw clenches but then relaxes, and her eyes flood with gratitude, almost as if she is relieved someone took charge and told her what to do. She is so strong. Tearing my gaze back to the road, I’ve never known a woman with as much fortitude as Rue Di’Castello, except her mother. But it makes it easy to forget she has only just turned thirty. She still has her whole life in front of her to be amazing and do all the things she wants before she becomes a Queen. Vik is right that I’m not a part of that. I’m here to make sure she is kept safe, nothing more, nothing less.
The car falls into an uneasy silence, which doesn’t bother me, but clearly bothers Luca.
“So, road trip,” he chimes.
Everyone ignores him.
Sighing, he turns around to face Rue. “You okay, Misty?”
“Yeah, fine,” she replies absently.
Misty. That bugs me more than I care to admit. Wanting to ask but refusing to, I hunch my shoulders and keep driving.
Giving it up as a bad job, he faces the front again, and we carry on in silence until about half an hour later, Rue says, “Can we stop, please.”
“There’s a gas station coming up in about a mile,” I reply.
She nods and leans her head on the back of the chair, still in a world of her own. It’s affecting me on a soul-deep level. I want to help her through whatever is causing her to be upset and worried, but if I go there, I won’t be able to come back from it. And one thing is very clear, I can’t protect her if I’m involved with her. I failed to stop Antonio from hurting her because I needed to keep my distance.
But this isn’t about me.
It never was.
I’m here at the behest of Viktor and Francesca to protect their daughter.
My face falls into a deeper frown as we approach the gas station parking lot. Rue jumps out, and I’m quick to follow her.
“I’m going to pee,” she murmurs.
I don’t bother replying, I just wait until she’s done and then lead her back to the car and open the door for her.
She slides in, and I shut it before climbing back in and setting off again.
“Whatever happened to McFarlane?” Rue asks suddenly. “I forgot all about him.”
Luca turns to her with a frown. “What about him?”
“I think we hit him up in the mountains.”
Being unable to stop the soft guffaw that bursts out, Luca glares at me. “Oh? Is that what that dent was? You told Viktor it was a deer.”
“Maybe it was. We don’t know for sure,” I say slowly.
