Page 26 of The Pretenders of Copper County
I took a deep breath and continued. “I’m not arguing with you, Reed. I’m not, because I hate arguing, so I don’t argue… er, generally. I’m simply saying that you can’t expect me to stay with you?—”
“Then you’re going to wind up hurt!” Reed scrubbed both hands over his face. “Fuckingfuck. How the hell am I supposed to protect a person who insists ontra-la-laingaround like life is a field of daisies and rainbows?”
Stung, I straightened in my seat. “That’snotwhat I’m doing?—”
“Yes, it fucking is,” he snapped. Fiery green eyes fixed on me, and a pair of big, strong hands reached across the table, grabbing mine and stilling the nervous fluttering I hadn’t even been aware of. “You could be hurt in a million ways, Chris. You could be kidnapped for real.Held as insurance so your uncle won’t testify. And the things they could do to you…” He inhaled sharply and gripped my hands so tightly I squeaked.
He released me immediately and straightened, his face closed off. “Get your head out of your ass,” he said sharply. “Because you might think this whole ‘sweet and lovable’ act makes me think you’re innocent, but it just makes me think you’re stupid.”
I sucked in a breath as the word ricocheted around the table and lodged itself beneath my heart.
It probably shouldn’t have felt like such a blow. Heck, Reed’s comment wasn’t even the worst or most embarrassing thing that had happened to me that day. But something about hearing it from his lips after I’d tried to be so honest with him, after he’d been so supportive about the other things I’d told him, after I’d thought we were… well,connecting… made my eyes burn and my whole chest crumple.
Maybe Uncle Danny was right. Maybe I was too soft.
But in that moment, I didn’tfeelsoft. In fact, for the first time I could remember, I didn’t feel the need to brush off Reed’s comment so things wouldn’t get awkward or roll with the punches and hide my hurt with a smile. Iwashurt, but I was also really angry.
“Fuck,” Reed growled, squeezing his eyes shut. “I didn’t mean that?—”
“It is not stupid to believe the best of people, Reed Sunday,” I said, quiet but firm. “And it’sneverstupid to be loyal to your family.”
“It is when it’s going to get you killed—” Reed reached up and grabbed his hair with both hands, yanking at the dark, wavy strands. “No. You know what? I said we weren’t talking about this again, and I meant it. All that matters isthat you’re my protectee and I’m your protector. Your job is to do what I say.” He picked up his burger and jabbed it in my direction. “End of story.”
I’d never had a temper. Being angry and letting myself feel it was new to me. I didn’t know how to handle the hot, clean fizz that choked my blood. And… it turned out there was kind of a learning curve. Because despite being truly incandescently angry at Reed Sunday, with his handsome face and his strong hands and his quirky smile and his big mouth, when I thought about lashing out at him, my mind continued down the same track it always seemed to take with Reed.
I envisioned myself kissing the heck out of him.
Except, like,angrily.
Since I definitely—almost definitely—wasn’t going to do that, I climbed out of the booth on shaky legs and stuck out my chin. “I no longer consent to being protected, Mr. Sunday. I… I release you.”
He snorted around his burger. “Doesn’t work that way, Daenerys. This isn’tGame of Thrones, and I’m not your servant. Sit down.”
“No.”
He cast his eyes to the ceiling. “And where are you gonna go, Chris? You have no phone, no car, and no ability to stay out of trouble for more than two minutes—or do I need to remind youagainthat people were shooting at us a couple of hours ago?”
I definitely didn’t need to be reminded of that.
I cast my eyes around the room. The college kids had left, and the guys at the bar seemed a bit too interested in the game for conversation, but there was a table of three women sort of close to where the rowdy-looking biker crew was hanging out. They had a spare chair at theirtable.
Normally, I’d never be so impolite as to interrupt them, but at the moment, it seemed like the lesser evil.
“For now, I’m going over there,” I informed Reed, pointing. I picked up my beer… and, on second thought, grabbed the remainder of my meal, too. Reed didn’t deserve my extra fries.
“For fuck’s sake. Get back here,” I heard him say as I marched away, but I didn’t listen.
And it felt really danggoodto not listen. Who knew?
“H-hi, excuse me,” I said as I approached the ladies. “Do you mind if I sit here?”
Three sets of eyes swung toward me in surprise, then surveyed me up and down.
The oldest-looking of them leaned to one side and aimed a glare back at Reed. Her eyes narrowed. Then she looked at me. “Y’okay, cutie?”
I nodded. Then shook my head. Her concerned voice made my burning tear ducts threaten to overflow.
“Aw. Sit, honey,” a blonde woman said, pushing out the empty chair. “Boyfriend trouble? Join the club.”
