Page 39 of Hart of Vengeance
“I wouldn’t say protection, but in the event I did, I bartered with a gang leader.”
Savannah hadn’t been lying to me.
You can’t beat yourself up. You don’t know anything about prison. And let’s not forget that it’s hard to trust someone who has repeatedly lied to you.
The one time I chose not to believe her, and now she was fighting to breathe.
Denim twirled my hair around his finger. “Are you in there?”
I inhaled a quiet breath. “So if it’s not sex you want, then how can I help you?”
He nipped at my ear. “Sex is always on the table.”
I huffed. “Let’s be serious.”
He moved back until two inches were between us. “I am serious.” His playful tone vanished as he pouted. “But I get it.” He sighed.
The double doors into the hub of the emergency room opened, and a petite nurse came out. “Jade Kelly?” She scanned the room.
I vaulted off the chair, over Denim, and ran up to the nurse. “I’m Jade.”
“Your sister made it through surgery but isn’t out of the woods yet,” the cute brunette nurse said. “The doctor will fill you in. Follow me.”
I rushed up to Denim, threw my arms around him, and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you.”
He stiffened as though he hadn’t been expecting my affection, or maybe he didn’t want me to feel his semi-erection. “No problem.”
I broke away to find an unsettled look in his blue depths. It was the same expression he’d had the day he broke up with me. As soon as I walked away, I had the feeling that I would never see him again, and my stomach hurt at the notion. But I couldn’t let my heart feel for him. I couldn’t let him destroy me like he had in high school.
I would like to believe I was stronger now. Yet no matter how strong I was when it came to Denim Hart, he knew how to spin his seductive and charming web around me.
13
Denim
Iwatched her walk away with the nurse, and as soon as the double doors closed, I felt as though she’d just ripped out my heart. I couldn’t pinpoint the exact reason why. Maybe because she was over me as evidenced by the peck on the cheek.
The day was ending on a fucked-up note. I’d lost the high I’d been on when I left prison. I’d lost that euphoric sensation of feeling as free as a bird.
Now I felt trapped, lost, and confused. Plus, I was about to blow a gasket if I didn’t get answers or get laid. I knew the latter wasn’t happening anytime soon because the only woman I wanted was Jade.
Threading my fingers through my hair, I turned, absently scanning the room as I considered my next move. I could head to Dillon’s or finally try to get answers from Duke. Maybe I could at least find out why he hadn’t paid me a visit while I’d been inside.
My brain hadn’t processed either option when I spied a man sitting in the far corner of the waiting room, sporting a red ball cap that looked similar to the one the shooter had been wearing.
My eyebrows came together. Surely the dude wasn’t stupid enough to follow us to the hospital. Then every muscle in me tightened.
Jade.I couldn’t leave her alone. Another dark and twisted thought slammed into me.What if Tito had something to do with Savannah’s attack? What if Tito was going after my family and friends?
I needed to warn Dillon, although he could take care of himself. Still, he owned a shelter for battered women. If I knew Tito, he wouldn’t think twice about hurting a lady, or anyone, for that matter.
The bill of the man’s cap shielded his features as he read on his phone. I took one step, my mind racing like a horse in the Kentucky Derby.What if he has a partner with him?
I gave the room a once-over from where I stood, that time in more detail. Two hallways jutted off in front of the information desk to my right, leading to exits. To my left was the main entrance, and directly in front of me were sick patients looking pale. Some wore masks, others dozed, and others read on tablets.
A large woman stood up, blocking my view of the man.
Then two things happened at once. The paramedics rushed in from a side entrance as the crying baby wailed for the fiftieth time.
