Page 28 of Heart Strings & Hotlines
“I’m sure she could find that, but I’m partial to the jewelry Sandy Shae makes, and the kids usually hit up the fudge or body care tables.” Since Lottie’s voice doesn’t pierce my ears as others do, I focus my attention on her.
She watches me as though she’s waiting for me to say something, but I stuff my hands back into my pockets and clench my fists. The way she stares at me sometimes confuses the hell out of me.
“Did you want to check out the market?”
I nod, knowing that if I open my mouth, I’ll say something like, obviously fucking not. Instead, I walk next to her and allow her to guide me into the pits of hell.
“I’ll be over here, wandering around,” Rafe says. I have a sneaking suspicion that if I turn around, he’ll be smiling, so I don’t give him the satisfaction.
We pass a booth filled entirely with jerky—there’s meat from animals I didn’t even know could be jerked. That can’t be healthy, and it certainly doesn’t appear to have been approved by the FDA.
“I’m not sure what to do with you, Thane.” Lottie’s words have me tearing my gaze away from the hanging meat in various colors.
“Why?”
She smiles at the ground, but I want it focused on me—which is terrifying because I never want anyone’s attention on me. Ever.
“For starters, you moved in next door to get close to me.” She places a hand on my forearm.
I stop immediately, my focus on the point of contact. “I couldn’t stay in New York with my father out on bail. It wouldn’t have been good for Kara.” I push the words out while cataloging the sensation of her skin on mine. She’s soft and warm. The pins and needles I typically associate with touch is muted beneath her heat. “We needed your help, and you’re here, so moving made sense.”
“But I was helping you via the hotline.”
“It wasn’t working. Why are we back to this? I thought we’d moved on.”
She drops her hand, and the fire in my chest rises.
“Perhaps you have. But it doesn’t work that way for everyone. I can’t say I’m over something when it’s still bothering me.”
“I don’t want to bother you.” The dull ache in my head buzzes in my ears now.
“No, you just want to get close to me. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were one of the assholes targeting me to get my research and patent.”
LotiTech will be able to expand her research beyond her wildest dreams. Once she hears my pitch to acquire her business, she’ll understand.
“Who’s targeting you?” As soon as I speak, her words replay in my mind, so I step in front of her as all the flashcards I’ve memorized flip through my vision. “Someone’s harassing you?”
“It’s really unsettling when you study me like that.”
“Like what?”
“Like you’re trying to crawl inside my mind to read all my thoughts.”
“I am.”
She blinks three times.
“I am trying to get inside your mind. That would make my life a hell of a lot easier.”
Lottie nods as though she understands, but she couldn’t possibly. I’ve long forgotten what it feels like to want to fit in or be understood—it’s simply not in my deck of cards.
“My father’s trying to buy my company out of spite, but he isn’t the only one throwing their hat into the ring. The pressure to sell only gets worse the more success my platform has.” She moves forward, past a group of gawkers staring at us as if we’re the main event in a sideshow, and I slip into step beside her.
“There’s a new article coming out inForbes, and I’m dreading its repercussions when I should be celebrating it as a success.” She peers up through long lashes and my narrator reminds me to breathe. “We’re already having security breaches, and if the wrong person gets their hands on my data, my company will capsize. My clients are too well off, too connected not to come after me if their private information gets leaked.”
There’s a lot to unpack, but I really only care about her father and whoever is fucking around with her company. Is her father truly like mine? I’ve heard the gossip—that Rupert Sinclair and Jonah Wilder are sworn enemies, but I never paid it much mind. I’m not a teenager with a grudge—who actually has sworn enemies anymore?
“Why is your father spiteful?”
