Page 33 of Bombshell (Whiskey Dolls 1)

Curiosity got the best of me and, without a thought, my feet started carrying me toward the partially closed door. The closer I got, the better I could hear what he was saying, and an unpleasant tingle shot up my back.

I didn’t need to be a genius to know who he was talking to. And when he asked if the person on the other end of the call ever got tired of defendinghim, I knew good and well who he was talking about.

I stood there, frozen in place as the phone call wound down to its end, and when he disconnected, I cleared my throat to alert him to my presence.

Pierce spun around, the picture of cool and casual in his sweats. If I thought he wore a suit well—and he absolutelydid—then he rocked the hell out of sweats.

“Shit, I didn’t mean to wake you,” he started, surprising me with the concerned frown that marred his brow.

“You didn’t. I woke up on my own. Sorry. I didn’t mean to fall asleep on Eli duty, but I promise, he was already out like a light before I dozed off.”

He graced me with a smile that made my belly flip. He was doing that a lot more lately, but I still felt that zing of surprise and the tickle of pleasure every time I caught a glimpse or heard him laugh.

“It’s fine. Once he’s out, he’s usually out cold.”

I arched a brow and crossed my arms over my chest as I stepped out onto the back deck. “Except for the times he witnessed those shirtless wrestling matches, right?”

“Yeah, except for that.” The humor that had filled his eyes just a second earlier faded as he let out a weary sigh and turned to face the dark backyard once again. “So how much of that did you overhear?” he asked a minute later.

I could have lied and told him I hadn’t heard any of it, but something in my gut was telling me that honesty was the route I needed to take right then.

“I wasn’t going to listen at all, but then I heard my name. Didn’t take me long to put two and two together and figure out you were talking to your mom.”

“I don’t know why I even try anymore,” he said, defeat heavy in those words.

I leaned down beside him, mirroring his stance, and braced my elbows on the deck railing with a shrug. “Because she’s your mom, and no matter how frustrating it is, you love her, and she loves you.”

He sighed again, like it was a pain in the ass for him to admit I was right. “Yeah, maybe.”

I leaned into him, bumping my shoulder with his. It was the first time I’d purposely initiated any kind of physical contact. “Definitely,” I rebutted.

We lapsed into silence for a bit, and I could practically feel the wind coming from the wheels spinning rapidly in his head.

I was content to leave him to his thoughts when he spoke again, and what he asked surprised me and chilled me to the core. “What happened between you and Frank?”

That was a part of my life I wasn’t necessarily jazzed to revisit. It was over and done with, and I just wanted to move past it. I worried if I continued to dredge it up that it would somehow end up defining me, and I couldn’t allow that to happen.

“If it’s all the same, I’d rather not get into it,” I said in a quiet voice, looking out into the yard, watching Titan as he skipped and ran through the shadows.

I felt him turn to me, could feel the heat of his concerned gaze drilling into the side of my face. “Marin—”

I didn’t want his pity. Spinning my head around quickly to face off with him, I gave him as much of the truth as I was willing to give. “All I’ll say is that your brother isn’t a good man. I’m sorry if that bothers you, but, from my standpoint, it’s the truth, and that’s all I’m going to say.”

I wasn’t sure what kind of reaction I was expecting from him, but it surprised the hell out of me when he nodded and breathed, “I know he’s not.”

Neither of us said a word for the longest time as we stared into each other’s eyes. The only sound that could be heard was the soft chirp of the crickets. The air around us felt like it was sparking to life as I sank deeper into the clear blue of his eyes. It was like swimming in the ocean. My chest compressed with my held breath, then my head breached the surface, and I sucked in air before Pierce’s tide could pull me under again.

“You’re not like him,” I whispered.

His breath whispered across my face as he said, “I hope to Christ that’s a good thing.” Until that moment, I hadn’t realized we’d inched closer together. There were barely two inches of space between his arm and mine, between our mouths.

“It is.” My tongue peeked out to swipe across my bottom lip, the action drawing his darkening gaze to them.

A warning signal went off in my head, bright flashing lights like you’d see at night as you drove, alerting you to the fact that the road ahead had been washed away. It was the red flag waving you back from danger. But I couldn’t seem to make my body stop.

The smell of his cologne invaded my senses, like a physical tether pulling me closer and closer to him.

I was trapped under his spell, and I wasn’t sure if I’d make it out alive.

---