Total pages in book: 135
Estimated words: 139088 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 695(@200wpm)___ 556(@250wpm)___ 464(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 139088 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 695(@200wpm)___ 556(@250wpm)___ 464(@300wpm)
“And then I spent the last few days watching you lie to yourself. Newsflash, that wasn’t cool, and the current sitch is annoying because you’re just not clueing in to jack shit that you’re doing it, but you keep doing it, and if you’re not into it, it’s not fair to Knox.”
Hold up.
I was feeling bad because I had lied, and she was right, it wasn’t cool.
But…
Knox?
It wasn’t fair to Knox?
“What the hell are you talking about?” I snapped.
“You’d know, if you’d clue in.”
I glared at her.
She glared back.
I broke our glaring contest.
“You don’t get what I don’t want to give you, Raye. As I don’t get what you don’t give me.”
“What have I ever held back from you?”
“I wouldn’t know, would I? All I know is, if that was your choice, I’d stand by it. You don’t owe me every thought, opinion and emotion, and I don’t owe that to you.”
She looked offended.
“That’s part of what sisterhood is all about,” I educated her.
“Of course. I wouldn’t know, since my little sister was murdered as a child. Though I should pay attention, because you’re such a great sister to yours.”
My head moved involuntarily, like I’d been slapped.
Raye’s face changed immediately because she knew she took that too far.
And she so did.
Way too far.
“Loon—”
“No,” I bit, taking a step away from her. “I know what this is. I know Knox is your fiancé’s best friend. I know you care about him. I know you worry about me, Cap, Knox, our entire posse, and how what’s going on with Knox and me will affect it. I also know you and Cap are the honorary chiefs because you guys came first, and you started the Angels. And usually, that works, because usually, you’ve got a huge heart and give a shit about everything, and that includes the big picture and all that makes it.”
She opened her mouth.
But I was far from done.
“And now I know that you think I’m screwing that pooch with whatever is going on with Knox and me. What I also know is, you haven’t taken a single second to ask how I am dealing with all of this. How I’m confused and freaked and hurt and have been living an agony for over a goddamned year, being around the man I love who I cannot have. You have never, not once since I met you, been all about you. Except now, gravely unfortunately, when I need you to be even remotely about me.”
With that, I turned and walked away.
“Loon!” she called.
But she knew me.
She’d lit the fuse, the explosive detonated, now she needed to give me time to deal with the fallout before we figured our shit out, because if she didn’t, she’d make it worse.
This meant she didn’t follow me.
I hit my car glad I was going to face Knox feeling exactly like he did.
Cranky as all fuck.
But at least then, hopefully, one of the looming problems in my life might have some clarification, or (God) closure.
A girl could hope.
Or brace.
ELEVEN
NOTHING
Knox didn’t seem in the best mood.
We were on our late-night surveillance shift, watching the homeless camp in hopes of witnessing, then thwarting an abduction.
He’d been quiet and gave off a mildly moody vibe all night.
We’d swapped timeslots with Raye and Cap, who had the worst one, so all the AAHS were taking turns trading with them to give them a break—that timeslot being the dead of night—but I didn’t think that was the cause for his mood.
I just didn’t know what was.
He was at the window of the abandoned warehouse where we were doing our stakeout, night-vision binos up to his eyes.
I was in a camp chair, nursing a cold cup of coffee, and freezing my native Phoenician, thin-blooded ass off.
“Is everything cool?” I called.
“Nothin’,” he answered, dropped the binos and turned to me. “Seems like everyone’s asleep.”
“I didn’t mean with the camp, I meant with you.”
He glanced back at the camp before he returned his attention to me and declared, “Eric and Jessie are together.”
“What?”
“Eric and Jessie are together,” he repeated. “They’re a couple. It’s done. He’s claimed. She’s claimed. The crew is moving on.”
“I’m sorry, honey,” I said carefully. “I’m not sure why you’re telling me something I know.”
“We said we’d keep us to us so no one would be in our business. We’ve done that. Everyone was in Eric and Jessie’s business. Now their business is a done business, and so is ours. And it got to me you pitched a fit about doing this surveillance shift with me.”
Taken off guard that he was ready to out us so soon, I explained, “I just…we’re still in that zone, and I didn’t want to seem excited about having a shift with you, which might give people ideas and maybe even lead them to guessing we’re together.”