Page 55 of Wanted

My posture deflates a little as I realize my mistake. Why did I say it like that? I can’t go back now. I can’t give him anything else that might hint I don’t remember what happened.

The change in his demeanor is instant. The tense air ripples between us. “I’m sorry, okay? We can put this behind us. I fucked up, but if you give me another chance, I can prove to you just how good we can be. Let me remind you,” he cajoles.

“Goodbye, Dillon.”

“Don’t walk away from me.” His tight fingers close hotly on my wrist.

I yank my arm from his grasp and move two steps away. “I said goodbye. Take it or leave it, but it’s more than you deserve.”

With as much confidence as I can muster, I leave him standing in the back of the room.

I’m a woman on a mission that I’m not about to fail.

14

Jude

“Don’t see your ass sitting at my bar too often.”

Bobby slings his towel back over his shoulder and sets two fresh waters in front of me.

He isn’t wrong. I rarely leave my sanctuary for a meal in town. I’ll join my siblings for the random drink or family get-together, but otherwise, I keep to myself.

The eager citizens of Fairview Valley stick their noses in my business whenever I decide to show my face. This time is no exception.

“You see it enough.”

“Food’s almost ready. Where’d your pretty little girlfriend run off to?”

“Not my girlfriend,” I grunt and accept a mouthful of the icy drink. The glass clinks loudly as I return it to the bar. “You talk about her like that again we’re going to have a problem.”

Bobby laughs. “It’s a compliment.”

“It’s predatory.”

“I’ll go check in with Ruben in the kitchen. Seems like someone is a little hangry.”

The tune he whistles as he goes is provokingly unbothered.

I can’t help feeling protective of Frankie. Despite the fact she’s stubborn as a rock. I have no doubt she could thrive in this town on her own, but the thought of her just barely scraping by fucks me up.

I know what survival feels like. Jack and I spent some time without housing in our teens, and it’s not something I’d wish on anybody, let alone knowingly leave them to deal with when I have the means to help them.

None of that has to do with the fact she’s also a decent fucking person. She deserves more than this world has handed her so far, based on the limited amount of information she’s given me.

Frankie hasn’t been exactly shy about sharing her story. That nervous need to fill the quiet has her revealing more than she probably intends. And I soak up every damn morsel, eager to hear more of her life spill from her lips.

She’s the most interesting story I’ve ever skimmed, and I find myself desperate to drink up every single word.

A warm hand settles confidently on my back, alerting me to her stealthy return.If I couldn't smell Frankie's perfume, I'd throw the mysterious limb off without thought.Even so, I tense at the unfamiliar touch.Fingertips dance along the collar of my shirt, dangerously close to the bare skin over my neck. At the proximity to the horrors of my past I'm yet to reveal and not sure I ever will. The longer she strokes, the more accustomed I become to the gentle pressure of her flush against me.

I raise my cold beer to my lips, taking a measured sip while I wait to see where she's going with this.

She leans in, her torso firm against my side. The swell of her breasts flatten against my arm. Her breath is a soft breeze against my ear, and sends a pulsating throb straight to my cock. "I need you to kiss me," she whispers urgently.

The numbers take off like a bomb detonating in my head.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five.

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