Page 55 of Caught from Behind

No, he’d just find a way to grin and bear it—or grind his teeth together and bury it. “Riggs.”

“Baby,” he murmurs. “Drink the fucking cocktail. It’s different. I see you?—”

“And I see you,” I say, shoving it away again. The pain he’d bared. Pain I won’t ignore. I can soothe life’s rough edges with orgasms and empty calories from more apple fritters.

I’ll be fine.

“Chérie—”

“No,” I snap.

“I’ll drink it!” Nova says, scooping up the mug and sipping at it triumphantly. “I’m certainly not going to allow my rosemary simple syrup to go to waste,” she tells Lake, curling into his side.

The big man smiles at her before tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Of course not, butterfly.”

And my heart rolls over in my chest, yearning heavy in my blood.

And panic.

There’s a healthy dose of panic as well.

Because…

Turning down drinks. Sitting in his lap. Yearning for him when he isn’t with me.

We’ve barely begun and I’m already in fucking deep.

I jump up again, but this time I must have taken Riggs by surprise because he doesn’t yank me back down, and by the time he reaches for me, I’m skittering out of range.

“Chérie.”

“I’ll be right back.”

And then I’m pushing through the crowd, turning down the hall, and bursting out onto the bar’s deserted back patio.

No one uses it in the winter, so it’s not cleared of snow and I skid on the icy planks, nearly go down, but manage to stay on my feet, just barely.

Cold air hits my skin in a rush, but I barely feel it.

My head is spinning and my lungs are tight and?—

“Breathe, chérie.”

My lungs decide to start working again, and I suck in a breath, release it slowly.

“I won’t hurt you,” I whisper.

Not like I’ve been hurt.

I can’t. I can’t?—

“You’re not going to hurt me,” he says, cupping my cheek and stepping close.

How can he know that? How can he? It’s like his promise to be here, to stay here. We might have the best intentions, but?—

“Ella,” he says, wrapping his arms around me. “You have the biggest heart I’ve ever seen. You care about people and you pay attention?—”

“I’ve already hurt you.”

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