Page 19 of The Shadow

That’s exactly what I was about to do to her last night.

My mouth waters at the thought and my hand squeezes my wrist, trying to bring myself back down to reality.

“Nah, if anything, that’s on me.” I lead her toward my car, opening her door for her.

“Wow.” She runs her hands over the smooth leather of the seat. “This is such a cool car. I’ve never been in one like this.”

“An antique?”

She shakes her head. “A hot rod.” She smiles when she says it, her teeth slowly sinking into her bottom lip as she takes it all in.

“You like it?” She nods enthusiastically. “Maybe I’ll let you take her out sometime.”

“Me? Drive this car? No way. I’d wreck it for sure. I don’t even have a car anymore. I actually sold it a few years ago and haven’t driven since. But this is exactly the kind of car I’d expect you to drive.”

“What’s that mean?” I give her a playful smirk.

“Big guy who only wears black, big black car, loud, intimidating engine.” She holds up her fingers as she lists each thing. “Should I go on?”

“What did you drive?”

“Guess.” She’s staring over at me, her bright-green shirt tucked neatly into a matching skirt with pink flowers and matching green leaves. Her hair is half-down today, allowing for her pink flower earrings to stand out.

“A Volkswagen Beetle.” Her mouth falls open. “Daisy yellow.”

“You—how? I sold it before you met me.”

I pull the car down a side road that’s in an industrial area, parking in a lot near what looks like an abandoned warehouse. I point toward a food truck parked across the street where several construction workers are lined up.

“This is the best damn taco you’re ever going to eat.”

“You didn’t tell me how you knew what kind of car I drove. It’s a little creepy,” she says as we stand in line.

“If I tell you, you can’t get mad.” She gives me an adorable little scowl and it reminds me of when a kitten is learning to attack. Any attempt at being scary or intimidating is overshadowed with how fucking cute she is.

We reach the counter, placing our order and grabbing a few napkins. When the tacos are done, we walk back over to the car. I place the food on the hood, turning to face her. I slide my hands around her waist again, memories of last night rushing back. This time, I set her gently on the hood and step back before handing her a plate of food.

“It was an educated guess,” I say, referring to the car comment. “Based on the way you dress, your home, how you present yourself.” She doesn’t say anything. “The bright colors and flowers, everything about you is sweet and cute. To be fair, I did change the color at the last minute. I was gonna go with green because of your shirt.”

“Oh.” I glance back to look at her, an unfamiliar look on her face. “I didn’t know you noticed those things.”

I nod, finishing off my second taco. “I’m trained to notice everything, Aspen. I’m not even sure I can help it.”

We finish our tacos in silence. I’m not sure why I said the last part. It’s the truth but it’s more than that. I don’t have a reason to notice things about her. She’s not a threat and never has been.

“I like those things—about you.”

“You do?”

I grab our plates and used napkins, tossing them in a trash can a few steps away.

“Yeah. But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t notice a change lately.” Her eyes shift away as she brushes a few stray crumbs from her lap. “But today”—I reach one hand out, touching the silky material of her skirt—“you look more like yourself.”

“I should head back soon.”

We climb into the car, driving back toward her office. As we pull closer, I see Connor standing on the steps of the building along with two other men. Instead of pulling into the garage, I pull the wheel to the right, stopping right in front of her building. It’s not until I open her door and she steps out that she sees him. She freezes, her hand in mine.

“He knows,” I say, closing the door behind her.

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