Page 138 of Seeds of Malice

"It's not for you," I declare before I can think about that statement coming out of my mouth.

Bobby's eyes narrow. He crosses his arms. "Since when do you hide videos of little sluts from me?"

Ivy's not a slut.

"Don't," I seethe.

He jerks his head backward. "Don't what?"

His question hangs in the air. I can't blame him for his confusion. Bobby and I never keep anything private between us. Any video we've ever done, we've always watched together.

My heart beats faster. To shut him up, I claim, "It's not finished."

"So what? Let me see what you have so far."

"No."

He peers at me closer.

I hold the joint out to him. He doesn't take it, not tearing his gaze off mine.

My pulse skyrockets. The last thing I want to do is explain my feelings for Ivy to Bobby.

Feelings for Ivy?

What the fuck am I thinking?

His expression turns disapproving. "Are you falling for that hillbilly?"

"She's not a hillbilly," I declare.

He chuckles. "Now you're going to defend her? You're going soft."

"I'm not going soft."

"You sure about that?" he questions, giving me a challenging stare.

I inhale deeply on the joint again, then hold it out, stating while the smoke's still in my lungs, "You going to smoke this or what, you pussy?"

He grabs it. "I'm not the pussy. It looks like you've become one." He inhales a deep lungful of smoke and holds it just like I do. We release it simultaneously, and the glassy feeling my eyes always get starts to take hold.

"Not true. So, what have you been up to?" I question.

He grunts. "What haveIbeen up to? Isn't it more like, what haveyoubeen up to? You've totally disappeared on me the last week. What the fucks is that all about?"

I nod toward the TV screen. "I've been busy getting my footage."

His lips twitch. "Yeah, I can see that. But normally, you keep me in the loop."

"Not always."

"Bullshit. I'm always part of your game. But all I've been doing is wondering where the fuck you are and what's going on," he declares.

"Yeah, well, life gets boring if you don't mix it up," I claim, then walk into the kitchen. I open the fridge and pull out another beer. I hand one to him and take one for myself.

"Are you ready to go?" he questions, taking a sip.

"Go where?"

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