Page 27 of Fate's Unseen Shadow

She covered his hand with her free one, forcing him to stop and pay attention to her. “No, Damon. I seriously loved doing that tonight. I didn’t realize how stuck I felt before.”

“Stuck in your car?”

“No.” With a hard exhale, she admitted it out loud. “Stuck in my life.” And it might not make sense to him or anyone, but it’d been a month. A month of not being Elizabeth Cassin and working eighty-hour work weeks. Not being responsible for thousands of jobs. Of not being alone. She’d been homeless, scared, and wanted for murder. But all of that had disappeared tonight.

And when she looked at Damon, she only thought of him.

That feeling of peacefulness was alluring.

“I need something, Damon. The cops have pinned this on me, and yeah, it’s a risk to be here.” She barked out a laugh and looked toward the door. “I just came face-to-face with that risk. But until we figure out how to clear my name, I don’t want to stay locked away. Please? I promise I won’t return to the bar if something else happens. Who knows? You might not be able to find the killer, and then I’ll be stuck as Ella No-Last-Name forever.”

Damon’s silent study of her made her itch to peel back his skull and look inside it.

“Fine,” he grumbled. “You can stay until something else happens, and I’ll play bodyguard, but I swear, Ella, the next sketchy situation or the next time a cop walks into this bar, you’re staying at the apartment. Even if I stay with you to ensure you don’t leave.”

She smiled. “Deal. And thank you for playing bodyguard earlier. I had no idea what to say to him. Is he a good cop?”

“He’s okay, I guess. He and Slater have stayed friends after he left the force. I suspect that he came by to talk about thatrunaway case. He’s the only one that knows how we get things done.” He smirked. “Keeps trying to lure Ryker away from us.”

“So he knows about your secret weapon?”

“Yes.” He took her hand and moved it over the trash can beside the chair. He held a small bottle of something in his other hand. “We need to clean this. It won’t be fun.”

“Does it burn?”

“A little.” Damon twisted her finger to open the cut and poured the liquid directly onto the slice.

“Shit!” She fell forward against his chest, smothering her face against his shirt. Taking several deep breaths, she stayed that way, inhaling his scent and distracting herself from the pain.

When he’d wrapped the bandage around her finger, he set her throbbing finger in her lap. “All done.” He ran a hand over her head, tugging lightly at her hair.

She lifted her head. “You smell good.”

He drew his eyebrows down before a small laugh escaped. “I’m glad I don’t smell bad.”

“Do you still have my jewelry?” She stalled, staying close, letting her hand linger on his hip where she’d held onto him.

“Yes.” He dropped his hand from the back of her neck to her shoulder. “I’ll give it back tonight when we get home. Let’s go finish up for the night. One of us will wash the glasses. Keep your finger dry until you can reclean it tonight at home.” He stepped away, heading back to the door. “I need to make sure there’s no hard feelings between me and Moore, if he’s still here. The last thing we need is some cop to get an idea that there’s some competition for you and for him to come in here every night to see you.”

“Why would he want to come here every night to see me?”

“To try and get you to go out with him.”

She scoffed. “There’s zero competition between the two of you.”

Damon’s quick grin caught her off guard. “Glad to hear it.”

She laughed. “No! I didn’t mean?—”

“Nope.” He shook his head, walking backward. “You said it, and I’m keeping it.” He turned and strode out the door to the main floor of Cager.

Ella spotted Slater talking with Detective Moore through the open front door. She turned to walk behind the bar, but Lacy blocked her way.

“Girl, what is going on with you and Damon?” Lacy asked, pretending to wipe down the already clean bar. “Are you living with him?”

“No.” Ella softened the quick response with a smile. “I’m living in the apartment above him. He gave me this job when I found myself without one.”

“And you know him well enough for him to steal your jewelry and act all possessive with Detective Moore?” She giggled and shook her head, spraying down more of the counter. “I don’t know how that happened, but I don’t blame you for that big smile. He’s sexy as hell. And unlike Slater and Xavier, I’ve never seen him here with a woman.”

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