Page 57 of Unraveling Connections

Anger at his words burns through me, but the absolute violent rage that takes over Cash’s features is a sight to behold. Moving almost impossibly quickly, Cash disarms the guy and points the gun at his head.

“I-I I,” he stutters, but before he can get another word out, Cash pulls the trigger.

The guy's head snaps back as he crumples to the floor, blood rapidly spreading around him.

We all remain silent for a moment before Jensen can’t help but interrupt the silence.

He grins, bouncing on his toes as he says, “Damn, I love it when scary Cash comes out to play.”

His words prompt all of us into action, Rafe and Pete move to Emmerson while Ever goes directly to Cash. I would be worried about her reaction to Cash’s actions, but it’s Ever, she loves it when we are bloodthirsty, just like we love it when she is.

The rest of us give them what privacy we can while we double-check that the hostiles are all properly secured and then move to check on Emmerson, too. Cash is going to need a moment before he can head over there, and I am unsure if Emmerson saw Cash in all his scary glory; most people don’t handle that well.

Ever

Cash is still holding the gun loosely at his side, and he turns to look at me as I approach; his expression is still cold but warms as he takes in my smile. I can’t help it; I know it's not a normal reaction, but I love it when this side of him comes out to play; it kind of reminds me of Jensen’s darkness, but whereas his is pretty much out all the time, and it has an almost mischievous side to it. Cash is cold, calculating, and utterly ruthless.

I love it.

As soon as I reach him, I tug on his shirt, pulling him down so that I can kiss him. His lips mold to mine as he wraps me tightly in his arms, holding me to him like he is afraid I am going to disappear. The kiss is almost frantic, and my hands fist into his shirt. By the time he finally pulls back I feel almost dizzy with need, but this is not the time.

As I look up into his now warm hazel eyes, I smile softly, “Thank you.”

He chuckles as he kisses me gently again, “You know, most people wouldn’t thank me for shooting someone.”

“It’s a good job that I’m not most people,” I shrug, grinning widely.

He brushes some hair out of my face, and his expression becomes serious again. “Are you sure you are, okay? I really thought that it was going to hit you.”

I nod, “Yeah, it got scarily close, but I’m absolutely fine.”

“Good,” he glances over my shoulder to where Emmerson and the guys are, “I need to go over there and see what has happened. Do you think she is going to be scared of me now? I mean, she’s not an agent; she’s not used to this kind of shit.”

I shake my head, “I doubt it. She may not be an agent, but she has been with Hunt for a very long time and witnessed some pretty horrific things, some of them done to her own mother. Seeing you shoot someone who was hurting her and who almost killed me is not going to make her scared of you.”

Cash smiles squeezes me one last time, and then strides over to the group, and I follow behind.

“So,” I say when I get there, and she winces slightly.

“I know I was stupid and definitely underqualified, and I shouldn’t have run off,” she replies.

I shrug, “No, you shouldn’t have, although I would have done the same in your position.”

Her head snaps up to look at me, “You would?”

I nod and grin, “Of course I fucking would, and I would also be beating myself up about the bad decision I made as soon as it was over, just like you. Which is why I am not going to say anything about that.”

She smiles ever so slightly, “Thanks, Ever. I am so embarrassed that I thought I could handle it, but I obviously couldn’t.”

“You were blinded by rage, and revenge,” Luc replies, “don’t worry about it, we’ve all been there at some point.”

Cash clears his throat, and she turns to look at him; just as I suspected she doesn’t look scared at all, and I’m fucking glad for it. Cash still seems to think that for some reason, that side of himis going to scare me, despite how often I’ve told him that isn’t possible.

“Do we need to get you to a hospital?” he asks gently, such a contradiction to his brutality earlier that I find him even more attractive than I usually do.

I'm not sure that when they say, ‘get you a man that can do both’, this is what they mean. In fact, I am confident that this isn’t what they mean.

She shakes her head, “No, I’ve taken a damn good beating, but I don’t think anything is broken, and none of my cuts need stitches.”

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