Page 53 of Small Town Hunter

“If you came back to Virginia, you couldn’t stay with me,” I tell her.

“Okay,” she says, though I see disappointment in her eyes. “That wouldn’t be appropriate anyway. You have a family.”

“Then there’s getting you some money to live on. If we can’t find your grandmother, if it takes too long…”

“I can take care of myself,” she says firmly.

I doubt that.

“I wouldn’t have a problem letting you crash with me. But there’s Jess.”

Her head drops a little. “Right.”

“I’ll have to get a place for you. Somewhere you could stay while we try to find your grandmother. You could fly out to meether, once we sort your ID out…” It’s a stupid plan. Bring Trina home? Nobody would believe I wasn’t fucking her. It would destroy my reputation and hurt my chances getting custody of Ruby.

And, of course, I’m supposed to be putting cuffs on Sebastian McCall right this very minute.

Getting paid.

Roman.

If I show up in Florin without his man, I don’t know how the Boss will take it.

Not well, I’m guessing.

“I’ll make sure you get your money, Crash,” Trina says, bless her. “I promise. And when I promise something, I mean it with my whole heart.”

“Don’t worry about all that,” I say gruffly.

“I know God sent you. I prayed for you to come– this was meant to happen,” she says fervently.

When she talks like that I don’t know what to think.There’s nothing Godly about the way I’ve been thinking about her.

Reason says it’ll wear off.

My gut tells me it won’t.

She’s different.

There’s something about her that I’m obsessed with.

What happened in the shower after she offered to rub my back is proof of that.

“Get in the car,” I tell her.

“Why did you park in that dark creepy corner anyway?”

“Just laying low.”

“Don’t worry,” she reassures me. “The cops in Cimarron hate the Tippalonga PD. They won’t turn us in across county lines.”

“Yeah. Uh— that’s comforting.”

It’s not the Cimarron Police I’m worried about. The tracker in McCall’s car shows it’s still in Tippalonga. But it doesn’t hurt tobe careful. This county is small enough for foreigners like me to stand out even to other foreigners.

I have a mission to complete but instead I’m out here fucking around with Trina. If I don’t get the money, I won’t have a shot in hell getting Ruby away from Jess. I have to pick between helping Trina and getting my bag. The choice should be simple, but it’s not.

Fuck.

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