Page 84 of Beautiful Dangerous

I sit down on the table, resting my feet on the bench as I bite into the sandwich, and isn’t until I start chewing the super-tender meat that I realize how hungry I actually am. I can’t remember the last time I ate anything, I’ve been living on whiskey and water and not much else for what feels like days now.

“There you go.”

Angel sits down next to me and hands me a bottle of Jack Daniels.

“No glass?” I ask, arching a brow and he grins.

“Not sure you needed one.”

“I don’t.” I rip off the top and down a long mouthful before offering it to Angel, who holds up a hand and shakes his head.

“No, brother, that one’s all yours. Looks like you need it.”

He gives me that look again, and I frown. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Like what?” Angel asks, picking up his beer and sinking about a quarter of it in one go.

“Like you’re pitying me or something.”

He stares out ahead of him, and for a moment or two he stays silent.

“Angel?”

“Olivia talks to me, Lucca.” He turns his head to face me, and I’m not getting a good feeling about this.

“About what?”

His eyes hold mine, and he waits another beat or two before he speaks again. “About you, and her.”

Shit!

“She shouldn’t be telling you anything.”

Because we need another person added to the mix, just to complicate matters more.

“You shouldn’t be involved.” I take another swig of whiskey, feeling the warm liquid coat my throat as it travels down to my belly.

“I’m already involved, I was involved the second I mentioned it to Olivia.”

“I’m sorry,youmentioned it to Olivia? How did you know…?”

“I didn’t, know. I guessed.”

Was it that fucking obvious? Jesus Christ, it can’t be that obvious…

“What did she tell you?” Because I have to ask. I have to know.

Angel shrugs, lights up a cigarette, and blows a plume of smoke up into the night sky. “That you and her slept together. That she loves you.” He stares out ahead of him again, at the party going on all around us, the compound lit up by a small bonfire over by the work shop and huge lanterns strung from various posts and tree branches. “That you love her.”

I sigh quietly, dropping my head, my fingers clutching the neck of the whiskey bottle. “I do. Love her.”

“She told me you guys want to be together.”

“Jesus…” I throw my head back, and the urge to let out a howl of frustrated despair is almost too much to hold down, but I manage to keep it inside. Just.

“Look, I know I’m probably overstepping the mark here, but, like I said, she talks to me. She trusts me, Lucca. And right now, that’s big, because she sure as hell don’t trust no-one else.”

“She shouldn’t trust anyone.”

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