Page 17 of Her Fearless Ronin

This slipup drained all humor from the moment, and both of us turned serious at once.

“How was your shift?”

“Long.” I rested my fingers on my lips, replaying the kiss.

Jiro’s eyes trailed to my lips, darkening. “The asshole will not bother you anymore.”

I nodded, looking down at the taco on my plate. Of course, there was no other motive.

“Was your boyfriend pissed?”

“He’s my friend.”

Jiro shook his head with a snort. “Does he know that?”

I frowned, finally catching up on what he’d said before when he came earlier today, and I froze as things clicked into place.

“How did you know his name?”

His back straightened as he looked up slowly. “What?”

“Max, how did you know his name?”

“You introduced us.”

I shook my head. “No, you knew before.”

He threw me a wary look.

I sighed, feeling the weight of the unspoken truth between us. “Jiro, please don’t lie to me. I know you knew Max’s name before I introduced you. How?”

He hesitated for a moment as if debating whether or not to tell me the truth. Finally, he let out a sigh and looked away. “Okay, fine. I knew his name because… because I’ve been looking into your life and, as I expected, things have been a lot tougher for you than you told me.”

I shrugged. “I guess we’re both hiding things.”

“We are…”he admitted with another sigh.

“What is it you showed Pedro that scared him that much?”

He looked up from his plate, detailing my face as he chewed on his taco. “I showed him who I was,” he replied evasively.

I shook my head with frustration; this was bound to become tiring soon.

He sighed. “You said it yourself. When you met me, I had fewer tattoos. Most of what I have has nothing to do with aesthetics. They are…” He cocked his head to the side. “Codes, if you will, of what I’ve done, who I am, and who I belong to.”

“You’re still with the—” I looked around before leaning over the table. “Them,” I whispered urgently.

Jiro leaned forward as well, a soft smile on his lips. “Technically, I’ll always be.” He detailed my face for a second before leaning back on his seat, creating a distance that annoyed me. He waved his hand dismissively. “These codes are widely known within other organizations.”

Organizations… a civilized word for gangs.

Jiro’s eyes glinted with this savage light I’d seen a couple of times before. “He obviously could read the signs well enough.”

“Will you tell me?”

“Not today, Hope, not today,” he let out a little wistfully before looking at his watch. “Come on, let’s finish our dinner. I am waiting for Hoka to call me when he’s back from his trip. It may be a few days, but I promise I’ll come find you as soon as I have news.”

I didn’t know why, but this was just his version of running away to keep his walls up, and instead of pressing, I let it go because despite what I wanted to believe, Jiro was not mine—he was not mine when I was a silly enamored child, and he was not mine now. He was a temporary feature, and I could not let myself see what was under his armor because I feared what I would discover may not make me run away but fall deeper.

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