Page 7 of Allison

He doesn’t have the right to demand she talk to him. Hell, they don’t really know one another, but he plans on remaining on the team for the foreseeable future and since she is Emma’s cousin, he figures they will be spending more time than just this week together. It’s better to clear the air now, than to let whatever has upset her fester into something that can’t be repaired.

“Come on, sugar,” Worm coaxes. “What’s gotten you in such a mood?” Allison turns to glare at him.Whoa!He’d been hoping he was wrong and reading something into the situation that wasn’t there, but obviously he’d been right. Something had upset her. She opens her mouth, but closes it abruptly. This happens a couple of times, to the point he’s beginning to think she’s just going to keep mimicking a fish and not say anything.

“Ugh!” she finally exclaims loudly, causing him to cringe at the volume. “You!” She points her finger at him angrily.What the hell? What did he do?“Maybe I’m just stupid or read things into our interactions that you didn’t mean, but I’m pretty good at reading people’s intentions, so I don’t think I’m wrong.” She pauses for a breath so he takes advantage to interrupt her tirade before it can continue.

“What are you talking about, sugar?” Worm interjects. Another loud screech leaves her mouth piercing his ears.

“STOP CALLING ME SUGAR!” Allison bellows at him. “This is what I’m talking about!” She points at him accusingly. “You are flirting with me!”

“Yes.” He agrees, evenly, not understanding why she’s upset. “Is that a problem?” She huffs indignantly.

“It is when you have a family!” she exclaims, her tone indicating he’s the most ignorant man alive. “I’m not some home-wrecking whore, Russell Chapman! I have morals and standards.” He is even more confused now than he was when she began yelling at him.

“I honestly don’t know what the problem is,” he confesses as she continues to fume at him.

“You have a wife and kids, but you are flirting with me!” She ends her statement in a tone that indicates a huge duh at the end.

“I don’t have a wife or kids,” he calmly replies, still confused as to where she came to that conclusion. She turns toward him wide-eyed.

“You don’t?” He shakes his head. “But you said you had to take care of your family,” she accuses. Understanding dawns on him.

“My father died unexpectedly, and I had to go home to care for my mom and my sisters,” he informs her. “My mom fell apart when Dad passed. I had to go home to make the funeral arrangements and set things up financially so I could keep everything paid until she’s able to handle them again. She and Dad married when she was barely eighteen. They’d been a couple since they were like fourteen. She couldn’t handle losing him. Some days, she still can’t…” He trails off, the reality of the situation hitting him all over again.

It’s been almost a year, but his mother still isn’t coping very well. He has been very successful at keeping all this shit to himself. He’s denied just how broken his mother is and what it’s doing to his little sisters.Why is he confessing all of this to Allison?

“Oh, Russell,” Allison sighs. “I’m so sorry about your dad and what your family is going through.” She looks at him sheepishly. “I’m sorry for jumping to the wrong conclusion.”

“You were jealous,” he charges, not wanting to discuss the loss of his father or the damage it has done to his family. Allison turns to give him an incredulous look.

“I wasn’t!” she denies, her cheeks turning ruby red, while her eyes shift to the right. All tells that give her away.

“Sugar,” he says, drawing out the pet name, letting her know he knows she’s not being honest.

“It’s rude to point out what we both already know,” she huffs, grumpily, crossing her arms in annoyance. Her lower lip protrudes in a pout. A deep chuckle escapes him, knowing it will likely piss her off even more.

“I like knowing you were upset thinking that I’m taken,” Worm crows with a grin.

“Of course, you do, caveman.” She gives him a shy smile.

“Guilty as charged,” he agrees. “Now about you being jealous…”

7

WORM

“Oh, get over yourself,” she grumbles. “I wasn’t jealous, just furious that a married man would cheat on his wife with a virtual stranger.”

“In my defense, I hadn’t cheated, just a little harmless flirting,” he counters. “Not that I have anyone to be cheating on.” He waggles his eyebrows at her for good measure. She gives him a dramatic eyeroll, him cracking up. This leads to a smile and a laugh from her, too. Allison relaxes, making Worm feel relieved. A comfortable silence descends, but he wants to keep her talking.

While he’s thinking of something to say, she turns to him. “Not even a girlfriend?” He shakes his head. “Friends with benefits?” He barks out a full-on belly laugh.

“No, sugar. I don’t have anyone. Do you?” She shakes her head. He grins in return. For some reason it makes him happy knowing she doesn’t have a man in her life. “Now, tell me more about the work you do.” She’d been rather vague when she talked about her work earlier. “If you don’t mind sharing,” he adds, not wanting to sound demanding.

“I investigate corruption and crimes, then I write about it and expose it, in hopes that the guilty parties will be brought to justice,” Allison declares proudly.

“Isn’t that dangerous?” Worm inquires. “I mean criminals usually don’t like being exposed. Aren’t you worried about them seeking revenge?”

“Sometimes,” she admits, vulnerability coming through in her voice. “I’ve been fortunate for the most part that the criminals were behind bars before my story went to print or air. However, I know I won’t always be so lucky. I’ve taken self-defense courses. I practice regularly at a gun range, and I never leave home without Alice.” She pats her side affectionately.

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