Page 43 of The Devil's Ice

“I heard you talking to Cole about it at Satan’s one night.”

“Eavesdropping on my conversations with other people doesn’t count!” she said indignantly. “First-hand knowledgeonlyfor this exercise!”

“Yeah, that’s fair.” He ran his hands through his hair, still staring down at her. “OK, real talk now?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t know shit about your life, Vix, and that’s on me because I’ve never asked you a single question. I don’t know where you’re from, if you have family, if you like Indian food, how you take your coffee… Idoknow that you drink green tea, and that’s about all I’ve got. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t know you in some ways that really,reallymatter.”

“You mean biblically?”

“No,” Ice growled, all joking manner gone now. “No. I mean that I know you’re the kind of woman who fucking stands in front of a speeding van to protect a little girl, at huge risk to herself. I know that you’re the kind of woman who, after she comes to in a hospital bed covered in bandages and braces, asks about that little girlbeforeshe asks about herself. I know that you’re the kind of woman who gets a broken neck, and can hang tough about it. You’re fucking brave, and strong, and fierce… andI’mthe asshole who had you alone and in my arms, dozens and dozens of times, andnever onceasked you if you like wine, and if so, what color. Where you grew up. Your favorite movie. I didn’t ask youanything, because I was a self-absorbed prick just looking for a good time in a bar back room with a beautiful woman.”

Suddenly, Vixen had so many things thatshewanted to say, but she held her breath, held her tongue. Ice wasn’t finished yet, she knew, and she was afraid that if she spoke now, he’d never say the rest of it.

“But seeing you get hit by that van, seeing you lying there on the ground,” Ice said quietly. “Your face wrecked, and blood everywhere, and your neck…” He took a deep breath. “Your neck at that horrible angle, so I knew it was broken, but I didn’t know if you were alive or dead, and when I found out you were alive, I didn’t know what shape you were in. It just – it changedeverything, Vix. Everything about what I want with you.”

It took a huge effort to not respond to this, but she managed it. Barely.

“Here’s the whole truth, OK?” he said. “I’ve liked you for a long while, despite not knowing much about you, like life details. I know that sounds fucking stupid, but I swear it’s true. And when I say that I like you, I’m not talking about your hot little body and what you can do with it.”

She blushed. “No?”

“No.” Gently, so carefully, he reached out and stroked her unharmed cheek. “I mean, I like how you talk to Elle, and Jo, and Zoe, and especially Keira. That little girladoresyou, and that wasbeforeyou saved her life – you’ve always been funny and open with her, and kids can spot bullshit a mile away, so no way you’re faking any of it.”

She smiled a bit; she missed Keira desperately, to be honest, and she was counting the days before she could get eyes on her again.

“I’ve watched how the other waitresses treat you and talk to you, and I’ve seen you work so fucking hard to be polite in the face of incredible rudeness,” Ice continued. “I like how you talk to Cole and Scars, how you flirt and joke around with the customers, how you always have a smile on your fucking gorgeous face. You have a sweet, good, genuine heart, Vix, and even though I didn’t care much about it when it came time to take you to the back room, I’vecometo care about it. I cared about it even before you stood between Keira and that van, before you risked your life to save hers.”

“You – you did? You do?”

“I did and I do,” he said simply. “You’ve crawled on under my skin, and I don’t even mind. Iwantyou there, and nobody but you. I want to know things about you, even though I feel like I already know all the most important stuff. I havenoidea if you like wine or beer, but Idoknow who you are in your core, Vix… and who you are is fucking amazing. We might not be friends yet, but to me, you’re already something more than that.Someonemore than that.”

Vixen stood there in her rumpled, oversized clothes, and old man slippers, with her face scarred and her neck smashed, her hair dirty and disgusting – and she had never felt more beautiful. Never, not in her whole life. Not in her shortest skirt, her hair flowing and perfect, her lipstick on point.

No…thiswas the most beautiful she’d ever felt in her life, and it was because this man – this hard, terrifying, dangerous man – was looking past her skin, her eyes, her breasts, and he was seeingher.

He was right that he didn’t know where she’d been brought up, but hedidknow that she was strong. He didn’t know that she liked sugar in her coffee, but hedidknow that she’d die to protect a child that she loved. He didn’t know her favorite TV show, but hedidknow that she did her best to be good to everyone, even people who weren’t particularly good to her.

He was right. He did know her in so many ways that mattered. And if she were being honest, she knew him in many of the same ways.

She opened her mouth to tell him all of that, but suddenly, she felt her fingertips tingling and her head spinning, and her world went a bright white. She gasped, and it wasn’t until his hands moved to her upper arms that she realized that she’d swayed forward.

“Hey!” Ice said, alarmed. “You OK?”

“Yeah,” she said, and as she spoke, his face came back into focus. His eyes were very dark blue, almost stormy, and he looked like he was seconds away from scooping her up off her feet. Her neck made that impossible, of course, but she knew that that was the only thing stopping him. “I felt dizzy for a second. I think I’m just really tired.”

“So I’ll put you to bed.”

“No, wait. Ireallywant a shower, Ice.” She saw his lips set in a stubborn line and she almost laughed at how quickly the man could go from gentle to sheer granite. “Please. I’ll go straight to bed after, I swear.”

“Yeah?”

“Yes. I promise.”

“Well…” He stared down at her, saw her pleading expression, felt himself wavering. Goddammit. The woman had him wrapped around her baby finger, and he had to admit that he liked it just fine. “I guess you’d sleep better after a nice hot shower anyway, huh?”

“ForsureI would,” she agreed. “And I wouldn’t make the bed smell like a dumpster in the middle of summer, either.”

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