Page 8 of Still Burning

“No, bring it all here. I’m calling Blaise to let him know and see if Levi can deactivate the damn things or if we need to just toss them in the fucking ocean,” he said, then ended the call.

His eyes swung to me. If he was about to tell me that she had to leave the compound, I was going with her. He needed to be prepared for that.

“She needs to go,” he said, which I’d already expected.

I opened my mouth to tell him she wouldn’t be leaving alone, but Marlana spoke first.

“Wrong. Her leaving isn’t going to change the fact that they have your location. In fact, if they show up to get her and she’s gone, it’s possible they’ll start killing until someone tells them where she is. She needs to stay put. They’ve not come for her yet. Wait it out.”

Liam was scowling at her as if this were her fault. “And what? Just sit around like fucking ducks? I don’t want the Irish showing up at our gate.”

“It’s too late for that,” she replied with a shrug. “Besides, you have the Southern Mafia at your disposal. Use them.”

3

Salem

Nina lifted the bottle of beer in her hand to her lips and took a drink as she sat with her legs crossed, leaning back in the lawn chair on the other side of the brick patio from Pepper and me. A cigarette was in her other hand, stuck between two fingers as she draped it over the armrest.

It was perfect weather today. In the high seventies and sunny. After I’d been taught how to make Nina’s biscuits and helped feed the men, we had come out here to enjoy it.

“You’ve evaded the questions all morning,” Nina said, looking pointedly at me. “Two nights in a row, sleeping in Tex’s bed. Inquiring minds want to know.”

“Leave her be.” Pepper spoke up. “If she wanted to talk about it, she would.”

Nina shifted her eyes to Pepper and pouted. “But this is my current TV drama since there isn’t anything but shit on to watch these days. I gotta know what happened in last night’s episode.”

Pepper chuckled. “No, you really don’t.”

Nina sighed. “Fine. But can we talk about Nixie’s red-rimmed eyes and her dramatic entrance into the kitchen this morning? She’d been all ready to lay it on thick for Tex, but he wasn’t even there. The longer she stood around, prepared to do whatever stunt she had planned, the funnier it got.”

I’d noticed that too. I also tried to tell myself that she’d notbeen there to talk to Rome. Pretending that she didn’t exist was easier, but she did. And he had been in a sexual relationship with her, even if he didn’t put any weight on that. She obviously did, and she was going to fight for him.

This thing with Rome was confusing. The way he held me, kissed me, looked at me, and said things led me to believe I was it for him. When I was with him, it was easier to believe because I got lost in the moment. But when he wasn’t close, confusing me, I could think. And when I thought…it wasn’t so clear.

He’d said a lot of things to me, but he hadn’t said anything about what we were or what it was we were doing. There hadn’t been much time for discussion. A few times, he had said things that sounded as if he loved me. Like…like he had always loved me. I struggled with believing that. He’d said I made his soul whole. That was pretty deep, but was it enough for him to just want me? When he’d had a buffet of gorgeous young strippers for years?

I was terrified of trusting him, but I wasn’t sure if I had any control over it anyway. All it took was one smile from him, and my heart went crazy. I’d had the same reaction when I was a teenager. I had convinced myself that it was a childish response from the excitement of first love and that once I matured, it would go away.

How wrong I had been.

“Like Amethyst, Nixie needs to move on. Tex was never keeping her. She was his current plaything here. Just like he kept one at Devil’s in Ocala,” Pepper said, then swung her eyes from Nina to me, wide-eyed. “I didn’t mean that. I, uh…well, I did. Tex used to have several someones, but he went through them and tossed them. Never kept one. Ugh,” she groaned. “I need to shut up. You don’t want to know all this. Besides, you two have reconnected, so all that will stop.”

Would it though? He hadn’t said it would. Just that he closedhis eyes and saw me. Did that mean he wouldn’t need them if he had me now? What if he was wrong and missed it—the different girls?

“She’s gone pale,” Nina said in a scolding tone. “He’s not wanted any of them because it was always you. Don’t look so grim. Pepper is blurting out shit without thinking.”

I managed a smile. “It’s okay. She’s telling the truth. I need to remember it.”

Nina frowned. “No, that will fuck with your head. You both have lived other lives, but you found each other again. This is your new start. You get a chance at a redo.”

The back door opened behind me, and Nina looked over my head toward it, stopping whatever else she was going to say. I turned to see Liam, followed by Rome and Micah. My gaze went directly to Rome. It always did, even when I didn’t want it to. He was headed in our direction like the others, but his eyes were locked on me. My heart began its crazy dance. The determined expression on his face didn’t even slow it down.

I licked my lips nervously.

Had something new happened? He had been gone with Liam for hours.

“Please tell me I am going home and back to my bar,” Pepper said hopefully.

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