Page 128 of Luck of the Draw

“Yeah,” Ophelia spoke up, not surprising him with the fact that she had likely heard about it from Liza and/or Connor and/or Luke and/or any number of their other friends. Liza was still staring at the floor. “What did they say?”

“Well…” Brennan inhaled and exhaled loudly, and then spit out the explanation in a rapid-fire succession of words. “Basically, this guy is on the hook for a bunch of federal crimes, so now the FBI is involved, and they want me to go meet with him while I’ve got a wire on me, and I’m supposed to try to provoke him so he’ll threaten me by fessing up to a bunch of shit he’s done to—”

Liza jerked her face up. “What?”

Brennan’s eyes shifted nervously before he met her gaze. “Yeah, so it’s—”

“It’s probably not going to work, and you’ll just get yourself killed,” Liza snapped, crossing her arms over her chest while she cocked one eyebrow. She squared herself in front of him, taking a stance like a drill sergeant, jaw pulsing repeatedly. She looked like she could and would kick his ass, but the sudden redness on her eye rims exposed her façade for what it really was. “Are they at least sending you in there with a weapon, B.?”

Brennan shook his head.

“And when are you supposed to do this?”

He bit down on his bottom lip for a half second. “Saturday. Next Saturday.”

“So, like a week from now?” Liza offered a brisk and sardonic nod. “And when’s Skye supposed to leave for this miraculous program that’s only offered at one place, seventeen-hundred miles away?”

It wasn’t clear where she was going with this, but it was nowhere good. “Two weeks.”

“Two weeks,” she repeated. “One week after this meeting where you will likely get yourself killed, so let me take a stab at what kind offavoryou need from us.” Her glistening eyes speared his while she gave a quick, disgusted shake of her head. “You need us to make sure Skye gets to her program because you won’t be able to. You know, beingdeadand all.”

“You’re angry at me, L.” Yes, thank you, Captain Obvious. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

She threw her hands down at her sides. “All of it.”

Brennan took a step toward her, and she took a step back, and what the fuck wasthatall about? “You’re angry at me about something that’s out of my control.”

“It isnotout of your control!” she yelped, blinking tears out of her eyes and onto her cheeks. “It has always been under your control. You did this to yourself. You got yourself into this mess in the first place. This is all you. Andyes, I am angry at you about it.”

He sucked in a deep breath, attempting to center himself and pretty much failing. “So, you’re pissed at me about something I did a long time ago. Something I’m never going to do again. Something I am risking my neck to fix. That is what you are pissed about.”

Liza jutted her trembling chin up at him. “Yes.”

They were fighting.Whywere they fighting? And why were they fightingnowwhen he needed this super important favor from her, and when it might actually be the last time he saw her?

Brennan huffed and dropped his chin. “Well, that’s fucking great, L.” He scuffed his shoe on the hardwood and then paced in front of the sales counter. “I should’ve just called Connor anyway.” He lifted his hand in a haphazard wave as he started to turn for the door. “Sorry I bothered—”

“Don’t call Connor,” Liza snapped, grabbing her purse off the counter and stomping around him toward the door. “I’m going home, and I don’t want to overhear the conversation. I don’t even want to know anything else.”

“Liza,” Ophelia called after her, but Liza continued to stomp in her high heels toward the door.

She jerked the door open and stomped out.

Ophelia shooed him. “Go on. I can’t leave, and you upset her.”

Brennan was already marching toward the door.

Royal Street was fucking packed, per usual for Saturday afternoon in this prime spot, and Brennan stood up as tall as his six-foot-two stature would allow to scan his gaze over the crowd to find Liza’s head. She was almost to the end of the block, and he shouldered through the mass of people, sprinting down the sidewalk after her.

“L.!”

Fortunately for him, her high heels slowed her down on the old, broken concrete, and he reached her just in time to grab her arm and stop her from walking right through the cross street.

“Are you out of your mind?” he barked, spinning her around. “You didn’t even check for an oncoming car.”

Liza scowled at him and pulled her arm out of his grasp. “Don’t grab me, B.”

Brennan lifted his palms in silent acquiescence. “I’m sorry.” She was holding her arm where his hand had been. “Did I hurt you?”

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