Page 70 of His Last Shot
“Come on. Tell me you don’t see it?” I ask through laughter.
“You’re right,” Rachel says, tears spilling over from the amusement, the air hitching with ragged gasps. “He totally does!”
“Seriously?” Laura asks in confusion while wiping down her shirt. “What in the heck did I miss?”
The headlights of my truck cast a bright beam, illuminating her driveway as I pull onto the hard concrete. With a final click, I kill the engine. The smell of exhaust lingers in the air, as I twist my body towards her. She’s fidgeting with her cuticles, her sign that she’s nervous.
“Wanna talk about it?” I plead, reaching over and tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. I rest my hand gently on her shoulder, rubbing small circles into her soft, silky skin, the subtle rise and fall of her breathing evident under my fingertips.
She glances out the window, then turns to me, sighs, and grins.
She’s hesitant, so I lean over the worn leather of the middle console and gently kiss her perfect lips. “No matter what it is, remember that I love you.”
“I love you too,” she murmurs between kisses, her lips lingering on mine.
We break away, our breaths mingling as our faces are inches apart. “What’s bothering you?”
“How do you know me so well already?” She slides back over to her side of the truck.
“I can read you.”
“Now, who’s reading who?” She laughs.
Then her expression becomes serious, so I stretch my arm over the seat. My fingers play with the silky strands of her hair. “Saying that to Drew felt so good. So empowering. Even when I saw him”—she pauses, probablybecause that image is burned into her brain for all eternity—“with her, I really didn’t tell him what I wanted to. What I needed to. I was scared. Not brave enough, ya know?” She looks over at me.
I nod, giving her the validation she needs and deserves while rubbing small circles on her shoulder.
“But God.” She smiles and lets out a long, shaky breath. “Saying that to him feltsogood.”
“I was so proud of you.” I lean in and give her a peck on the shoulder.
Her cheeks blush from the compliment. One that I’m not so sure she received enough of in the past.
“Thank you.” She peers at her house through the windshield, pondering. “But I worry about the repercussions.”
This makes me snap my head back as my skin tingles with unease. “Repercussions?” I probe. “Like what?” She pauses, rolling her bottom lip between her teeth. “Rachel, what aren’t you telling me?”
My gut clenches as a heaviness settles. She’s keeping something from me. Something huge and possibly dangerous.
She starts. “Well, you know about the gambling.” I nod, anticipating. “And that it’s illegal.”
“I suspected as much.”
“Well, I’m pretty sure Uncle Dexter is grooming Drew to take over. Or just bring him into the fold. I don’t know. It’s just a hunch. He and Drew have been having a lot of secret meetings in Dexter’s office lately.” She pauses. “But also, people have ‘disappeared.’” She uses air quotes for that last word. “People who have worked with or crossed my uncle.”
Kinda like the guy I saw Dexter and his men escort out of the bar that day.“So, are you talking like murder?”
She shrugs. “They disappear. That’s all I know.”
“And you’re what? Worried about Drew, of all people?” I mean, I’m not going to lie here. A tinge of jealousy pinches at my heart.I hate this feeling.
Her hand stretches over to mine. “Johnny, he hurt me, yes. But I don’t want something like that to happen to him. Or anyone, for that matter. But it’s morethan Drew.” She focuses on me, her posture goes rigid. “It’s you. I’m worried about you.”
“Me?” I laugh at the thought. “I can handle myself, Rachel.”
Her brows knit together while she wrings her hands in her lap. “I’m sure those other men thought the same thing.”
“Come here,” I command, waving her over. A tight, nervous smile crosses her lips as she shimmies across the truck and crawls into my lap, wincing slightly along the way because of her joints.
