Page 96 of His to Burn
He pulled away.
I frowned, then let my arms fall.
“This will have to do for now,” he said.
I nodded without really understanding.
“What was that about?” I said.
He sighed.
“Do you think now is the time for that conversation?”
“Jack, don’t do this,” I said.
“Do what?” he responded, his voice tense.
“Pull away from me,” I said.
“Don’t make the mistake of thinking everything is about you,” he said in that ice-cold voice that was my least favorite.
“Point taken,” I responded.
I was proud I didn’t sound hurt.
Even though I was.
Even though I almost died, Jack pushing me away hurt more than the near miss.
So pathetic.
But, I wouldn’t admit that.
So I stayed quiet, letting the time tick by.
“Slight change of plans,” he said sometime later.
“What do you mean?”
I glanced at him, our eyes connecting in the dim lantern light.
“You have an uncle that lives on the Arkansas-Tennessee border. That’s where we’re going,” he said.
“Why?”
“Asia, I told you I wasn’t going to leave you alone, and I won’t. But once we get to your uncle’s—if we get to your uncle’s—then I’m gone,” he said like he expected me to argue.
I looked at him, then approached him slowly, moving like I was afraid he would run away.
I reached out, cupping his face in my hand.
“Asia,” he said, his voice strained.
“Jackson,” I responded.
He looked at me, his breath warm against my face.
“I just had to kill some more people in cold blood,” he said.
