Page 52 of Texas Hold Em'
“They’d ruin me,” she insisted. “You dying would ruin me.”
I gave her a cheeky little smile.
She shoved me hard in the chest. “What the hell are you smiling about?”
“Nothing, nothing, it just seems like you’re kind of worried about me is all.”
“Worried?” Her voice was damn near close to a yell. “Of course I’m fucking worried, you idiot! I don’t want you to get killed! I care about you!”
“You do?” I stepped toward her.
Carrie stepped back. “Don’t let it get to your head.”
“Too late.”
She held up a hand. “Stay where you are. This is too much. I can’t catch my breath.”
“Let me help you.”
She shook her head, and her lips moved, but no words came out.
I could feel her falling apart as she held me at arm’s length. The woman was tougher than anyone I’d ever met, but she was also capable of feeling so deeply—something I’d never mastered myself. Shutting down and cutting feelings off always worked better for me.
She was so beautiful when she was vulnerable.
“Come here,” I said.
She continued shaking her head and backing away, but she didn’t have anywhere to go. Her back hit the wall beside the TV in the living room and her shoulders slumped. She took a shuddering breath and wiped at her eyes as more tears came.
“I don’t know who I thought I was,” she whispered, “but I was wrong to go to Bates. I was wrong to assume I could handle this and play with the big boys. I should never have left Austin. My life was so good there. I had everything I needed. I was safe.” Her voice cracked. “I miss my friends and I might never see them again.”
“Hey.” I caught her up in my arms. This time, she tipped her head forward and rested her forehead on my chest while I rubbed her back in slow circles. “Don’t talk like that. Just because things feel heavy right now doesn’t mean they won’t get better. We have a hell of a week ahead of us, but I, for one, am glad you’re here.”
She sniffled. “You are?”
“Definitely. You’re not giving yourself enough credit. You acted rashly last night, but you were also bold. Fearless. You created an opportunity out of thin air for us. And like I said, you’re underestimating the Devils. Give us a bit more credit, will you? We can do this. I know we can. Because of you.”
She tipped her head back and gazed up at me. Her blue eyes swam with tears, some of which had left the front of my shirt damp. “How on earth are we supposed to get through the next three days?”
“Together.”
“It’s that easy for you?”
“The way I look at it, I have three days with a beautiful woman before I get a shot at justice. We’ve all been waiting a long time for this, Carrie. We’re ready. I’m ready. And until the night comes? I want to enjoy every second I have.”
Her lips looked plump and inviting despite the tear that got caught in the corner of her mouth. She let out a shaky breath as her fingers tightened in the fabric of my shirt. Her eyes searched mine. “Are you going to kiss me or not?”
CHAPTER 22
CARRIE
Fire.
Tex was an open flame in a dark room for me. He held space for me in darkness that I couldn’t see my way out of. He made my knees stronger, my back straighter, my head clearer. If not for him and the way he was looking at me that very second, I might very well have called Bates and told him the whole deal was off.
But that little flame danced in Tex’s eyes, and I didn’t dare lose sight of it. I wanted to hold it in my hands—no, I wanted to swallow it whole. I wanted to consume it, tobecomeit.
Together.
