Page 127 of Play Dirty (Brooklyn Dawn 1)

“What’s going on?”

“I’ll explain on the way to the airport. I have thirty minutes to make my flight.”

George’s stony face always put my back up. He didn’t have to say anything and I still defaulted to fidgeting like a sixteen-year-old trying to find a way to get around curfew.

“Please, George. It’s been a long night.” He opened the back door for me. “Thank you.”

Once he got into the car, I gave him the highlights.

“I hope you procured a seat on the flight for me too.”

“You don’t need to come back to Brooklyn. You have plans with your nieces.”

“Had plans. You’re always my priority, Lindsey.”

Again, my eyes stung. “I know.”

“They’ll understand.”

“Dammit.”

He met my eyes in the rearview mirror. “You’ve been my charge since you were a pre-teen. That’s not going to change until I’m unfit to do my job.”

I simply nodded. I didn’t have anything else left in me to argue. I was tired of being strong.

My phone buzzed in my hand. Jamie’s face came up with her tongue out and a devil horn sign blocking half her face.

“Shit.”

“You better answer it.” George braked for the ever-present stream of traffic in DC. It was just as bad as New York City.

I hit FaceTime, because Jamie was a brat and knew I couldn’t hide shit from her in a face to face conversation. “Hey.”

“What the fuck?”

I blew out a breath. “Jamie—”

“Do not ‘Jamie’ me. Why the hell did I have to get a call from Darcy?”

If there were lasers in her eyes, I’d be dead. “I didn’t want to worry you.”

“Bullshit. You didn’t want me to knock some sense into you. And you let me just walk with all that going on?”

“I didn’t know,” I said loudly, raising my voice over her.

When she clamped her mouth shut, I lowered my voice.

“I didn’t know, Jame. It happened after you left. I thought I was meeting some VIP for a signature. Or maybe that it was Nash.” Because it was Jamie, I could own up to that at the very least.

“Where is that jackass? And where are you?”

“I’m heading to New York.”

“To see him?”

“No. I’m going home. I just want to be around my things for a couple days. Sleep in my own damn bed.”

“You’re not seeing Nash?”

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