Page 12 of Till Death Do Us Part

The look in his eyes said what I didn’t have to.She’s here for me.

I hoped he read the response in mine.Now that I’ve seen what a heartbreaker you are, I’m out.

A man who looked like that and was a gangster? I might as well open my chest and hand him my heart to destroy.

I pulled a kid toward me. He tried to shrug out of my hold, but I held tight. “He’s here for candy, and I’m with him.”

“Mom!” the kid screamed.

We both looked down the street. The kid’s mom was talking to a group of other parents. She narrowed her eyes at the sound of panic in his voice and started to rush toward us.

I pushed the kid forward. “Get your candy, Timmy.”

“I’m not Timmy—”

“That’s right. You’re a superhero tonight!”

“Oh.” Leather Cat giggled. “My bad! I thoughtyouwere out for candy.”

I shook my head, then took off for my sister’s van. The little boy’s mom stopped me before I could get there.

“What’s your issue with my kid, lady?”

“Nothing,” I said. “I thought he was my nephew. Timmy. I got lost from my family and so many kids have the same costume.”

A few of the parents stood around her, like they had her back. They watched me until I got in the van. I tried to start the engine, but it kept cranking without starting.I was starting to get frantic. My sister was notorious for forgetting to fill up her tank. Last Christmas, I’d even given her a gas can as a gag gift because it was a running joke in our family.

It didn’t seem so funny now.

No matter how many times I tried to start the car, it refused. It was drained. I held on to the wheel and set my forehead against it.

A knock came at the window. I turned my head a fraction and met a pair of green eyes set in a tan face. His hair was black and slicked back. It seemed as soft as silk. It glinted in the night like spilled ink. He smiled at me, his perfect white teeth shocking in the night.

It was the first time I really noticed what he was wearing. Black turtleneck and black slacks. He looked like he had just stepped off a runway in Italy, except he was more rugged, like he wouldn’t mind hunting and killing his food. Getting his hands dirty and his teeth stained with blood. Which made him seem more real and extremely dangerous.

Oh damn.We matched—our clothes. If we stood next to each other, it would be hard to tell where he began and where I ended.

He opened my door, and I held onto the wheel even tighter.

“In the neighborhood?” He lifted a thick brow.

“No,” I said, being honest.

Our eyes held for a second before he nodded. “You came for your gift.”

“If bygiftyou mean to check you out, then yeah.”

“You’ve seen me before.” Something about his tone was odd, like he said one thing but meant another. Like he knew I’d never seen him in person before, but Ihadseen him.

How could he know the only time I’d seen him was in my head? Because I’dbuilthim.

No.

There was no way he knew that. I was creating something out of nothing.

“No,” I said. “My eyes were full of blood.”

“Your eyes are clear now?”

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