I came up behind her and ran my hand up and down her back, my rough fingers catching on her lace nightgown. “Shhh. Another time, another place, baby, and it would’ve happened. But I’ve been fucked up a long time over this, and I should’ve never started with you. You were irresistible,” I said, placing a chaste kiss on the back of her neck.
She shook her head. “You were the irresistible one. And the one to get me off the streets, give me a good job, a decent one where I’m watched and protected. And I make amazing money.”
Whiskey quietly seeped back up my throat like a slow-burning blaze. Why couldn’t I convince Lynx to do that?
Marta turned and nodded once, not meeting my eyes. “I’m gonna go back home. This was a mistake, and I get it. It was all me. Don’t you put this on yourself for a minute.”
“Don’t say that.” I wrapped my arms around her, holding her tight—her back pressed into my front.
She broke free from my hold. “I hope you slay your dragons, Mike. I do. You deserve it.” On her tiptoes, she reached up and kissed me on the cheek before walking to the bathroom and turning on the shower.
An hour later, I dropped Marta off at the airport and finished my time at the Tunnel.
