“Pull yourself together,” I mutter. Glancing at the mannequins, I squint, raising a finger in mock admonishment. “Don’t look at me like that, Flo.”
I don’t need your silent judgment. I’m judging myself enough as it is.
Especially after my…eventfulnight. Inhaling, I slide my hand over my stomach, feeling the flutter of nerves.
I dreamed about him. Worse, I woke up in a sprawling, aching mess, my thighs slick and hair wild, looking as if I’d had exactly the night I only dreamed about.
Exhaustion wars with anticipation as I pace, grateful for once that I don’t have any other orders to work on. Even my fingers are trembling. If I looked in the mirror, my eyes are blatant evidence of too many sleepless nights, the deep blue rings beneath them a seemingly permanent feature.
My father took one look at me this morning and withheld the lecture I expected, only pushing a liquid supplement, already prepared in a glass, across the kitchen island before silently leaving for work.
Falling back into the chair with my arms wide on either side, I stare at the floor, worrying my bottom lip between my teeth.
I wish he had let his anger out. It’s only delaying the inevitable showdown we’re heading toward over last night. Over all of it. And I’dwelcomeit, welcome an honest discussion on my future and my choices. Because whatever my father wants to think, they aremine.
And I’m not marrying Philip Fitzherbert. Not even to please my father. Not even for the sake of acomfortable life, as he likes to put it.
My yawn takes me by surprise. I’m sotired.
Sighing, I tip my head back and close my eyes for a moment.
Just for a moment.
Jenson
Fighting the urge to press a palm to my aching side, I stride down the sidewalk after River. He took off almost before I could park the fucking car, leaving Kai and I to follow his trail as we head toward the store he visited yesterday and the woman he wants us to meet with a holdall of ripped clothing gripped in his hand.
Ahead of me, Kai raises one eyebrow as he glances over his shoulder and down to my side. A fine cut sits just above his right eye, courtesy of my aching fists.
I scowl at him. “Fuck off. I’m fine.”
Any aches and pains are worth it. I slept like a damn baby, the bad memories beaten out of me by Kai and more than a dozen vicious-as-hell rounds. We only quit when River intervened and turned the damn lights off on us.
But they never leave for long. Especially now, with what we’re looking to do. Those thoughts try to creep in again, and I shove them away.
She’s not Katherine.
This situation is not the same.
I need to give this girl a fair shot. Especially as River doesn’t seem inclined to look for anyone else, now that he’s found her. Kai’s expression is relaxed enough, but I know him well enough to see the curiosity he’s trying to hide.
The desperation.
This is about much more than me.
Suck it up, asshole.
We reach a small, dilapidated storefront, and I rock back on my heels. In front of us, a wooden door that’s clearly seen better days has a cheerful looking sign in curly pink writing pinned to it.
Briar Rose Designs.
“This is one of ours, isn’t it?” Frowning, I glance down the street. “Did we miss it in the revamp?”
The retailers in our territory hand over small parts of their income for us to keep an eye on things. Not just from a security perspective, but wider. Landlord issues are something we’ve been battling with for years, but we have a good crop of owners on our roster now. Although the run-down street doesn’t fit with the work we’ve been doing to boost our area.
“Shit.” River pauses with his hand outstretched. “I didn’t even think about that. I assumed it was Clubs, to be honest. The boundary line is pretty close to here.”
He’s not overly involved in the wider territory, his focus on Mystic and overseeing the men that work beneath us.
