“I thought they were here for the weed,” she managed between tearful gulps of air. “But they said they knew you. They were getting revenge….”
I hugged her even tighter. Rocked her, too. Inside, I was planning all the things I was going to do to the two Serbians when they woke up...ifthey woke up. But most of my anger was reserved for myself. I’d brought this down on her. Me.
“It’ll be okay,” I promised her. And I swore inside that it would. I’d never go near her again. Never get close enough that her soft skin and copper hair and those lush green eyes could draw me in. Because I’d woken up to something. The way I’d felt when I’d realized she was in danger….
Somewhere along the way, I’d fallen for her. It wasn’t just me lusting after her, anymore. Maybe it never had been. I knew I wouldn’t be happy unless I couldbewith her. And that was impossible: tonight was evidence of that.
“Come on,” I told her. “I’ll take you home.”
One more month, I thought.One more month. I’ll see her as little as possible, we’ll finish the crop and save Kayley. And then I’m out of her life forever.
36
LOUISE
Sean droveme home in my car and saw me to my door. When I asked what he was going to do with the two guys, he said he’d take care of it, and that I never had to worry about them again.
I didn’t have to ask what that meant. And however much my stomach turned at the thought of it, I’d be lying if I said a little part of me didn’t light up with the dark glow of vengeance.
Stacey’s face fell when she saw me. I couldn’t tell her anything, which only made her worry more, and Kayley had woken up and was pale-faced with concern, too. Eventually, Stacey and I managed to get her back to sleep and I dozed fitfully on the couch, leaning against Stacey’s side.
In the morning, I made up a story about a bust pipe at the garden store causing a flood, and all of us being summoned in to help clear it up, and a guy at work saying something that had upset me. I wasn’t sure either of them bought it and I hated having to lie to them. It seemed like I was lying more, every day, just to keep the grow house covered up.
When I returned to the grow house the next day, the two guys were gone and Sean had put the plants back on the tables. I taped upthe ones with damaged stems—with proper care, I hoped they’d survive.
A week went by and I didn’t see Sean at all: I was there in the day and him at night. I told myself it was better, this way. I’d seen the darkness that surrounded his life. I’d been right all along about the danger that came with being close to him.
But none of that stopped me from wanting him. It was more than just lust, now. I needed him in my life.
Then, one day, the alarm on my phone went off, triggered by the sensors at the house. I checked what the numbers were telling me, my jaw going slack in disbelief. Then I ran for the elevator and tapped out a text message to Sean on the way down.
PLANTS ARE DYING.
37
SEAN
I screechedto a stop outside the grow house and ran for the door. Louise’s text had been short on detail so I burst in ready for anything...except what I found.
Louise was stretched out on the floor, naked.
Almostnaked. She was in bra and panties except—
She was wet with sweat and they’d gone almost translucent.
“Close the door!” Louise yelled. Her voice was muffled because her head and shoulders were inside a large metal box screwed to the wall. I slammed the door behind me.
That’s when I noticed the heat. It was scorching outside, one of the last really hot days of the summer. But inside, it was like an oven.
“It’s the air conditioning,” said Louise. “It broke, probably some time this morning. The place has been getting hotter and hotter all day, until it got hot enough to set off the alarm. The plants are dying.” I could hear from her voice that she was on the verge of tears, and she was venting it as frustration. “What took you so long?”
“I was on the other side of town,” I lied. “On a job.” I didn’t want to tell her the real reason. It had been maybe an hour since she’d sent me the message—had she been inside the grow house ever since,with the temperature like this? No wonder she’d stripped off. I didn’t think I’d be able to bear it more than a few minutes in here.
I hunkered down beside her. Every little movement was an effort: the heat wasferocious. It made it difficult to think, and the fact I was staring at her nearly-naked body made it even harder. Jesus, her breasts wereright there,a foot from my face,the dark shadow of her nipples visible through the soaked fabric of her bra—
I dug my nails into my palms and forced my eyes away. “Can’t we—”
“Call an engineer?” she snapped. “Look around you.”
