I loved her.
Curling my fingers tighter around her fist, I forced her closer until only our arms were between us and let the corner of my mouth tick up. “I love that you can’t keep your hands off me, Princess, but we currently have an audience.”
Those icy blue eyes flared with anger as she stared me down, her jaw clenched tight before she finally unlocked it to demand, “Tell me why you brought me here.”
My hand loosened at the question that should’ve also been obvious. “I was pretty up front when I said we were having lunch at?—”
“No.” She slammed both our hands into my chest, managing to rock me back a step as she seethed, “Why did you bring mehere? ToAmber.”
Bemusement and a hint of irritation swarmed inside me because I was sure she was messing with me. Sure she was trying to bring up the arguments we’d had today, for some purpose I couldn’t figure out.
Dipping my head close, I breathed, “I don’t know what you’re getting at, or why, but if this has to do with Aru?—”
“This has to do withyou,” she hissed. “You forcing me into giving you time, then tricking me into going places before trapping me here for a Donut—forTessa.”
My mouth had been open to let her know I’d neverforcedher into anything—I’dasked—but a stunned breath ripped from me instead when I finally caught the last part of what she’d said. “I’m sorry?”
“Did you sayDonut?” Gray carefully asked, as if he wasn’t sure he’d heard me correctly. As if this hadn’t been part of his plan all along. Before I had the chance to snap back at him, he gave a subtle shake of his head and added, “ShadowDonut orfooddonut?”
“Gray,” I said irritably as my eyes narrowed into slits.
An equally irritable breath left him. “You’re gonna need to help me out here, Peach, because Briggs hasn’t mentioned any cases, and I haven’t seen any boxes lying around. And what do either of those have to do with Tessa?”
I ground my teeth and forced myself to take slow, deep breaths so I wouldn’t lash out at him more than I already had. Not that I wasn’t a massive fan of lashing out at Hudson Gray, but he was right...we were surrounded by his family.
“You know exactly what I’m talking about,” I said softly but no less lethally. Just as frustration flared in his pale eyes, I added, “And I hate that you thought it was okay to lie to me—to manipulate me—even for something like this.”
Gray’s answering silence somehow felt like both a warning and the worst kind of grief. But he just kept his stare on me astense moments passed before gruffly rumbling, “Think it’s time we head back.”
And that little statement had my confidence faltering.
The pain he’d barely concealed had my fury depleting in an instant.
Hesitation and confusion weighed heavily on my chest in the following seconds that seemed to stretch for so much longer. But just as my lips parted to question him, one of his cousins’ wives gasped from where they’d apparently followed me in here.
Something I would’ve known if I hadn’t been so blinded by my betrayal and hurt from the man in front of me.
“Y’all can’t leave! I thought you came back to help.”
Right. That.
Gray’s brow furrowed, but his stare lingered on mine like I might be the one to explain before he eventually glanced past me. “I don’t think y’all want me helping out at your booths.”
The cousin I’d seen most over the years, Hunter, huffed something resembling a laugh. “Yeah, you’re not allowed near that product. You’d give it all away.”
Gray pointed at Hunter without looking in his direction just as the same wife who’d spoken before said, “Uh, yeah, no thanks,” with a soft snort. Stepping closer until she was in our little cluster at the kitchen island, Emberly easily fell into Cayson’s embrace while sending an exasperated look at Gray. “But you know that isn’t what I’m talking about.”
“I assure you, I don’t,” Gray told Emberly quickly, his stare snapping back to take in the narrowing of mine. “I don’t,” he repeated softly but no less firmly.
“Hudson, we talked about thisat lengthlast weekend,” Emberly argued, sounding nearly as frustrated with the man as I was.
Orhad been. Because it was evident in every part of Hudson Gray that he was completely lost as to what was going on.
It had been ever since he’d strongly suggested we head back to Dallas like he’d never once intended on trapping me in this tiny town...over an hour away.
“You really don’t know what she’s talking about,” I said under my breath, the words a statement rather than a question.
Gray’s brow ticked up, but before he could respond, Emberly continued.
