“Because if you threaten me again, I will pull you over my knee, giving you one long, hard reason never to do so again.”
What had he just said to me?
“What in the hell are you talking about?”
I’ll be damned if his smile wasn’t slow and sly, a telling statement about the thoughts rumbling around in that brain of his. Bastard. “Over my dead body.”
His single eyebrow lift was a dare. My grip on the scissors tightened.
“Fleur. Since Bekka couldn’t get you on the phone, she asked me to remind you about Zoe’s bridal shower. You need to be at Wildwood in two hours.”
I’d had my hard glare positioned on the hateful man with such animosity in my heart that hearing Ashley’s voice became just another irritant. Thankfully, I shook it off. “I remember. Thank you, Ashley.”
“Wildwood?” he asked, as if he was actually interested.
“A bar in town. Not your kind of place, I assure you. Very honky-tonk and filled with men and women who prefer decency over a disregard for the principles of humanity.” Every word slipping from my mouth continued to annoy him, but the flicker of amusement in his eyes continued to fuel a fire that had my core throbbing.
“Principles.”
“Yes, I do have them. Maybe I can teach you about them one day. Thank you for returning my things. Hopefully, we’ll never have to see each other again.”
“Yes, hopefully.”
Why was the deep, throaty sound of his voice so enthralling? Why were my nipples scraping against my sweater?
He hesitated before turning toward the door. When he did, his bum leg seemed to give way and he stumbled forward. Since I did have principles, I reached out immediately, gripping his arm. His wince indicated he was in significant pain.
Which he promptly pulled away. “I can do it.”
Ah, the calm and collected man was capable of feeling an emotion other than anger. “I’m sorry.”
“There’s no need for you to be sorry. You didn’t make me this way.” He opened the door and while I should simply allow him to walk out the door, I realized he intrigued me.
Certainly more than any other man had in this town. “What happened? With your leg?” Regret washed over me. I just knew he was going to spew another malicious statement about how I should mind my own business.
His hesitation surprised me and the way his shoulders heaved while taking scattered breaths meant his injury was partially to blame for his nasty attitude. Now I felt like a horrible person.
“I was shot.”
“Shot?” Oh, my God.
“Yeah,” he continued. “When someone was trying to kill me.”
CHAPTER 7
Montgomery
I wasn’t used to women challenging me, certainly not in the way Fleur had done now on several occasions. The fact that she intrigued me wasn’t something I would allow anyone else to know, but everything about her was refreshing. She’d refused to allow me to take control of the conversation in any way.
Being inside her store had certainly told me a lot about her personality, much like her attire, an eclectic mix indicating she had no issue with defying rules. Another plus in my mind. She hadn’t minded belittling me in front of her customers, although she’d done so in a calculating manner indicating her impressive intelligence.
At this point, I’d call her the bane of my existence. Maybe that was being somewhat harsh except even when chastising me, she always had a damn smile that seemed permanently etched in her face. The bastard inside of me wanted to burst her bubble;there were some terrible people in society willing and completely eager to destroy her happy go lucky outlook on the world.
There were precious few who ever stood up to me, including my own Capo. That’s why her attitude had shifted me off kilter, shaking my pristine world.
Even now, as I sat inside the very vehicle she’d made fun of the day before, wearing a jacket I’d never need again after leaving Vermont, staring at the sign for the Wildwood Bar, I was curious if not eager to see her again.
All the sass. All the flips of her hair and the rolls of her eyes had kept me fully aroused.
