“But you didn’t.” I smirked, cocking my head. “Besides, you’ve got to try harder than that if youreallywant to kill me.”
She fell to the floor, a protective shell against the hurt. I knew the move. “You should go.”
I knelt in front of her. I wanted to get to the bottom of this as much as she did. I went to rest my hands on her knees, then pulled my hands back. She wasn’t ready for the contact.
“Why are you still here?” she murmured, the words nearly lost against her kneecaps.
“I kind of like having you around. Keeps things interesting.” When her death glare shot up at me, I held up my hands. “I’m kidding.”
Blaire smashed her head against her knees, so at odds with the powerful woman who had been in front of me moments earlier. “You should run from me. I’m obviously a liability. Can’t leave me alone for a minute.”
I sat down next to her, mimicking her pose. “You’re not a liability, Blaire. There’s something going on that we have to figure out. Like it or not, I’m probably your best chance for that.”
She paused. “I’m sorry. It’s not you. I’m grateful for your help, really. I just…” She trailed off, resting her chin. “I don’t understand. I don’t get why this is happening. And I don’t get why you’re helping me. Your life would be a lot easier if you just dumped me off on someone else, or left me to figure my shit out on my own.”
This was my chance. I could tell her the truth now, the words burning my tongue, the secrets I had kept buried inside for far too long. I could exorcize my demons right now.
All I had to do was say the words.
But honesty wasn’t the perfect gift we made it out to be. It was broken and battered, and would cut you clean given half the chance. I could tell her the truth, and release myself from thechains weighing me down, but would I break her by doing so? Possibly. And I needed her whole to figure this out.
She could break after, when she was safe, and I could sleep again without being haunted by dreams of her.
I smiled, giving her a small shrug, the words sour in my mouth. “Our fates are entwined. Haven’t you figured that out by now?”
Somehow, that had been the right thing to say. Her body relaxed immediately, sagging to the ground. Her shoulder brushed against mine, and I tried to pretend I couldn’t feel every inch of her body against mine. I so badly wanted to take her into my arms, to scare away the things that clouded her mind, making her shake at night while she slept, only a few feet away from me.
But I couldn’t do that. Touching her was a toxin, an acid that would slowly eat away at me until there was nothing left but her hand on my sorry bones.
“Sometimes, I wonder… if in a different life, one less complicated than this, one where we didn’t meet this way, if we would’ve been friends. I think I would’ve liked that.” Blaire’s voice was a rush of words.
I didn’t respond, even as her words cycled in my mind. I had already said too much, and responding back to her confession was dangerous for us both.
Instead, I got to my feet, offering her my hand. We had work to do. “Come on. I have an idea. You might not like it, but it might get us somewhere in figuring out what’s going on.”
She studied me from under her lashes, but took my hand softly, the same hand that had held a blade as she threatened to kill me. “Do I want to know?”
I tossed the knife into the sink, a problem for another day, and left the kitchen, Blaire trailing behind me as we made our way back to my room.
“There’s a party going on at another house tonight. A house of a friend who might have information on what you’ve been up to at night.”
“You think a party is going to scare me off after the last few days?” Blaire stuck her tongue out, and the immature gesture made me smile.
“No. But I don’t trust the crowd at this party. I’d feel better if…” I winced, afraid of how she would take the next part.
“Spit it out, Winder.”
I knew I was playing with fire.
The unfortunate part was that I never minded being burned.
I ran my tongue over my teeth. “In order for this to work, and for you to stay safe, we’ll have to pretend like we’re together.”
Chapter
Fourteen
BLAIRE
