Tally snorts in amused horror as she grabs the metal waste bin and runs into the bathroom. She returns moments later to dump a load of cold water over me, the flaming pillow, and the remains of the scorched magazines on the singed carpet.
That’s the end of my battle with ‘Gossip Grove.’
Tabloid: 1. Rust: 0.
But I swear I will have my revenge. Once I’m not sopping wetandburned.
“Thanks, Trouble,” I choke out breathlessly. Dripping, I brace myself on my knees, one hand clutching the blackened pillow.
Putting out a fire was far more exhausting than I expected. It’s a whole workout.
Tally giggles. “Attempted arson? Badly attempted, I should say. I didn’t know you were taking your new bad boy image so seriously. Are you tryin’ to keep up with the infamous Bubblegum Outlaw or are you just burnin’ for me?”
“You got it.” I give her the ol’ finger guns. It’s a maneuver I reserve for the gravest, most cringe-worthy emergencies. “I’m on fire for you.”
She rolls her eyes but I’m positive I catch her trying not to smile. While she puts the waste bin back, I salivate at her towel riding up. Purple bruises bloom on the skin of her thighs from where I held on to her when I fucked her in my truck yesterday.
Tally returns to inspect the hole in my shirt and the reddened skin underneath. Her lips purse. “It doesn’t seem too bad. I got a first aid kit in my bag, but we should probably stop by the drugstore before we grab lunch and buy some burn cream. You don’t want it blistering.”
I only manage a nod. Tally caring for me like this feels like my chest is still on fire. I double-check to make sure it isn’t. Nope, now it’s my endless affection for her.
“Wanna tell me what happened here?” Her head tilts expectantly.
“They said mean things about you, so I killed them.” I wince. “I meanit.The… the magazine. I killed the magazine, yeah.”
Lord have mercy on me!
What am I saying? That didn’t sound half as reasonable as it did in my head. And talk about a Freudian slip cause I’d wring that reporter’s neck if I ever had the chance. Guess I gotta put another name on my kill list right after Rex Dalton.
Night Wolfe, your days are numbered.
“Youkilledthe magazine?” Tally asks, rapidly switching between held-back laughter and utter disbelief.
I shrug. Her saying it like that makes it sound like I overreacted.
“Cause they wrote a mean article about me?” she adds.
“I didn’t want you to see it. Just lies and bullshit.” Istomp on the magazine for good measure. “Do these people have no shame?”
She puts a hand on my arm and that simple touch is enough to make my pulse flutter.
“You’re fucking crazy, Rust,” she says quietly but it doesn’t sound like an insult. To me, it sounds like a compliment, though it could also be that I’m in shock from turning myself into a human torch.
“These articles will never stop,” she says calmly. “People tell me to ignore them. They’re right. It was hard at first and I admit, sometimes it’s still tough. But it’s part of the price I pay for makin’ a living with my music. Everybody knows tabloids exist.”
“I knew they existed, but I didn’t know how bad it was,” I grumble.
“You can see it all over the internet. Most gossip is on there now and don’t get me started on anonymous comments on social media. The trolls are the worst.”
“I don’t really use the internet and I don’t even have a computer.” I grab my phone from my pocket. “Only this.”
“Holy—That thing is ancient!” Tally takes it, turning it in her hand like the eighth world wonder. “Does it work with that huge crack in the screen?”
“Like a charm. If I give it a smack now and then.”
“No wonder I couldn’t find you on social media! I bet this relic doesn’t evenrunmodern apps.”
I scratch my jaw. “You mean like the Facebooks? Naw, I don’t need no apps. I only text with Cal and customers can come down to my garage if they want something.”
