I shift closer, threading my fingers through hers. Every time I touch her hand, I want to scrub my skin raw. But I lean in anyway.
The plan Ruiz came up with when we met in Carter’s penthouse rings clear.
“You want me to charm it out of her?” The words taste awful.
“You know each other, and you’ve got,” Carter waves his hand, searching for his words, “let’s say, the kind of appeal that works.”
“No time for an undercover agent,” Ruiz explains. “It would take too long to gain her trust. You’re the fastest route in.”
Silence stretched, gunky and uncomfortable, as they waited for my answer and the pieces fell into place. This was not about my strategic mind or people skills.
It was all about my past. Every mistake, every headline…now a tool to protect her. What a sick irony.
“Regular people like us never benefit from that.”
“See, you get it.” She digs her teeth into her wine-stained lips. “They only see money, while other people suffer.”
“It’s unfair… but what can we do?” I infuse my voice with as much sadness as possible. “We’re nobodies. They have all the power.”
A sly smile stretches slowly across her face. “My boss is not infallible.”
My blood runs cold.
Not only at her words, but how proud she is. Like taking something from Jackie gives her pleasure.
I keep my expression neutral and force myself to stay rooted a few inches from her, letting the smell of wine on her breath wash over me.
The way she talks about Jackie makes me see red. I come close to breaking character, but I don’t, because she needs me.
“Come on,” I coax. “It’s not like anybody can touch her.”
Michelle hikes a shoulder. “There are ways to take what you want from people like that.”
The weight of this moment presses against my ribcage. Jackie’s safety hinges on every word that comes out of my mouth tonight.
“I like how you think.” I rub circles on the back of her hand. “You’re a dangerous mix.” A disbelieving laugh scrapes my throat.
She hides her smirk behind the fresh glass of wine just delivered by the waiter.
“It’s not just a fantasy.”
“Come on, Shells.” I pat her arm, hoping to spur her on.
Michelle’s gaze is unfocused at this point, and she leans closer. “It’s not! When you know the right people.”
My brow arches credulously, but I don’t push. I can see she’s burning to tell me.
“I met someone at the support group for caregivers. We got to talking. About the burden of it all. Especially that they can’t talk to us.”
“OK…”
“She was saying how expensive all the experimental treatments are. That her family struggles to take care of her sister. She felt the same pain, you know.”
“I can’t even imagine.”
Her brother’s been bedridden for years, with no hope of recovery. On a deeper level, I could understand her frustration. The desperate need to do anything humanly possible for the people you love.
But this was not the way.
