Just… waited.
Damn him.
I set the last bottle down and leaned back against the bar, blowing out a breath.
“Okay,” I admitted.“Maybe I’m a little tired.”
“A little,” he echoed dryly.
Tempi looked between us.“You guys heading out?”
I made a face.“I don’t want to.”
“I know,” she said gently.“But you’re not back to one hundred percent yet.”
I hated how reasonable everyone was being.It was really ruining my mood.“Fine,” I muttered.
Swift’s hand brushed lightly against my lower back.“Come on, sugar.”
I shot Tempi one last look.“I’ll be back.”
“You better be,” she said.“I’m not dealing with these idiots alone.”
Nugget gave her a thumbs-up.“We’re delightful.”
“Debatable,” she shot back.
Swift and I headed out the door and back onto State Street.
Gone were the drunk college kids.
Now it was joggers, students with backpacks, people heading to lunch before going back to work.
More movement.
More noise.
More eyes.
I could feel Swift beside me.His head turned constantly, scanning, watching, and cataloging.
It didn’t make me nervous, though.It made me aware.I just… didn’t have the energy to match it.
I was tired.
We moved through the crowd, weaving between people.
Then, a guy bumped into us.Hard enough that I rocked back a step.
Swift reacted instantly.“Watch where you’re going,” he snapped.
The guy blinked, startled.“Sorry, man—”
Swift didn’t move or soften.Just stared him down long enough to make the guy uncomfortable.
I touched Swift’s arm.“It’s okay,” I said.“I’m fine.”
He didn’t look away right away.Then finally, he exhaled and stepped back.
