My eyes find themselves in my reflection again, a fervent need swirling within them.
“Fuck it,” I say as I grab my purse off the edge of the sink and beeline to the kitchen counter for my keys. I’m only two steps from the door when a knock comes from the other side.
I freeze, my heart pounding as I reach for the knob. Three bangs come next, and they settle between my ribs. An elated excitement blossoms in me, curving my lips into a smitten smile. I grab the handle and swing the door open, my eyes awaiting the earthy hazel ones that have swarmed my mind since before I ever knew the man behind them.
Only, the eyes that find mine aren’t hazel at all. They aren’t kind or soft or filled with the desire I hope to find.
These are a bright emerald green. And they’re filled with envy.
With jealousy.
With greed.
They’re the eyes of a past I’ve tried to outrun, but they’ve found me here. Because they’d find me anywhere. To the ends of the earth if they had to—just like they once promised me.
Don’t forget what you owe me, Alana. You’ll never get away from it, no matterwhathappens to Parker.
“Hey, babydoll. Miss me?”
The saliva in my mouth sours, and I nearly gag as I swallow it down.
“Aww, that much, huh?” Derek pushes past me and into my apartment, the aroma of stale cigarettes and ash trailing behind him.
Shock and fear halt me in place. I shut the door abrasively. "What are you doing here, Derek?”
“It’s nice to see you, too, Lana Lane.” His words morph his lips into a sly, conniving grin.
“Don’t call me that. That’s—”
“Parker’s. I know. The great and powerful Parker,” he mocks, rounding the corner of the kitchen and landing on the other side of the peninsula. He picks up a candle and smells it, then scrunches his nose in disgust.
“Fuck you,” I seethe.
“I wish you would.” His eyes glitter mischievously as he passes the candle between his hands. He sets it down, and his emerald eyes give way to a seriousness that unsettles my stomach. “You know, you left town pretty quickly after what happened with your brother. Didn’t make so much as a sound when you hightailed it out of Banksville. Took me by surprise, considering we had a deal we never finished.”
My body flinches at the mention of my brother and my Florida hometown; a tiny, rundown historic swampland filled with moss-covered trees and tin roofs on the south end. It’s exactly where forgotten people like Derek and I grew up.
There were two types of people in Banksville, Florida—the blue-collar families who were functioning, productive members of society, working hard and living right. And then there was everyone else.
Derek and his group of misfits were the lowest of the‘else’ group, leading the town’s lost into small-time crimes, drugs, and everything in between. If we hadn’t moved to their exact neighborhood in the middle of our family downfall, Parkernever would have crossed paths with a guy like him. He never would have known the guys with the trash reputations. And he wouldn’t be in prison right now for a crime he didn’t commit.
I scowl. “What do you want, Derek? Our deal is done.”
“Our deal isnotdone, little princess. And now I’m here to help you finish it.”
“Yeah, sure. Because you’re such a giver. So full of handouts to everyone in need,” I scoff, crossing my arms before me.
“Ididhelp you,” he exclaims, his lip twitching with his snarl.
“Oh, please. You screwed me over at best—”
“Hey!” he screams. “Don’t be an ungrateful bitch.”
“Are you kidding me right now? It wasyourfault!”
“How the hell was it my fault you lost your shit?!”
I grind my teeth, refusing to speak.
