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“I didn't say anything.”
“You didn’t have to. Your eyebrow did.” She huffed, but he saw a flash of relief in her eyes. She may act tough and not need anyone, but he could see behind that to a lonely soul who had no one standing up for her. Or at least standing beside her.
For the first time since he’d met her, some of the tension seemed to leave her shoulders. Vin didn’t know why that pleased him as much as it did, but he was quickly learning there were a lot of things about this woman that caused reactions he couldn’t explain.
They walked for a while, Misty leading the way through the trees until Vin started wondering exactly where in the hell she lived. There wasn’t a road, driveway or even much of a path anymore. The farther they went, the thicker the woods became.
He was getting ready to question where in the hell they were going when he noticed a shack sitting in front of him that looked like it had been forgotten by the rest of the world about fifty years ago. One side leaned enough that Vin honestly wondered what was keeping the damn thing standing. Several boards covering the outside walls were warped or missing completely, and what little paint remained had long ago faded into some sad shade of gray. The small porch consisted of a few uneven boards that looked dangerous enough to break an ankle, and part of the roof was covered with an old tarp held down by what appeared to be rocks.
Vin slowly looked at Misty. “This is where you live?”
“Yep.”
He looked back at the shack. Vin walked closer, his disbelief growing with every step. One of the two windows had a crack running through the glass, and something had been stuffed around the edges to keep the wind out. There was no light outside, no vehicle, nothing that made the place look remotely safe for anyone to live in. Then he spotted the outhouse sitting off to the side, leaning almost as badly as the shack.
“You have got to be fucking kidding me.”
“Wish I was.” She frowned also looking at the shack.
“It has structural damage.”
“Among other things,” She snorted with a shrug looking a little embarrassed.
Vin frowned remembering Griffin standing in the bar bragging about Jack giving her a place to live as if the man deserved some kind of fucking award for his generosity. Then Bruce had dropped the truth on them. She was paying rent for this shithole, and his Jaguar went from restless to pissed in a heartbeat.
Vin stepped onto the porch and heard one of the boards groan beneath his weight, making him immediately step back off.
“Probably shouldn’t use that one,” Misty said as if it was perfectly normal to warn someone which boards were safe to step on.
“No shit.”
“I usually step over it.”
Vin stared at her. “You have a system for getting into your own house without falling through the porch?”
The small shrug she gave him only pissed him off more. His gaze traveled over the shack again, but this time he wasn’t seeing any humor in the situation. She was out here alone, surrounded by woods, with Griffin and God knew how many other Crows knowing exactly where to find her. The place barely looked capable of keeping out the weather, much less anyone who wanted inside.
That was when Vin noticed a bunch of stuff scattered across one end of the broken-down porch. “What’s all that?”
When she didn’t answer, he glanced her way and noticed the flush creeping into her cheeks.
“Nothing.” Misty refused to meet his gaze as she took off his jacket and held it out to him. “Listen, thanks for everything.”
Vin took his jacket but didn’t miss the proud tilt of her chin or the fact that she was obviously trying to get rid of him. He came damn close to telling her there was no way in hell she was staying here, but he already knew how that would probably go over. He’d known her for less than a day, and something told him Misty wouldn’t take kindly to him telling her what she could or couldn’t do, so he kept that thought to himself for now.
“If you head down that way,” she pointed past him, “then turn left when you hit the road, it’ll take you back toward the bar. It’s shorter.”
Nodding as if he had every intention of doing exactly that, Vin watched her disappear inside what he considered a deathtrap waiting to happen. There wasn’t a chance in hell he was going anywhere until he knew Griffin and the others weren’t coming back once they thought she was alone. His attention went back to the stuff scattered across the porch, and this time he took a closer look. It only took a second for Bruce’s drunken explanation at the bar to come rushing back.
Shiny shit.
Yeah, Vin knew exactly what all that stuff was now, and he didn’t like it one fucking bit.
CHAPTER 7
As soon as Misty closed the door behind her, tears threatened to break free, but she fought them back. She refused to cry because she knew damn well what would happen if she did. The weight of her shitty life would come crashing down all at once, sending her into a spiral she had absolutely no desire to go down. Once those floodgates opened, she wasn't sure she'd be able to close them again, and crying wasn't going to change a damn thing anyway.
She hated anyone seeing how she lived, but for the most part, she didn't give a shit what people thought. She was surviving, and that was all that mattered. At least, that was what she'd always told herself. Tonight had been different. Standing there while Vin took in the sad excuse for a home that she was paying to live in had made her feel something she wasn't used to feeling.
