Page 29 of Nothing to Deny
“Miss Dere, I presume?” he asked, showing his palm. “I’m Donoghue.”
She shook his hand. “Pleasure.”
“Oh, that’s all mine.” He reached behind himself as the car got moving. “I brought you a gift.”
Interesting. “A gift?” she asked, excited by the prospect. Apparently, performing a good deed earned one in return. If she didn’t give Donaghue the chance to impress her, he wouldn’t get a fair shake. And if nothing else, fair was the most common of courtesies. “Why thank you, I…”
When he turned back, the object in his hand shut her up in an instant. It was a gut punch. Not his fault, just one of those things. And it was stupid, childish. Yet there was a symmetry to that. The trauma came from her past, way deep down in herpast, it was only logical her emotion should react in the same immature way.
“Do you like it?”
Did she like it? A single white rose. He could’ve brought a machete and it wouldn’t have cut her deeper. No one who knew her would bring a rose, let alone a white one. But there it was, in his fingertips between them.
“I…”
What could she say that wouldn’t offend or upset him? The alternative was…? Feigning delight was beyond her. Not that she’d ever get giddy over a flower.
Stop it, don’t be rude. He hadn’t done it out of malice. It was a nice gesture. Supposed to be a nice gesture.
“Are you okay?” he asked, probably sensing her hesitation.
Probably? It had been half a minute since he’d produced the thing and she was still just staring at it.
“Yes, I… I’m just allergic… that’s all.”
Okay, good deflection. Now he wouldn’t expect her to take possession of it. God, she couldn’t even think the noun.
“Oh,” he said, his smile dropping.
Just at that, the car came to a stop and the door opened. Kessler didn’t open it, someone else did.
Baer.
Climbing in, he sat in the opposite seat, reaching over to do some kind of handshake thing with Donoghue. She smiled. The twins would love to have a secret handshake with their big brother.
Donoghue said nothing, neither did she.
For a block, Baer glanced back and forth between them. “What’s going on?”
A polite smile was her only response. It wasn’t like she could tell him why the rose unsettled her with Donoghue sitting right there.
“Uh…” Donoghue shifted in his seat, clearing his throat. “Sorry, I… have you met? Freya, this is Baer, Baer—”
“Yeah, we’ve fucking met. What’s going on?”
Anger? Why? His expression gave it away. On getting in, he’d been loose, now he was scowling at Donoghue.
“Calm,” she whispered.
His gaze snapped to her. “If he made a fucking move on you—”
“Calm,” she said, leaning forward to take his hand on his thigh. “Would you calm down?”
“You can’t have been alone for more than five minutes. It was two blocks. I should’ve just walked over and—”
“Baer—”
“She’s allergic to the flower,” Donoghue said, raising a hand to let it flop.
