“No. She’d drop them at my parents’ or wait until I was home—”
“See?” she pressed.
“I should’ve known.”
Hallie scowled at me. “Are you a psychic and didn’t tell me?”
I wanted to laugh but couldn’t get my mouth to obey. “Not a psychic.”
“Then it wasn’t your fault.”
Any hint of humor slid away as I stared down into Hallie’s face. “I could’ve lost them. One of those bullets could’ve gone through the ceiling or they could’ve come out of that room and been caught in the crossfire.”
Hallie gripped my arms tighter. “And I can’t imagine how terrifying that was. But you have to stop punishing yourself for something that isn’t yours to atone for.”
“You sound like my mom.”
Hallie’s brows rose at that.
“She said something similar tonight,” I explained.
Hallie’s hold on me released. “And that set you off.”
“Maybe…” I admitted.
Her finger skated across my wrap-covered knuckles. “And this is how you process.”
“It’s the only thing that seems to keep the demons at bay.” The self-hatred.
Hallie’s expression softened. “You hurt yourself because you think you deserve it.”
“I’m nothurtingmyself.”
Her fingers tugged the end of the wrap free and began unwinding. The fabric dropped to the floor. She moved to the other hand and did the same thing, then lifted it. There were tiny tears in the skin along my knuckles.
I didn’t usually hit hard enough to bleed, but tonight had been especially bad.
Hallie lifted my hand and pressed her lips to my knuckles.
I sucked in a sharp breath. “Hallie…”
Her eyes shifted to mine. So innocent and trusting.
“I can’t,” I rasped. “It doesn’t matter how much I want to.”
“But you do want to?” There was hope in that voice. So much of it.
And I found that I couldn’t extinguish it. I could’ve lied and told her I wasn’t attracted to her, but that would’ve hurt her, and I couldn’t stand to cause Hallie any more pain.
“Hallie, you’re the most stunning woman I’ve ever laid eyes on. Your kindness and empathy only make you more beautiful. But your bravery? It steals my breath.”
Her eyes turned molten silver. She stretched up onto her tiptoes, her mouth getting closer and closer to mine. Blood roared in my ears as my breath caught. Then she stopped.
I realized why. She was giving me the choice. She knew far too much about choices being ripped away. She’d never do that to me, even though I could’ve stopped her with one single step.
Hallie hovered there, just shy of my mouth, her scent wrapping around me. It was too much. She’d been pulling me in since the moment she stepped out of her car. Pulling me under. And I wanted to drown in her taste.
I closed the last of the distance and took her mouth. Not forcefully, but not all that gentle either. The need was too great.
