“I knew he was ghosting her. I wanted her to have a safe way out when he showed his true colors.”
“How’d you know he would?”
“It’s his dedication and skill to pretend to be someone else. Lawrence was too sure of himself. That he screwed up wasn’t a shocker. What surprising is that it took Kimmy so long to realize it. I hope she gets away from him without any trouble.”
“You think she will?”
“She’s been paying his bills. He’ll want to know where she’s getting enough money to leave. He’s shady enough, and I wouldn’t put it past him to talk her into staying with him and his new girlfriend just for her money.”
“I’ll have Nickel give her an escort out of town.”
She nodded. “I’ll text her so she’ll expect him.”
Gavin placed his hand over hers on the phone. “Don’t tell her. Let me have the address she’s at, and Nickel can keep an eye out. If she runs into any trouble, he’ll be on hand.”
“Why not let me tell her? It’ll ease her mind.”
“I’m not worried about easing Kimmy’s mind. I’m worried about keeping Nickel safe.”
“I should have thought of Nickel’s safety. Lawrence could get violent with Kimmy leaving—”
“He could also take Nickel to trap you into doing what he wants. If I can see you’re foolhardy as fuck after a few days, Lawrence would be smart enough to use that to his advantage.”
“Lawrence isn’t my stalker.”
“I don’t think so, either, but it wouldn’t be the first time someone fooled me.”
Ginny nodded. “Me neither.”
Lifting her gaze from their hands, she looked at him closely. “Are you sick to your stomach?”
“No.”
“I was thinking—”
“Here it comes.” Gavin scowled at her, getting to his feet. “Don’t make too much out the kiss—”
She put up her uninjured hand to stop him. “I wasn’t going to make big deal about you kissing me. I was just checking on you before asking you for a favor. And … before you tell me the kiss didn’t mean anything to you, I don’t have to be told that—you just did.”
Gavin looked taken aback. “What were you going to ask me?”
“Never mind.” Ginny turned her blanket down. “I can find another way.” Laying down on the bed, she placed her arm over her eyes. All she was going to ask Gavin was to get the ice pack out of the freezer for her. Making the bed had strained the muscles in her back that were already sore.
“Would you mind turning the light off for me and shutting the door after you go? I’m ready to go to sleep. I’ve had a rough day.”
The light went out, and then the click of the door had her curling onto her side. Lying on her aching back didn’t hurt as bad as the pain in her heart.
Ginny could count on two hands the worst days of her life. Today had edged out number seven. She had been mauled by a dog, been hurt, her mirror had broken, and Gavin had turned into a darn snapping turtle to make sure she knew the kiss hadn’t meant anything to him. Sniffing back her self-pitying tears, she continued going down memory lane. The absolutely worst part of the day with the current holder of number seven being edged out, was now she had seven years of bad luck to look forward to.
Chapter Forty
Bright flashes of lightning illuminated the dark interior of the living room. Counting the flashes between the crack of thunder, Ginny sat on the stairway, listening to Gavin get out of bed and resume his pacing. Each time he got up, she could hear the swinging bed hit the side of the wall, jarring the windows.
Hearing a creak of a step behind her at the same time as thunder cracked overhead, she turned to see Silas coming down the steps to sit next to her. Putting her fingers to her lips, she nodded to her side, silently telling him that Gavin was still awake.
“Bad night?” he asked in a soft voice.
“The worst,” she murmured, sitting with her hands on bended knees. “I think it’s because he kissed me. I make him sick.” Raising her hands, Ginny buried her face in them.
“No, you don’t.”
“I do. He told me.”
Silas placed a comforting arm over her shoulders, pulling her closer to his side. “He just thinks you do.”
Ginny raised her face. “I’m pretty sure Gavin knows when he wants to throw up.”
“Describe to me how you feel physically when Reaper is close to you.”
Seeing he was serious, she put her embarrassment aside and started thinking of the best way to describe how Gavin made her feel. Her throat went tight trying to analyze the sensations she experienced and how she felt.
“I feel as if my heart is going to come out of my chest. I get … warm.” Fire was a better word, but she couldn’t tell her brother that without further embarrassing herself. “I feel as if every nerve ending in my body knows he’s there, and I just want to touch him, and when I do, an electric charge goes through me. I get butterflies in my stomach.” Ginny could see Silas smiling when the lightning flashed across the room below. “You think that’s what Gavin is feeling?” she asked.
“I do,” he whispered so low that Ginny had to tilt her head to the side so she could hear him. “I think he’s misinterpreting the signals that his body is giving him.”
“That’s not possible.” Ginny shook her head at him. “Gavin still loves Taylor, his ex-fiancé. He would know what being in love feels like.”
“Not if he didn’t really love her, and he definitely wouldn’t if he was lying to himself about his feelings for you.”
“You really think so?”
“I do.”
Both of them turned their heads, since they couldn’t see into Gavin’s room from where they were sitting, and listened to him get back in bed. Silently, they waited for the swinging bed to stop jarring the windows. Several minutes passed before they resumed whispering.
“If that’s true, and you have no idea how much I wish it were … do you think he’ll figure it out before he leaves in two days?”
“Reaper could have left after he tested negative. He didn’t.”
“Not because of me. He thinks you’re planning on killing me for my portion of the mountain.”
“He’s not going to be happy you told me.”
Ginny rolled her eyes at him, even though the full effect was lost in the dark. “We both know you would never do anything to hurt me.”
Silas solemnly stared at her. “Sometimes it’s unavoidable hurting the ones we love. I hurt you badly when I let the State take you away.”
“You did what you had to do.” Ginny leaned closer to his comforting warmth. There were so many past hurts that she viewed differently now that she was older. “When I left, I was only concerned with my pain. You were hurting as badly, yet I didn’t care. I wanted you to. I hate myself that I was being so selfish. You’ve lived your whole life keeping our family safe ….” Ginny had to clear the lump in her throat at how much she loved her brother. “Our family is almost grown, except for Fynn. You need to start searching for your own happiness. You deserve to find a woman who will give you the same love and dedication you’ve given to us.”