Total pages in book: 188
Estimated words: 179794 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 899(@200wpm)___ 719(@250wpm)___ 599(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 179794 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 899(@200wpm)___ 719(@250wpm)___ 599(@300wpm)
“I didn’t wake up when you got out of bed.”
“You were exhausted. Teaching takes a lot of energy,” she quipped without turning around to face him.
Moving in front of her, Reaper swept a swathe of her hair behind her ear at the despondent tilt of her lips. “What were you doing out here?”
“Talking to Silas.”
“Can he hear you?” The ridiculousness of his query should have raised alarm bells. However, his new normal with Ginny only awoke curiosity.
“Barely. We’re so far away it’s like talking through a muted phone line.”
“At least he knows you’re all right.” Silas would be able to reassure Viper and the brothers that he was safe, too. He had checked his cell phone several times last night. It was as dead as a doornail without the signal.
“That we both are,” she corrected. “Silas cares about you a great deal.”
Once upon a time, Reaper would have taken what Ginny said at face value, but the more time he spent with her, he had come to the conclusion that, while she’d discuss her feelings for him at the drop of a hat or answer any question, she wouldn’t volunteer information about herself or what was troubling her, using small talk to defer attention away from herself.
It was an unusual occurrence for him. The women he’d been involved with before wanted a sounding board. Hell, even the men he knew wanted someone they could talk personal shit with, either a friend or an intimate partner. As far as he could tell, Ginny didn’t. Unless it was T.A., but Reaper didn’t think she’d even confided in her sister. T.A. had been too upset at Ginny returning to Clindale without her knowledge. Was it Hammer? He brokered the deal with the FBI and was the one she wanted to accompany her. There was only way to find out.
“What’s your relationship with Hammer?” Reaper watched her reaction like a hawk, unaware his breathing had stopped.
Ginny switched her gaze from the ocean to his. “Hammer and I don’t have a relationship.”
His breathing returned to normal, whereas his jealousy remained. “Then why ask him to come with you? Why not someone else?”
“I didn’t exactly ask him. Hammer told me he was coming, and I only agreed when he swore to me that, if it anything happened, he would put his welfare first.”
“He agreed to that shit?”
“I didn’t leave him a choice,” she said firmly.
“You didn’t make me promise anything.” Reaper wasn’t sure if he should be angry at the revelation or not, but he knew one thing; his jealousy grew deeper. He should be happy Ginny hadn’t tried to continue to protect him, but did that imply she didn’t care about him as much as did Hammer?
“I made that a condition with Hammer, and if he was going to join me he had to agree; otherwise, I would have shut him out of the plan with the FBI altogether. I can’t use the same leverage with you.”
“You could have told the FBI”—Reaper dropped his voice low so only she could hear—“the truth about our marriage. They could have called in manpower to stop me.”
“Do you wish I had?” she challenged him, turning it around to question his feelings.
“I wouldn’t have let you set a foot on the plane without me.”
“You couldn’t have stopped me.” Ginny folded her arms over her chest as if she were cold.
“I could have delayed it long enough for Diamond to get there. She would have made mincemeat of the deal you arranged.”
“I’m surprised you didn’t bring her with you and that you didn’t drag me back to Treepoint.”
“It was a consideration,” he admitted.
“Why didn’t you?”
“Because you didn’t use your friendship with Sex Piston to involve her sister Diamond, so I figured you had an important reason to want to come back to Clindale.”
“Trudy and Sex Piston both have tried to convince me to ask Diamond for help.”
“Why haven’t you?”
“I knew I’d be exposing myself, which then opens the chance of Trudy, Diamond, and Sex Piston getting hurt. It wasn’t worth the risk.”
“If it wasn’t for me, you would’ve never admitted to being Evangeline, would you’ve?”
“It was time.”
“Because T.A.’s pregnant?”
“Yes. T.A. and I grew up pretending we didn’t know each other. I can’t pretend my niece or nephew isn’t related to me. I can’t erase the past, but I can attempt to move forward with all my cards on the table.”
“Are all your cards on the table?”
“Yes.”
“Sweetie, Silas should have told you to never play your cards.”
“Don’t talk down to me.” The no-nonsense Ginny had come out to play.
Reaper had to give her credit. Ginny had the ability to come across as easygoing, until her anger or frustration dropped her guard.
“I wasn’t talking down to you.”
“You could have fooled me. I don’t like to be called sweetie, especially when you think I’ve done something you don’t like.”