He rubbed two fingers over his jaw. “You care about her more than you care about anyone else.”
“Yes. I don’t want her to end up like our uncle Kurt.”
“Tell me about him.”
If I want him to open up to me, it’s only fair I open up to him. “He was a con man to the max, but I already told you that. He was charming and yet awful. He would teach us terrible things but make us laugh all the while. At the end of the day, nothing mattered more than money to him. He lived and breathed it, every word and action meant to get more of it. And now, looking back, I can see Jessie Kay and I were extremely blessed that he left. One day he would have run out of cash, and I don’t think he would have hesitated to use us in a worse way to get it.”
“Do you hate him?”
“No. You know the saying? Hating someone is like swallowing a mouthful of poison and expecting them to die. It’s a wasted emotion. But that doesn’t mean I’d want anything to do with him if he were still alive. He was a criminal... He was poison.”
“I’m glad he’s gone.” Jase went quiet, stiff. His motions were clipped as he gathered the boxes of desserts. “We should go.”
“But why?” she asked, baffled. Why the abrupt change in him?
He said nothing more as he left the shop. His stride was longer than hers, and she had to run to keep up.
“Jase?”
Again, nothing. He held open her car door, and she slipped inside. When the slam registered, sealing her inside, she had the sinking feeling the action was as symbolic as what he’d done with the chairs. That he hadn’t just shut the car door; he’d shut the door on their relationship.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
JASE HAD REACHED a breaking point. When Brook Lynn had voiced her uncle’s crimes, he’d known beyond any doubt that she would never be able to accept what he had done. He was by far the worse criminal.
Panic had clawed at him. He’d fought to keep people out of his heart most of his life, and yet she had been inching her way inside. How would he react to her loss?
A cold sweat beaded over the back of his neck. He scrubbed a hand down his face, barely able to breathe. She’d made it more than clear she would enter into a relationship with him, become his exclusively. If he agreed, he absolutely could not keep his past hidden. He’d already known that, but now the truth was like a nail in his chest. It was a guarantee he’d lose her sooner rather than later.
For the next week, they barely spoke to each other. He watched her, and he wanted her...ached for her. She seemed unaffected, going about her chores with barely a glance in his direction.
His mood grew darker and darker, until something finally snapped inside him. She’d turned down another night with him, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t work to change her mind. The benefits without the label or the necessary heart-to-heart.
By the time she arrived for work the next morning, he’d already rearranged the living room, creating space for the next item on her fun list.
“What’s going on?” she asked as she stepped inside the house.
Getting my hands on you any way I can. “You’re about to learn how to defend yourself against a zombie attack.”
“Really?” Excited, she jumped up and down. “Kenna is going to be so jealous.”
As her breasts jiggled with her movement, his hands fisted at his sides.
“Come here.” He motioned her over.
Sweet, luscious Brook Lynn waltzed over without a care, not realizing he was a powder keg set to explode. “This is so thrilling,” she said.
You have no idea, angel. But you will. Soon.
“You’re a beginner, but I’m still going to start you off with an expert move.” Fastest way to get you under me. “You’re going to pretend I’m a zombie,” he said. When she nodded, he added, “I’ve just snuck up on you, intending to eat you.” One tasty bite at a time. “What do you do?”
She thought for a moment, frowned. “How did you sneak up on me? You’re in front of me.”
“I’m crafty. Now put your hand on my neck.”
Her features wrinkled up. “Touch you? But your flesh is so rotted I can see bone, and you smell like a maggot farm.”
May not be as cut-and-dried as I’d hoped. The thought of rotting flesh didn’t actually set a romantic mood.
“Besides, why aren’t I running away?” she demanded. “Every zombie survival guide I’ve ever read says the first thing to do is run and hide.”
Should have gone with Cinderella for a day. “I think I remember you telling me you plan to cut off heads, not run. And I snuck up on you, remember? I’ve grabbed hold of your shirt. You can’t run away.”
“Are there other zombies around us?” She actually twisted left and right to scan the room.
“No. It’s just us.” No zombies...and no humans. Last night, Jase had told West and Beck to beat it bright and early and not come back till after dinner.
“Well, what happened to the others? Zombies always run in packs. And do I have a weapon? Jase!” she said, as if the key to world peace had just struck her. “I have to have a sword. If the zombie apocalypse has just happened, I would never leave my base camp without one.”
If a zombie apocalypse had happened, Jase would have already tied her to his bed. And for a moment, he kinda wished it would happen. He would be able to protect her, care for her, see to her every need—and she would want to be with him, no matter his past, because she would recognize that he and he alone stood between her and certain disaster.