I bristled. “Do you think she has something to do with this?”
“No, honey. I don’t. But I know what it’s like to be a kid who keeps quiet, plays things close to the vest.”
I could see that about him. Knox was the “stand up and pitch a fit about a problem” kind of guy. On the outside Nash was Mr. Nice Guy, but there was a quiet depth there, and I wondered what secrets lurked beneath that surface.
“Okay,” I agreed. “But I’d like to be with you when you do talk to her. She’s finally starting to trust me. To open up to me. So I want to be there.”
“Absolutely.” He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, and I thought about what a good guy he was. Then I wished it was Knox’s fingers in my hair. And then I got mad all over again.
The restroom door opened, and Sloane walked out. More accurately, she stumbled. I caught her, and she smiled up at me and squished my cheeks between her hands. “You are sooooo pretty!”
“I’ll escort this one back to the table,” Nash volunteered.
“You’re really pretty too, Nash,” Sloane said.
“I know. It’s a curse, Sloaney Bologna.”
“Aww. You remember,” she crooned as he led her back to the bar.
I stepped into the ladies’ room and decided it was not a room I wanted to linger in. So I made quick work of taking care of business and then ducked back into the hall. There were no babysitters lurking, so I pulled out my phone and opened my email.
Glancing over my shoulder to make sure Lucian or Nash hadn’t materialized, I started a new message.
To: Tina
From: Naomi
Subject: What you’re looking for
Tina,
I don’t know what you’re looking for. But if it gets you out of my life, I’ll help you find it. Tell me what I’m looking for and how I can get it to you.
N
If I could find whatever it was Tina wanted first, I’d have the leverage I needed to get her out of my life. If it wasn’t something like nuclear codes, I could let her have it or I could at least use it as bait to lure her out of hiding.
I waited for the tiny pinprick of guilt. But it never came. I was still waiting when my phone rang in my hand.
Knox Morgan.
I didn’t know if it was the Fireball or all the pitying pep talks, but I felt more than ready to take charge. Squaring my shoulders, I answered the call. “What?”
“Naomi? Thank God.” He sounded relieved.
“What do you want, Knox?”
“Look, I don’t know what Lina told you, but this wasn’t what you think.”
“What I think,” I said, cutting him off, “is that your love life is none of my business.”
“Oh, come on. Don’t be like that.”
“I’ll be any damn way I want to be, and you have no say in it. You need to stop texting and calling. We’re over. You walked.”
“Naomi, just because we’re not together doesn’t mean I don’t want you safe.”
His voice, the rawness in it, went straight to my chest. I felt like I couldn’t breathe.
“That’s very chivalrous of you, but I don’t need you to keep me safe. There’s a whole other line of defense in place. You’re officially free. Enjoy it.”
“Daze, I don’t know how to make you understand.”
“That’s just it, Knox. I do understand. I understand that you cared, and it scared you. I understand that Waylay and I weren’t reward enough to get you to face that fear. I get it. I’m dealing. You made the call, now you have to deal with the consequences. But I’m not like Lina. I’m not going to insist on being friends. In fact, consider this my notice. Tomorrow night is my last shift at Honky Tonk. Just because we live in the same damn small town doesn’t mean we have to see each other all the damn time.”
“Naomi, this isn’t what I wanted.”
“Honestly, I don’t care what you want. For once, I’m thinking about what I want. Now stop calling. Stop texting. Call off your babysitters and let me live my life. Because you’re no longer a part of it.”
“Look. If this is about what I said about you and Nash, I apologize. He told me—”
“I’m going to stop you right there before you call me your leftovers again. I don’t care what you say or think about me and any man I might choose to see. I don’t need your opinions or your half-assed apologies. Who apologizes by saying ‘I apologize’？” I demanded, making sure my imitation of him was far from flattering.