Page 60 of Wild Fires

“I have actually.”

“And . . .”

“And what? She knows where I stand on this and doesn't even seem bothered by it.”

I suspected that was a lie, but she did seem to try to put up a good front. She hadn't cried or begged me to come back to her. Then again, if she had, I knew I wasn't strong enough to tell her no.

How had she come to have such a strong hold over me in such a short time?

“Interesting.”

“What's that supposed to mean?”

“Did she reject you?”

“What? No!”

“But you did reject her.”

“It's not like that,” I tried to reason, but it was just like that.

I hadn't meant to reject her. I was just trying to protect myself. Was she in pain? Was I hurting her? I thought I might throw up at the thought.

“If you puke, I'm going to puke, and then you're going to clean it all up. Am I clear?”

I glared at her. “I'm not going to puke.”

She gave me a knowing look.

“Do you think I'm hurting her?”

“The fact that you even asked tells me you already know the answer to that.”

I cringed. “How bad do you think it is for her?”

“How bad is it for you?”

I just stared at her. I wasn't about to admit just how much pain I was in. It would pass. I had to believe it would pass. Right now, it was just a mild ache, a feeling of emptiness, but our bond was still new. Our ravens had only met once. It couldn't be that serious yet.

“Just give me a cheeseburger and fries to go,” I barked.

Gia was wasting my time. I was going to have to eat at the office now.

“Wow. I've never seen you so out of sorts and angry. The girl really has you tied up in knots.”

“I'm not talking about it, and I'm not out of sorts,” I snapped.

Gia burst out laughing. “I love her already. Any woman who can manage to get my perfectly composed brother so tangled up and in his head is absolutely okay in my books.”

“You suck. Go get my cheeseburger. I have to go.”

“Meeting up with Gracie?”

“It's business.”

“Business with Gracie?”

“I don't have a choice.”