Page 78 of Never His Girl
“I told you. It was just a general warning.”
Heat creeps up my neck to my face and I’m feeling frustrated—with him, with this conversation. Since he’s beating around the bush, I’ll be direct.
“Did you mean Vin Golden? Is that who I need to be looking out for?”
I expect a reaction, but not the look of panic I suddenly see fill Hunter’s expression.
“Whatever you’re doing, whatever you’re digging into, leave it thefuckalone, Blue.” The words leave his mouth with a sharp edge, so I not onlyhearthem, I feel them.
“I need to know what’s going on, Hunter.”
“You don’t want any connection to that man,” he whispers harshly, ignoring what I said last.
His response has blood rushing through my veins at lightspeed. “Ok, but why?”
“For your safety, for Scar’s… I’m begging you to let this go, Blue. Please. There’s only so much I can do to protect you from in here.”
He’s tearing up and my eyes are blurred when they flood like his. His gaze darts around the room and I’m beginning to sense his heightened paranoia is completely warranted.
When he meets my stare again, he’s shaking. “Please, Blue.”
I want to hug him, want to stay together and weather whatever he seems to think is coming together, but I can’t. Those damn chains on his hands and ankles tell me so.
“Okay,” I answer nodding. “Okay.”
He settles down, but only a little.
“I know I sound crazy as shit, but don’t trust the phones,” he warns. “If you have anything to say that you want kept private, do it in person. Trust me.”
I’m reminded of how he pressed for Ricky to have me come see him, refusing to just call. This particular warning also has me thinking of a certain picture that ended up in the wrong hands. The hands of a man I didn’t even know existed just a week ago.
I nod, feeling the gravity of Hunter’s last statement. “I promise.”
He settles against his seat again and I watch as he struggles to regain his composure, as if he doesn’t want anyone to notice he’s gotten worked up talking to me.
“Don’t come here again,” he says next, causing tension to spread in my brow. “It’s too dangerous. They’ll wonder what we talk about and I don’t want you on their radar any more than you already are.”
Another tear slips down my cheek, but for fear of calling attention to myself, I don’t wipe it. Instead, I only nod.
“Okay, I won’t.”
This is killing me, but I keep it all inside when I stand.
“I love you,” I say.
He peers up, holding so much back. “I love you more. Let Scar know, too.”
I nod. “Promise.”
It’s physically painful walking away from him this time, knowing he’s just forbidden me from returning, but I get the feeling that me doing so makes life here harder.
This visit hasn’t been in vain, though. It’s helped me better visualize my enemy, shined light on the hold he seems to have on my brother, and this villain certainly isn’t invisible. He has a name.
And that name is Vin Golden.
Chapter 27
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