Total pages in book: 38
Estimated words: 34715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 174(@200wpm)___ 139(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 174(@200wpm)___ 139(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
He stares at me for a long beat. Something flickers across his face. Frustration? Surprise? I can’t quite read it.
"Anniston," he says, voice low. "Last night was not just stress relief for me."
I blink, not sure I heard him right. "It wasn't?"
"No." He leans forward, elbows on the table. "I don’t do that. I don’t wake up with women in my arms. I don’t spend the whole next day thinking about how good they felt. But with you..." He shakes his head. "I'm still trying to figure out what it means. Right now I can’t afford to. Not with everything going on. But don’t sit there thinking I regret it or that I don’t want you. Because that isn’t true."
My heart does a stupid little flip. I look down at the note again, tracing the edge with my finger. "So what do we do now? About your dad, I mean."
"We dig deeper," he says. "This piece of paper connects your research to my family. The top players in Halo City know something. They’ve known for years. We’re going to find out what it is."
I nod, trying to focus on the mission instead of the warmth spreading through my chest at his words. "Wyatt is probably hiding somewhere. If we can find him before they do..."
"Exactly." Banks stands up and starts pacing slowly. "I’ll see if my brothers can pull anything new on Wyatt's location. In the meantime we stay here. Keep our heads down."
I watch him move around the cabin, checking everything again even though he did it when we first got back. He’s so controlled, so careful. But I saw the way he looked at me just now. Like maybe last night meant something to him too.
Am I just fooling myself into believing we could have a future together? It’s way too soon to be thinking happily ever afters, right? Right?
I stand up and move to the kitchen, needing something to do with my hands. "I'll make us some dinner. Nothing fancy, but we both need to eat."
He stops pacing and looks at me. For a second his expression softens. "Anniston."
"Yeah?"
"Don’t sell yourself short," he says quietly. "Not with me."
I feel my cheeks heat, but I smile anyway. "Okay. I won't."
We move around the small kitchen together, making a simple pasta dinner with the canned sauce and dried noodles from the pantry. The normalcy of it feels strange after the day we have had. Every so often our arms brush and I feel that spark again. I don’t push it. I let it sit there, warm and quiet.
Later, after we eat and clean up, we sit on the couch looking over the files on his laptop again. Banks keeps the note with his father's name on the table between us like a silent promise. We talk about next steps. About possible safe ways to search for Wyatt. About what the connection could mean for both our situations.
I still worry about Sadie. I still worry that I might never see my sister again. But sitting here beside Banks, knowing he’s fighting for his own family too, makes me feel a little less alone.
Whatever comes next, we’ll face it together. Even if I have to remind myself every five minutes not to fall any harder for this grumpy, complicated man who somehow makes me feel safer than I have in months.
THIRTEEN
BANKS
The cabin feels smaller tonight. Every creak of the floorboards and rustle of the trees outside seems louder than usual. I sit at the table finishing the last of the notes from Wyatt Rivers' apartment while Anniston moves quietly around the kitchen, cleaning up after dinner. She has been different since we got back. More reserved. Quieter. No flirty comments, no playful smiles, no teasing about how grumpy I look. Just careful politeness that puts me on edge.
I watch her rinse a plate and set it in the drying rack. Her shoulders are tense. She keeps her eyes down. I’m turned on by her even now, but I stay professional. I have to. After what happened last night I can’t let myself slip again. Not when everything is this raw.
"You okay?" I ask.
She glances over her shoulder and gives me a small smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes. "Yeah. Just tired. Long day."
I don’t push. Of course things are getting to her. She’s not built for this life. Running, hiding, watching her back every second. Most people would have broken by now. Anniston’s holding it together better than I expected, but I can see the cracks forming.
"We should get some sleep," I say, closing the laptop. "Big day tomorrow. I want to run more searches on Wyatt first thing."
She nods. "Okay. Um… I can sleep on the couch."
"Absolutely not." I stand up and stretch my arms over my head. "You take the bed. It's more comfortable. I'll be fine here."