Her hair falls over her shoulders as she shakes her head. “Not true. You and Duke may have been the only ones to do something professionally. But there are people all over town who benefited from just having a safe, encouraging environment to come to when things got too hard at home, or when they didn’t have anywhere else to go.” Her fingers slid into her pockets. “You can’t put a value on a place that makes kids feel safe. Not everything has to come with a monetary value or should be measured by how much status you can gain from it.”
I glance at the outside of the building and the crooked C in rec on the front of the building. I guess she’s right, but I feel like that last bit was directed at me.
This stroll down memory lane isn’t what I call a good time. An old familiar panic snakes up my spine and wraps around my neck, making it impossible to get air to my lungs. I don’t need to be reminded where I came from or be reprimanded for crawling out of that cesspool one agonizing hit at a time. She has no idea what I’ve put my body through to make a better life for me and my family.
I don’t know why I’m so mad. After all, I was just agreeing with her about the center. I need to get the hell out of here or I’m going to say something I regret. “Listen, I forgot that I told my mom I would help her with something, so …” I hitch my thumb over my shoulder in the direction of my car. “I’m gonna get out of here.”
“Wait, Cash. What about dinner?”
“Wish I could, but my mom will have my hide if I don’t take care of this for her. Rain check?” I turn and leave, trying like hell not to run to my car. I don’t need this shit. She’s getting her money. Can’t she just leave well enough alone?
I’ve lived this fucking life and have no desire to revisit the past.
Thirty
Tiger
Heaven is a steaming hot tub and a glass of wine.
There’s nothing better than slipping into the warm water with a bit of a nip in the air. I stretch my arms along the side of the pool and rest my head on the lip. But as relaxing as a good soak in the spa is, I can’t quiet my mind.
I have no idea what happened with Cash today, but somehow, I think he feels that I was deliberately poking at a wounded part of his life. And as much as I like giving him a hard time, I’d never purposely be unkind.
It’s also hard to believe that Cash King, the man who has everything, could have such a soft and tender underbelly. But I should know better than anyone that having every material thing in the world doesn’t make everything right. In fact, those things can become a prison unto themselves.
Ugh, too much thinking.
I close my eyes, breathe deeply several times, and let luxuriously hot water carry my cares away.
“Well, welcome home to me.”
My eyes blink open to see a long, tall drink of handsome man staring down at me. “What are you doing here?”
“I live here, Kitty Cat, or have you forgotten?” His stance is easy and loose, not like earlier when he was a ball of tension at the rec center.
I slip a little deeper into the water. “No, I haven’t forgotten. I’m just not used to having you around. How’s your mom?”
He rests his hands and butt against the back of a patio chair, and stares out over the yard. “I’m sure she’s fine, but I didn’t see her.”
“You didn’t? But I thought you said …”
He tilts his head back slightly and rubs his neck, avoiding eye contact. After several moments, he seems to come to some decision. His expensive tennis shoe scrapes across the cement, and he finally lowers his gaze to mine. “I … um … lied. I drove to Fort Worth and picked up a few things from my condo.”
The leather duffel hanging from his shoulder finally catches my attention. “Oh.” I’m not exactly sure what to say. I was pretty sure he lied when he said he had to help his mom with something, but I guess I thought he’d go and see her anyway.
“Yeah, sorry.”
I scrub my face with both hands. “Okay.” The cocktail of emotions whirling through my chest are hard