That’s normal. But you’re not blind to the possibility that she’s not. You’re asking the question.”
“Threatening her.”
“You were scared.”
“And mad.” She grimaced. “I sent your car into a ditch.”
“Yeah, that pissed me off.” He smiled again. She wished he’d stop doing that. This time she felt like he’d sprinkled glitter in her chest. That was hardly compatible with her anger and suspicion.
“But you were doing what you felt you had to do,” he continued. “You only slowed us down, and you knew it. I’m pretty commanding. You were tired of fighting me. I get that.”
Her lips curved. “Fighting you? Rescuing you, maybe.”
“About that.” He turned serious. His eyes lightened to a golden green, and her heart panged.
“About what?”
“What you did last night.”
“Oh.” She looked down at the table, but only for a moment. His soft words, spoken intently, compelled her to meet his eyes again.
“I’ve never felt pain like that, Quinn. I thought I was going to die.”
She whispered his name, her hand convulsing around his.
“You were amazing. Whatever you did, you kept me grounded. I didn’t think until later that you probably hurt just as much.”
“No, only a little,” she lied. “It doesn’t matter. I’d sacrifice anything for you.” Afraid she’d ventured too far into off-limits territory, and afraid he’d push her away from it again, she sat back and glanced away.
The bell dinged again, and the Italian behind the counter called their number. She went up to take the bag, and a minute later they were heading back toward the inn.
“So how do you want to play the rest of this?” Nick asked.
Quinn forced herself to think unemotionally. “Let’s find out what she can tell us about Anson. Then we’ll get Sam set up with his laptop and he can try to match her story or find more that she doesn’t know or doesn’t want to tell us. I need to talk to her about our family some more, too.”
“We need to prepare for tomorrow, Quinn.”
For the leech. “I know. But we don’t know how.”
“Hell we don’t. We pull the Charger out of the ditch and get the hell out of there, hole up somewhere he won’t have allies.”
“Nick—”
“Even if your sister isn’t in cahoots with him, her so-called ‘misfits’ could be on his side. It’s not safe to stay there.”
“Cahoots?” She couldn’t stop a giggle, which diffused Nick’s intensity in turn.
“C’mon, give me a break. I’m trying to save your life here.”
She sobered. “You’re trying to save my lifestyle. He doesn’t kill. Having my powers taken away doesn’t change who I am, it only changes how I live.”
Like, if she were no longer a goddess, she wouldn’t need Nick’s protection anymore.
“Do you want him to leech you?” His tone was exasperated.
She didn’t even need to think about it. “No.”
“Then we get the hell outta here.”
“My safety isn’t important anymore.”
“The hell it’s not!”
“There are more important things.”
She pulled up next to the Charger, which looked forlorn in its forward cant. “You could have died. I’d rather lose my abilities than lose you.” Before the weight of her words could settle, she continued. “Marley may be working with him, or she could just be incredibly stupid. And she’s my sister.” Quinn held up a hand and closed her eyes for a second, the truth of the relationship coming home to her. “I don’t have to like her or condone anything she’s done. But I would never forgive myself if we left her and something happened.”
Nick took a deep breath. Quinn knew he understood. Family was what drove him, wasn’t it? And he’d dedicated his life to keeping others safe. He had to get that this was what she was trying to do now.
“All right. I’ll consider it. After we hear the rest of what she has to say, we’ll discuss our next move.”
“Thank you.” She nodded toward his car. “If I get that out of there, will you be able to drive it up?”
“Yeah, sure. Leg’s fine now.”
In three seconds, the car had risen up a few feet, spun on its rear wheels, and settled onto the gravel at the end of the drive. “I’ll see you there.”
Nick growled at her, but he switched cars and followed her up the drive to the house. Sam came out as they climbed the steps, and he stopped them on the porch.
“I’ve talked to Marley a little. All her guests have left except the one couple we met earlier. They’re going on an overnight trip and will be gone within the hour.”
“So