to mind, though, when they went there before or after the races. She never complained about the small bed, the low ceiling. When she’d been there, it might as well have been a palace, as far as he was concerned.
“Now, what are you thinking about?” she asked, plucking a mushroom off her pizza and popping it into her mouth.
“Memories,” he said, determined not to elaborate.
She glanced around, sweeping the Gulf with her eyes. “I bet you have a lot of good ones.”
“Yeah.” Had that come out too soft and mushy?
She brushed a strand of hair that had fallen across her face. “I wish I’d come to visit her. I just wasn’t…couldn’t come back.”
“Bad memories. I get it.”
“Not all bad.” She gave him a sympathetic smile. Or maybe a consoling one—he wasn’t sure. “Actually, I don’t remember anything about the accident itself.”
“That’s good. I do. Every second of it.” Sometimes he had nightmares. The crash of metal. Shattering glass. The flames. And Mia’s screams as they licked along her face and arm. She’d been frantically trying to open the door, but Cassidy’s car had pinned her door shut.
“Tell me.”
“No.”
“You don’t think I can handle hearing it?”
“I can’t handle telling it. Then I have to relive it. Be glad you don’t remember.”
He was sure she was ready to object or deny that. But her eyes swept across his, seeing something that made her mouth drift closed again. She propped her feet up on the chair next to her. “You went to jail.”
“Yep.”
“What did they charge you with?”
“Reckless driving that caused serious injuries, and unlawful racing. I was sentenced to sixteen months, but I got out after twelve for good behavior.”
Now she was definitely giving him a sympathetic smile. “And now that’s on your record forever.”
His smile was wooden. “I’m officially an ex-con. The ladies love it.” He hadn’t meant to even bring up women. Stupid.
She tilted her head. “It only adds to that bad-boy mystique.”
“Is that what I have? Had?”
“At first, anyway. Then I got to know you.” She winked. “And I found out it was mostly a façade.”
“Guess I’d better work on that, then. You know, making it real.”
Were they flirting? No, he was pretty sure they weren’t. But, just in case, he wanted to deflect this path. “Nancy said you’d graduated from the University of Minnesota, and that you’re a nurse at a hospital.”
“That’s not fair. You know all kinds of stuff about me, and I know nothing about your life.”
“You never asked.”
He didn’t mean it as a jab, but her eyes shadowed and her voice got quiet when she said, “I didn’t.”
“You were angry at me. I understand.”
“I wasn’t angry. The only person I blame is the jerk who caused the crash. What happened to him?”
“Cassidy was charged with everything I was, as well as failure to yield right of way, or something like that. But because he was a minor at the time of the crash, even with the extra charge he served a few months less than I did.” He wouldn’t call it an accident, not when it came to Cassidy’s part in it.
“Seems unfair. I think my father sued his family, but they kept all that from me. They settled out of court, and the money went for medical costs. I heard he lost his car. What happened to yours? You loved that Camaro.”
“It was totaled. Insurance wouldn’t cover it because of the racing. But I deserved everything I got.”
“Why do you believe that? You were as much a victim as I was.”
“I didn’t seduce your grandma, but I did seduce you.” He stood, tossing his pizza crusts into the empty box and taking it inside.
She stomped in behind him, dropping her plate noisily on the counter. “Why does everyone treat me as though I was a mindless, helpless girl lured into danger? As though I had no will of my own?”
“Because you were seventeen. And, hell, Mia, you’d never even kissed a guy before. You were completely susceptible.”
She slapped her hand over her eyes. “Did I tell you that?”
“One time when you were falling asleep, you kinda mumbled it.”
“Great.” She let her hand slide down her face. “But it wasn’t like you purposely set out to corrupt me. Right?”
“No. Just the opposite. I kept telling myself to stay away from you. I didn’t mean to invite you to the race, and as soon as the words were out I wished I could take them back. I knew it was way beyond your scene. Your experience.