“We’re done talking,” I interrupted him. “I don’t want to talk anymore. Go find the bad guy, Mace, so this can be over.”
“You need to understand where I’m coming from,” he told me.
“I don’t care where you’re coming from,” I shot back.
Morph complete, Mace was straight out angry. “Stel a, I’m warnin’ you, you got one shot at this, you throw it back in my face, you won’t get another one.”
Hard-hearted or not, that scared the snot out of me.
Regardless of the fear, self-preservation took firm hold and answered for me. “I’l take that chance.” His face stayed angry but I could swear I saw pain flash in his eyes, sharp and fierce. The sight of it made bile climb up my throat but I had no chance to take back my words.
He let me go.
Then he exited the bed.
The loss of his body felt like a cold slap.
I sat up and pul ed the sheets around me as he walked to his jeans. His body was taut, his movements jerky. It didn’t take a body language expert to know he was pissed.
And, what was even scarier, maybe even hurt.
Shitsofuckit!
Now, what had I done?
I felt my heart start racing and swal owed the bile in my throat.
I opened my mouth to cal to him when the buzzer went.
“Jesus,” he muttered, yanked on his jeans and walked to the alarm panel.
“Mace,” I cal ed but it came out more quiet than a whisper and he didn’t hear me.
Mace hit the button on the alarm panel, Al y’s face fil ed the video screen and Mace said, “Yeah?”
“Open up!” Al y demanded. “Rock Chicks!”
He took his finger from the button, muttered, “Jesus,” again and then hit another button, buzzing them up.
He unlocked the doors, turned to me and said, “I’l take the dog out.”
Then he went to his bag, pul ed out a navy blue henley, yanked it on and was sitting on the platform, pul ing on his boots when the Rock Chicks stormed the door. Al y, Indy, Jet, Roxie, Ava, Daisy, Shirleen, Annette and even Jules was there.
“We hit the news!” Al y shouted, holding up a copy of the paper. “This time al of us.” Then she snapped her mouth shut and her eyes swung from me, to Mace, back to me.
I sat, stil frozen, stil naked, stil in bed, staring at my friends as they al stood, silent, realizing from the heavy air that they’d interrupted something.
“Um, is this a bad time?” Jules final y asked.
In answer, Mace got up, stalked to the leash hanging by the side of the door and whistled for the strangely attuned to her human’s emotional turmoil thus silent Juno.
As he did al of this, the Rock Chicks and my eyes fol owed him.
Mace did one more (very weird) thing before he left.
He yanked the paper out of Al y’s hand, ignoring her surprised, “Hey!” and he shoved it under his armpit.
Then he was gone.