She's Mine - Jenika Snow Page 0,60

her.

“What can I do for ya?”

Keira stood and set the magazine on the table beside her. She had to assume this was Max, the man Reese was fond of.

“Uh.” She looked around in hopes Reese would magically appear from the back room so this would be so much easier. “I’m actually looking for someone. Thought he might be here.”

He didn’t say anything, just lifted an incredibly bushy eyebrow and waited for her to continue.

“Is Reese Trenton working today?”

A flash of surprise washed over the man’s face, and she wondered if it was because someone in general was looking for him. That thought made her feel incredibly sad.

“Reese?” He slowly said his name, and Keira nodded.

“He, uh… he told me he worked here, but not his schedule or anything.” Keira had tried calling, of course, but he’d been avoiding her ever since their last conversation, and her call had gone right to voicemail.

“Yeah, he works here, just not today.” He didn’t move from right in front of her, just continued to watch her with dark, knowing eyes.

“Oh.” She licked her suddenly dry lips and nodded. “Okay, thanks.” She turned to leave, but he called out to her. She stopped and faced him.

“You’re that ‘someone special,’ right?”

She felt her brows pull down low. “Excuse me?”

“The girl Reese talked to me about. The one he said was somethin’ special.”

Her heart hiccupped in her chest. She nodded slowly.

“I could tell for the last couple weeks somethin’ has been bothering him, but he’s a pretty private person. I assumed it was female trouble.” Max turned and walked over to the front desk. He stood behind it for a moment, clearly contemplating what to say next. “I shouldn’t be saying this to you, because it ain’t my business, but I have a piece of advice for you, since he clearly won’t see reason.”

She didn’t know what that “reason” was. Maybe they’d talked about her, about the situation? Maybe he just knew.

“Never take something that makes your heart race or your gut clench for granted. There are not too many things in life worth fighting for, but when someone opens up your world, makes your head spin, and has your heart aching for more, it’s only then that you walk to the ends of the world to make it work.” His words hung in the air between them, and emotion struck Keira fast and hard.

She nodded slowly, because she wasn’t sure what to say after that.

He gave her a tight nod. “But as far as telling you where he’s at, I can’t help you with that, ‘cause I don’t know where he is.”

“Thanks.” Keira gave him a small smile and left the shop, not sure where to even look next. But the longer she stood there, the more she realized where he might be. The one place he said he went to get away and think.

She got back in the SUV and started heading for that lone structure where he’d first touched her, where her heart had really raced for the very first time.

Once on the private property, she pulled into the small strip of dirt off the side of the road and cut the engine. Keira chewed her bottom lip, nervous to be here. She didn't have the cloak of darkness around her now. If she got caught, she could get in serious trouble, no matter what connections her parents had.

She climbed out of the vehicle and started making her way toward the barn. She kept to the trees but stayed parallel to the dirt road. And then she saw the structure and her heart raced. Remembrance from their last time here filled her mind and made her move quicker. Once inside, she stopped and stood there, listening. Everything was so still and silent that she almost turned around, assuming she was alone. But she went in deeper and headed toward the little room Reese had taken her to that first night.

And when she rounded the corner, she froze, seeing him sitting on an overturned crate, his head lowered, his forearms resting on his thighs.

He had his eyes closed and headphones covering his ears.

For a moment, all she did was stare at him. It seemed like so long since she had seen him last. He was big and strong… yet so sad-looking in that moment.

The urge to go to him, wrap her arms around him, and hold him close was so strong that she started to do just that, but even with his eyes closed and