Six
“Where are you going?”
At Molly’s question, Norah’s shoulders dropped in a sigh. She’d almost made it through the door. She’d been planning to text her sisters to let them know her plans once she’d gotten safely out of the house—well, an abbreviated version of her plans at least. That way, she could put off the third degree for a few hours until she returned home. Reluctantly, she turned to face her sister.
“Out?” As soon as the one-word question left her mouth, she knew it was the dumbest way to start this conversation. She could actually see Molly’s expression shift as idle curiosity changed to intense interest.
“Out?” Molly raised her voice and called up the stairs. “Cara, you’re going to want to get down here for this! Norah’s being weird in an interesting way again!”
Another sigh escaped Norah, this one feeling like it came all the way from her toes. She might as well spill everything, since she knew her sisters wouldn’t let her leave until their avid curiosity was satisfied. “I’m—”
“Hang on.” Molly made a shushing motion. “Wait until Cara gets down here. She won’t want to miss this.”
Feet thundered down the stairs, and a grinning Cara passed Molly and plopped down on the couch, looking as if she was fully ready to be entertained. All she was missing was a bowl of popcorn.
All afternoon, Norah had debated whether to tell her sisters the full story of why she was going out tonight. She’d promised to ask for backup if needed, but with Dash, she already had a very burly person to help her out if things got hairy. On the other hand, she wanted them to know where she was going to be, since even the biggest guys could get in trouble, and she’d only started getting a handle on this hand-to-hand combat thing. She was pretty sure her small successes in the gym wouldn’t translate to winning a street brawl. If she told her sisters the truth, however, they’d just worry…and probably either lock her in her room or insist on going with her. Besides, if she and Dash got into trouble they couldn’t handle, she could always text her sisters. Better to ask for forgiveness than permission after all.
Her sisters’ expressions were getting more gleeful the longer she hesitated, and Norah realized she’d been doing that a lot lately—figuring out which truth would keep her sisters safe while minimizing her own embarrassment. She missed the days just a month ago when she’d been an open—albeit boring—book. Now she had secrets coming out of her ears.
“I’m going out.”
“You’re stalling,” Cara said.
Norah couldn’t wait for her sister to have her own class of kindergartners on which she could focus her stern expressions rather than using them to keep her family in line.
“Yes.” Norah figured she might as well admit it. Her sisters already knew her tactics.
“Why?” Molly tagged in, dropping down to sit next to Cara to present a united nosy front. “What don’t you want to tell us?”
“It’s not that I don’t want to tell you,” Norah said slowly, picking through her thoughts as she spoke. “It’s that I’m not sure what it is.”
There was a pause before Molly asked, “What what is?”
“I’m meeting Dash—”
“Mmm…sinewy hands guy,” Cara interrupted.
Norah flushed for some reason. “I don’t know if they’re sinewy , exactly.” It was unsettling how easy it was for her to picture his hands. “They’re really big though.”
When her sisters exchanged smirks, Norah felt her face grow even warmer.
“So you’re meeting Dash.” It was a relief when Molly got the discussion back on track. “For…a date?”
“Of course it’s a date,” Cara said before Norah could respond. “Why else would she be meeting a guy on a Saturday night right around the time she usually goes to bed?”
Norah made a face, a little offended by that. “I stay up later than nine.”
“Sure, but you’re researching . That’s like staying up late watching Netflix,” Cara explained with more condescension than necessary for someone who’d researched and studied for class on Saturday nights up until not even a month ago when she’d met Henry. “It doesn’t count as a social life.”
Filing away the argument for a later date, Norah knew she had to redirect the conversation back to the original point. If she let it, this discussion with her sisters could stretch late into the night, and she had to be outside in seven minutes so she could meet Dash when he pulled his car up to the curb. If she waited too long, he’d park and come to the door, and then the sisters would want to meet him, and there’d be inside jokes about his hands, and Norah would burn up from embarrassment until she was just an awkward, charred husk on the floor.
“We’re working, so it’s probably not a date,” she said.
“Working? Do you mean working out?” Cara looked puzzled.
Here came the part her sisters wouldn’t like. “No, I’ll be working. He’ll just be helping. Backup, if you will.”
“Norah Valentine Pax!” Molly had her sternest big-sister face on. “Are you chasing skips? Didn’t you learn anything from Cara’s mistakes? I thought we talked about this.”
Grimacing a little at the triple naming, Norah shook her head. “We’re just going to follow a possible lead on Leifsen.”
“Your stalker?” It wasn’t reassuring that Molly switched from loud and angry to quiet and calm. Norah knew that was when she was the most irate. “You’re going to go after your stalker on your own?”
“Not on my own.” Norah seized on that part, knowing the seconds were ticking away before Dash’s arrival. Opening the front door, she backed out of it, talking quickly. “Dash is going to be my muscle. If we spot Leifsen, I’ll text you. I promise. Better go so I’m not late. Bye! Love you! Don’t wait up!”
Before she closed the door, she heard Cara snort a laugh as Molly repeated, “He’s her… muscle ?”
As Norah trotted down the porch steps, she blew out a long breath. For a moment there, she wasn’t sure she was going to escape the house without Molly following. Date or not, having her older sister tag along would’ve been weird and awkward. Her phone chimed as she saw headlights turn onto her street.
Glancing at her phone, she saw Molly wasn’t letting her get the last word. Text us the second you see Leifsen, or else I’ll draw on your face with Sharpies while you sleep.
Giving a huff of amusement, Norah sent a quick I will! response before pocketing her phone. As she headed toward the SUV pulling up to the curb, she had a sudden worry that it wouldn’t be Dash. The vehicle rolled to a stop as she took a hesitant step back, watching with building dread as the passenger window slid down.
It wasn’t until Dash leaned over from the driver’s side to pop open the passenger door that she exhaled and stepped forward again.
He cocked his head, studying her carefully. “Okay?”
“Yeah.” She slid into the seat, feeling both relieved and a little silly for her moment of doubt. “I just wasn’t sure if it was you at first.”
He glanced around at their sparsely inhabited cul-de-sac. “You get many strange guys rolling by here?”
“Surprisingly, yes.” Her tone was dark with memories of shady detectives and mysterious unknown vehicles cruising by at all hours of the night, their occupants hidden by darkness. “Or not really surprisingly, I guess.” When Dash lifted his eyebrows in a silent question, she explained, “The rumor around town is that the necklace my mom stole is hidden in our house. We get a lot of traffic.”
Even in the dim illumination from the streetlight, Norah could see Dash’s eyes flare with a fierce emotion. “Does this… traffic ever stop?”
“Sometimes.” She lifted her shoulders in a shrug that wasn’t as nonchalant as she tried to make it look. “The number of break-ins has decreased since John’s friend installed the security system though.”
“Glad the break-ins have decreased. ” He shifted into drive almost violently, but the SUV rolled forward gently, so at least he wasn’t taking his rage out on the gas pedal. Still, Norah eyed him warily as he continued, “Is this the same security system Leifsen disarmed in order to kidnap your sister?”
Something in his chilly words made her feel defensive, but she reminded herself he was angry because he didn’t want her in danger. She wasn’t sure why he cared about someone who was just a client, but she knew she’d hate it if someone hurt or threatened Dash. As the glass house, she wasn’t about to start chucking stones. Besides, it felt good to be valued.
“Yes.” She didn’t try to soften her bald honesty, even though his knuckles were white and she could see the muscles move in his cheek as he clenched and unclenched his jaw. “However, very few petty criminals have the same skills as Leifsen. I’m not sure how my mom managed to disarm it, but she’s always been wily about things like that.”
The sound he made, a sort of muttered hmph , was decades too old for him, as if he’d been momentarily possessed by his grandpa. Norah curled her lips in to hold back her smile, since she didn’t think he’d approve of her levity while they were having a Very Serious Conversation. At least it was on his end. Despite her best efforts to keep a straight face, she was pretty sure he knew she was amused, judging by the sideways glare he was giving her.
She cleared her throat. “We also established safety protocols after Cara was…taken.” It was still hard to say without her throat closing up, so she concentrated on the dashboard as she spoke, working hard to keep her voice steady. “We’re rarely home alone now.”
By his grunt, he wasn’t appeased by this.
“We also carry Tasers, pepper spray, and our phones at all times.”
Turning his head briefly, he eyed her as if looking for weapons. “You have all that on you now?”
“Yes.” Patting her pockets to reassure herself that they were still there, she felt a rectangular shape that reminded her of what else she carried. “Also a pocketknife in case we get restrained with zip ties. According to Cara, more people carry zip ties around than we think.”
The steering wheel squeaked in protest under Dash’s grip.
“Don’t break your nice car.”
“It’s fine.” From his tone, he didn’t think anything was fine, but Norah let that go. “I want a list.”
She blinked. “A list of what?”
“Every single…person who’s even thought about breaking into your home.”
“I’m not giving you a kill list. You already get to lightly beat up—I mean chat with —Leifsen if you find him first.” She eyed his profile. It was odd, but she actually preferred looking at him from the left. From the right, he appeared to be intimidatingly perfect, someone she would never have had the courage to speak to that first day at the gym. His scars made him more human, less godlike. “You can swear around me, you know.”
It was his turn to pause. “What?”
“I can tell you’re self-bleeping. My ears won’t fall off if you curse.” The SUV turned into the lot at Dutch’s, distracting her. She’d been so focused on watching Dash that she hadn’t paid attention to their surroundings as he drove.
“Maybe they won’t fall off, but you don’t need to hear that…stuff.”
Unimpressed, she made a scoffing sound. “Women swear. We don’t need to be protected from hearing bad words.”
“I try not to swear in front of anyone.” He parked and turned off the SUV before shifting to look at her fully. “My gran was a stickler for manners.”
“Your gran?” This was the first personal thing he’d shared with her, and it felt like he’d given her something fragile and precious.
“Yeah, my little sister and I moved in with her when I was twelve and my dad went to prison.”
Norah blinked as she processed that short, matter-of-fact statement just loaded with information. “My dad’s been to prison too. Several times.”
He dipped his head in a nod, and she suspected he’d already known that.
“Your mom?” she asked.
“Took off soon after my sister was born. I was two.”
It was Norah’s turn to nod. She was careful to keep any trace of sympathy or pity from showing, since she hated that reaction when other people found out about her parents. “Do you ever feel like it’s genetically inevitable that you’ll commit a crime and be locked up?”
He paused, his usual scowl easing into bemusement. “No?”
Just me then.
“That’s why I try to act how my gran taught me. I know that’s my way out of that life.”
Her chest warmed at the idea. “I’m glad you had her. If I didn’t have my sisters, I’d probably be right there in the getaway car with my mom.”
“Nah.” His voice was certain. “You’re stronger than that.”
Even though she doubted the truth of that, she liked that he’d said it anyway.
“Ready?” He jerked his head toward the bar.
She resisted the urge to tell him to drive them home. Dutch’s wasn’t her favorite place. “I guess.”
“Don’t worry.” He must’ve picked up on her reluctance. “I’ll keep you safe.”
Norah frowned. The whole reason she’d started training with him was that she was tired of being the weak link who couldn’t keep herself safe. “Please don’t treat me like I’m fragile. If you hadn’t noticed, I have several sisters who already do that.”
He eyed her for a long second before finally raising one shoulder in a partial shrug. “Nope. Can’t help it. I’m going to keep protecting you.” Leaving her momentarily speechless, he opened his door and got out.
“You can’t just…” She trailed off when she realized he’d already closed his door and was three-quarters of the way around the front of the SUV. Realizing what he was about to do, she fumbled for the door handle, but it was too late. Her door swung open, and Dash waited for her to get out, looking rather too pleased with himself.
“Smug is not a good look on you.” Even as she said it, she knew her words rang false. Everything was a good look for Dash. His mouth twitched up at the corner as if he knew what she was thinking. With a sigh that was embarrassingly close to a huff, she slid out of the SUV and allowed him to close the door.
As she crossed the parking lot, she tried to come up with a plan to convince Dash to quit treating her like she was breakable. She couldn’t figure out how a guy who she paid to beat her up—albeit gently—on the regular had turned into a white knight who opened her car door and wouldn’t even swear around her, not to mention his insisting on beating and/or killing all her harassers.
“Need to see your ID.”
Norah jerked her head up to see the huge bouncer right in front of her. She’d been so distracted by thoughts of Dash that she hadn’t even noticed him or her trek across the creepiest, shadowiest parking lot in town. Normally, just the idea of going to Dutch’s made her want to hide under her bed, but this time, she’d marched right up to the terrifyingly huge and scowling bouncer without even a shiver of apprehension. She darted a quick glance at Dash next to her. Despite his annoyingly excessive protective side, she had to admit he was an excellent distraction.
She pulled out her license and handed it to the bouncer, whose frown deepened as he read it. “No.”
“What?” Genuinely startled, Norah stared at him. “Why? I’m over twenty-one.”
“You Pax women are trouble.”
She grimaced. Jane’s bad reputation had stained the whole family. Norah was used to everyone thinking she and her sisters were trash just because Jane played a little fast and loose with the law. “I’m not like my mom, I promise. I’ve never stolen anything in my life.”
He rolled his eyes as he returned her license. “Your mom never caused any trouble here. Your sisters though…”
“Oh!” Norah was startled into smiling. For once, her sisters were the cause of the trouble, not her sticky-fingered mother. “Don’t worry. I’m the quiet one.”
“That’s what the one who blew up the bar said.”
“Technically, Sonny Zarver was the one—”
“And that’s what the one who caused a brawl, a shoot-out behind the bar, and a visit from the feds said.” Peering at her face more closely, his eyebrows drew together until they touched. “Hey, you were here that night!”
“Yes, but only because I was dragged here against my better judgment.”
Dash coughed, but it sounded like he was disguising a laugh. He held out some folded bills. “We won’t cause trouble.”
For a long moment, the bouncer eyed the money as if debating whether it’d be worth whatever drama Norah and Dash would cause, but then he heaved a silent sigh and accepted the bills. “If either of you even breathes funny, you’re out, and I won’t be gentle about it.”
Norah opened her mouth to protest the unfairness, since her sisters hadn’t caused any of the previous chaos at Dutch’s. Well, they hadn’t caused most of it, and what they had started was for a good and fairly lawful reason. Before any words could escape, Dash wrapped an arm around her back and swept her through the door.
“One more strike, and you and your hundred and one sisters will be out for good!” the bouncer called after them.
The door swung shut behind them, cutting off her chance to respond, and she gave Dash a reproving look.
“I know,” he said. “But arguing was just going to piss him off.” His mouth quirked up as he looked down at her with amusement mixed with approval. “Didn’t think you were the type to fight with the bouncer.”
She shrugged. “No one can say anything bad about my sisters except for me.”
Letting out a quick bark of laughter, he steered her deeper into the bar. It was busier than usual, probably because of the band setting up on the small stage, and Norah could feel the usual stares. Tonight they felt more hostile, and she wondered if that was because the Pax sisters’ reputation was growing. Dash must’ve noticed the negative attention she was receiving, because he shifted closer until his body brushed against hers with every step. Sometimes, she had to admit, having some protection was a good thing.
He directed her wordlessly to a back booth. There was a young guy sitting there who looked familiar. As they drew closer, Norah sucked in a breath. “Stuart!”
The worm must’ve recognized her at the same time, because he shot out of his seat and lost himself in the crowd before she could do anything more than glare at him. Although Dash gave her a questioning look, he didn’t ask until after they’d reached the booth Stuart had been occupying.
When Norah moved to sit in the seat across from Dash, he clasped her wrist, drawing her back to his side of the table. She gave him a confused look but slid across the cushioned bench, her pants catching on tears in the cheap vinyl. Once he sat down next to her, she raised her eyebrows in question, and he bent so his mouth was close to her ear.
“This way, we can talk without being overheard,” he said, his lips brushing against her ear.
A flush of heat, quickly followed by a shiver, rippled down her spine at the contact, and it took her a few seconds to comprehend his words. Once they sank in, she gave a slight nod. It made sense, although she was pretty sure his lips didn’t have to actually touch her ear in order for her to hear him. She eyed him suspiciously, but his face was in his usual set frown as he scanned the crowd.
Had he been flirting with her?
Norah cursed her lack of dating experience. She hated being clueless about anything, and she felt completely thrown by Dash. Although he’d been totally professional in the gym, the way he’d acted at lunch the other day and tonight made her wonder. Plus there was the almost-a-kiss moment at Devil’s Thumb—unless she’d just made that up in her head. She wished she could ask one of her sisters without the inevitable teasing, but the idea made her mentally cringe with anticipated embarrassment.
Shaking off her thoughts, she focused on the band members. There’d be plenty of time to obsess about every move Dash made when she was lying sleepless and anxious in her narrow bed later that night. The thought made her grimace. Leifsen had been stealing too many hours of rest from her lately.
“Who’d you chase from the booth?” Dash asked, way too close to her ear again.
Rather proud of herself when she didn’t outwardly react to the contact, she said, “Stuart Powers.”
“Right. You’ve mentioned him.”
Surprised, she turned to look at Dash and instantly regretted it. His face was right there , closer than she’d ever been to him, even in training. His lashes were thick and lush, and she couldn’t help but think of birds. The females had no defense against the lure of the males, with their flashy, striking colors and dramatic patterns. It just wasn’t fair. How was she supposed to keep her mind away from flirting and…other things when he was so close and so very fascinating?
“Does terrible things for money and always gets away with it.”
“Right.” It was an effort to pull her mind back to the awful person they were discussing. “That’s Stuart in a nutshell.”
“Add him to my list,” he said in a voice so dark and deep she could’ve drowned in the sheer decadence of it.
“He’s already on there.”