do it naturally.”
He pocketed the rest of the credits and rubbed the back of his neck, which still prickled from the aftereffect of her touch. “It has come to my attention that I can be at times…commanding.”
“Bossy,” she shot back.
“Ah. That’s better than a bully.” He smiled at her.
After a moment, she grinned wryly. “Not by much.”
“Significantly,” he countered.
She shook her head. “Nope. I should know since I grew up with a bossy brother.” Her expression tightened.
Since he hadn’t done anything new to annoy her, Sin figured it was her own thoughts leaching the amusement from her expressive face. “I should like to meet this brother of yours, but I think…he’s not with you anymore, yes?”
She stiffened. “How did you…?”
He touched the spot between his eyes and redirected his fingertip to lightly graze the same crease on her. He dropped his hand before she could move away. “I too have lost.”
She stared at him, her dark brown eyes hazy. “Military?”
He consulted the translator for a reasonable equivalent. “Air force.”
She straightened on her seat. “So was Will.”
“Special operations,” Sin added hastily. “Nothing I can talk about.”
“Oh.” She deflated a bit, her spine curving. “Will had just made senior airman, but he was interested in special operations.”
“He was your brother.” Sin nodded. “That is more special.”
She glanced down at her clenched hands and then back up at him. “You must have a brother too.”
“I do. Four, actually, all older.”
She gave him a sympathetic smile. “Rough.”
“The closest one to me is…worse than a bully. He’s a tyrant.”
And deluded if Herrilclarion Fourth-Moon Jax had ever thought he was going to get Sin to return to the clan on his command.
Zoe studied him. “You look like you’re thinking of cracking him over the head with a chunk of meteorite.”
Sin let out a scoffing breath. “As if that would make him more open-minded. But if he was standing here, and I had the chunk in hand…”
“I didn’t bring it to the bar,” she said. “I took all the pieces home when I left this afternoon.”
He nodded. “Well then, since you have my twenty bucks, I suppose you’ll have to take me home with you.”
Chapter 6
She’d had bad ideas before, like that time she tried to do a viral video about gray water reclamation. But this bad idea was worse than most.
Zoe was achingly aware of the big man prowling at her side. He’d seemed big at the park, and even bigger when he trapped her against the counter at the bar. She’d been so close to hollering for Tisha’s assistance even though she’d been busy at the other end of the bar; Tish had a knack for easily deescalating—or, if all else failed, verbally decapitating—troublemakers at the Sunset Saloon. But the impulse had shamed Zoe. She’d never been the sort to call for help. Now in the dark silence of the street as they walked toward her house, she realized just how intimidating he was.
What had she been thinking? One rum and coke and some longing country music couldn’t justify this bad decision. No, the truth was, she was bringing him home because it felt like a little adventure, just a little of who she used to be, not someone whose vision had narrowed to the point she could no longer see the person she’d been, who no longer reached for anything past the tips of her groping, hesitant fingers.
And jeez, he wasn’t much farther away than that. As if he expected her to run away—again, admittedly—he stayed right at her side. Under his black leather jacket, he’d lost part of his shirt somewhere, which should have made him look like a bad boy refugee from the really bad ‘80s rock albums Tish had been thumbing through. But the heat off his partly exposed body in the chilly mountain air softened something inside her, made her blood run faster. Shivers arced across her nerve endings like shooting stars, a whole sky
He pocketed the rest of the credits and rubbed the back of his neck, which still prickled from the aftereffect of her touch. “It has come to my attention that I can be at times…commanding.”
“Bossy,” she shot back.
“Ah. That’s better than a bully.” He smiled at her.
After a moment, she grinned wryly. “Not by much.”
“Significantly,” he countered.
She shook her head. “Nope. I should know since I grew up with a bossy brother.” Her expression tightened.
Since he hadn’t done anything new to annoy her, Sin figured it was her own thoughts leaching the amusement from her expressive face. “I should like to meet this brother of yours, but I think…he’s not with you anymore, yes?”
She stiffened. “How did you…?”
He touched the spot between his eyes and redirected his fingertip to lightly graze the same crease on her. He dropped his hand before she could move away. “I too have lost.”
She stared at him, her dark brown eyes hazy. “Military?”
He consulted the translator for a reasonable equivalent. “Air force.”
She straightened on her seat. “So was Will.”
“Special operations,” Sin added hastily. “Nothing I can talk about.”
“Oh.” She deflated a bit, her spine curving. “Will had just made senior airman, but he was interested in special operations.”
“He was your brother.” Sin nodded. “That is more special.”
She glanced down at her clenched hands and then back up at him. “You must have a brother too.”
“I do. Four, actually, all older.”
She gave him a sympathetic smile. “Rough.”
“The closest one to me is…worse than a bully. He’s a tyrant.”
And deluded if Herrilclarion Fourth-Moon Jax had ever thought he was going to get Sin to return to the clan on his command.
Zoe studied him. “You look like you’re thinking of cracking him over the head with a chunk of meteorite.”
Sin let out a scoffing breath. “As if that would make him more open-minded. But if he was standing here, and I had the chunk in hand…”
“I didn’t bring it to the bar,” she said. “I took all the pieces home when I left this afternoon.”
He nodded. “Well then, since you have my twenty bucks, I suppose you’ll have to take me home with you.”
Chapter 6
She’d had bad ideas before, like that time she tried to do a viral video about gray water reclamation. But this bad idea was worse than most.
Zoe was achingly aware of the big man prowling at her side. He’d seemed big at the park, and even bigger when he trapped her against the counter at the bar. She’d been so close to hollering for Tisha’s assistance even though she’d been busy at the other end of the bar; Tish had a knack for easily deescalating—or, if all else failed, verbally decapitating—troublemakers at the Sunset Saloon. But the impulse had shamed Zoe. She’d never been the sort to call for help. Now in the dark silence of the street as they walked toward her house, she realized just how intimidating he was.
What had she been thinking? One rum and coke and some longing country music couldn’t justify this bad decision. No, the truth was, she was bringing him home because it felt like a little adventure, just a little of who she used to be, not someone whose vision had narrowed to the point she could no longer see the person she’d been, who no longer reached for anything past the tips of her groping, hesitant fingers.
And jeez, he wasn’t much farther away than that. As if he expected her to run away—again, admittedly—he stayed right at her side. Under his black leather jacket, he’d lost part of his shirt somewhere, which should have made him look like a bad boy refugee from the really bad ‘80s rock albums Tish had been thumbing through. But the heat off his partly exposed body in the chilly mountain air softened something inside her, made her blood run faster. Shivers arced across her nerve endings like shooting stars, a whole sky
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