Page 34 of Bound in Ashes

“I remember what you said, Levi,” I spat through gritted teeth.

“Then act like it. Because that girl is the last thing I have to call family in this world. And just in case you forgot, I will kill you and anybody else I have to to protect her. So if you’re thinking about hurting my girl, think again,” he said.

He meant it.

Levi repeating himself only proved what I’d already known.

She didn’t need me.

That was good, was how it was supposed to be.

I clenched my fists, but then forced myself to relax my hands.

“How am I supposed to take that?” I finally said.

“Take it how you want,” he said.

After a moment, I nodded. “Duly noted.”

I should have been pissed, but I wasn’t. Because Asia had people who loved her. Who would protect her.

People who wouldn’t make her cry.

She doesn’t need me.

Who gave a fuck if that thought made my stomach twist with wrongness?

Levi nodded toward the pasture. “Now get back to work. That fence ain’t goin’ fix itself.”

I followed Levi’s orders, but when I stepped outside, my gaze searched for her automatically.

Pathetic.

Dangerous.

And completely out of my control.

SIX

Asia

“Come in,” I said at the knock on the bathroom door.

It felt so normal, reminding me of the days after high school when I lived in glorified rooming houses I found on the Internet.

Never dreamed I’d miss those days, but life taught me anew every day.

The door knob turned and Bridget leaned in, glancing around the small bathroom like she expected someone else to be in here. I thinned my lips to keep from smiling, not having to think too hard to guess who she would be looking for.

“What’s up, Bridget?” I asked.

She stepped inside the bathroom and smiled at me. Then she reached out and hugged me so tight, her thin arms forced the breath out of my lungs. She kept holding me and leaned back to look up at me. “Thank you.”

“For what?” I asked, hugging her back quickly and then trying to step away.

She squeezed tighter for a split second and then dropped her arms.

“I thought I was going to die in that courthouse. And when—” she cut off, wiping at the tears that had sprang up—“when I saw Irv like that, I wanted to die. Finding you was a blessing. And making it here was a miracle.”