Trigger Happy (Girls with Guns, #2) by Ashley Bostock Page A

tears began to subside and she wiped away everything that was running down her face with a Kleenex before she started her car and headed toward home. She responded to Marilyn’s worried text, letting her know she was fine and was heading home.

CHAPTER TWELEVE
    H e was such an asshole. He didn’t want his relationship with Amber to be the way it was – if you could even call it that. He really didn’t want to hurt her at all. At least not any more than he already had, but somehow he continued to make remarks that directly affected her and hurt her without him even knowing it until it happened. When she stormed out of the beer garden, his immediate instinct was to run after her but Blake had grabbed ahold of his arm and told him he needed to hear the story before he went chasing after her.
    So Blake had told him. He explained everything about how her parents had created the Girl Power Foundation for young girls, trying to empower them into strong leaders, and how it had eventually grown into the whole football performance thing for the winner. He had explained in excruciating detail about how her parents had gotten killed in a plane crash on the way to one of Amber’s performances – one she insisted they be at and because of that, how Amber had never forgiven herself. Gage felt like crap. He couldn’t remember the last time someone had actually made him feel this bad over comments he made.
    He owed Amber an apology. He owed her a really big apology. He hadn’t meant to hurt her anymore than all the pain she had already been enduring. Knowing what he knew, he really just wanted to hold her much like he had that night long ago. Now, if he was lucky, he might be able to get a handshake from her. It was late. He shouldn't even be thinking what he was thinking right now, but he found his windbreaker and threw it on over his black t-shirt, jumped into his Range Rover and headed toward Amber’s house.
    She wasn't that hard to find. Her house sat atop a small hill located on the other side of town. He wouldn't admit this to anyone but he had memorized her address from the loan application he had given to Lisa. It was a quick, casual glance before he handed the documents off. He knew exactly where she lived. He pulled into her driveway and immediately shut off his lights. He admired the expansive view of lights provided by the town below before he got out of his car and walked to her front door.
    He took a deep breath as he made his way to her porch. Was he crazy? Coming to her house at eleven at night, she might very well shoot him! According to Blake, these women were packin’ heat and not afraid to use it. As he stepped onto her porch, the light immediately came on and her door opened. He could she that she had been crying and something fluttered in his heart. Before he could question that, she spoke, “What are you doing here, Gage?”
    “I came to apologize, actually. May I come inside?” She was wearing a pink and grey cheetah print robe and his mind idly wondered what she was wearing underneath it.
    “I guess. Only for a few minutes.” Her tone was unfriendly, sounding as if she was an errant child being asked to do a chore she didn’t want to do. She pulled the door open wider and allowed him to follow her inside.
    “You have a nice home,” he said politely.
    “Thanks. Gage, can you please just say what you have to say? I am not in any mood to go rounds with you tonight. I am physically exhausted and I’m an emotional wreck right now so what do you want to say?”
    She turned around to face him and he registered the anguish on her face. He couldn’t resist reaching out for her arm and stepping close – into her space. Beneath his hand, he felt her tense but he didn’t let go.
    “I am sorry for everything that has been happening between us lately. I am very sorry for making you cry that day in my office. I’m usually not that kind of man to be so insensitive,” he chuckled, “somehow you just bring