expect to be worshipped. Who has the energy to kneel down and lick some man’s swollen ego?”
“Hmm.” Erin looked quizzical. “I don’t know. Connor’s handsome, and he doesn’t expect to be worshipped. Except when he…ah, well, never mind.” She subsided, a blush rising up on her face.
Oh, please. The innocent, pink-cheeked milkmaid routine made Tam’s teeth hurt.
“I was thinking, you don’t have a date for Nick and Becca’s wedding, do you?” Erin said. “Why not ask this guy if he’s free on—”
“Erin. You are kidding, aren’t you?” Tam demanded. “Because if you aren’t, you’re scaring me.”
Erin looked at her with that sharp, narrow gaze that Tam disliked intensely. “There hasn’t been anyone for you since…” Her voice trailed off, but they both heard the name. It echoed through their worst nightmares, linking them together. Kurt Novak.
The sharp, instinctive gesture Tam made to ward off evil surprised her. One of her great-grandmother’s tics. One of the few things she remembered about the old woman. She’d died when Tam was small.
Strange. The man was stone dead, after all. No doubts about it. She’d seen pretty much every last drop of his heart’s blood decorating the walls, thanks to Erin’s amazing courage under fire. Which continued to surprise her years later. Girl nerds. You never knew.
“You can’t let him poison that for you forever.” There was a tight, vibrating intensity in Erin’s voice. “It’s just not right.”
Brittle laughter would have been the best response, but Tam’s chest was screwed too tight to move. “There is no ‘that’ for me, Erin.”
“But you can’t just shut it off like a faucet and—”
“I can do whatever the fuck I want. My choice.”
The edge in Tam’s voice put a hot flush of hurt embarrassment on Erin’s face. She sprang up and turned her back, sipping her coffee as she stared out the window into the forest. The children’s laughter and Rosalia’s low voice murmuring encouragements in Portuguese floated in.
Tam stared into her coffee. Angry for feeling guilty. Guilty for feeling angry. What a crock of pointless shit this was. Who needed it.
“I guess I should go.” Erin’s voice was tight. “It’s almost naptime for Kev, and I should take advantage of—”
“Why do you put up with me, Erin?” Tam asked abruptly.
Erin was startled into turning. “Huh?”
“I’m a rude, abrasive bitch. That’s not likely to change, ever,” Tam said, her voice stony. “So why? Why do you bother?”
Erin opened and closed her mouth a few times. “I—I—”
“Is it pity? Because I don’t need pity.”
“You certainly don’t deserve it,” Erin observed tartly, crossing her arms beneath her ample bosom. “But you did save my life, you know. And my husband’s life. That makes up for a few behavioral quirks.”
“You saved mine right back, so we’re even,” Tam said. “And besides, it was an accident. I wasn’t in that shithole with any heroic plans to save anybody. I just wanted to wipe out that psycho son of a bitch, get my revenge, and save my own skin. You owe me nothing. So why?”
Erin shook her head. “I don’t know,” she said slowly. “It’s true. You’re awful. You’re the rudest, most irritating, pain-in-the-ass friend I’ve ever had, or even imagined having. But you’ll also race off at the drop of a pin and risk your life to save a bunch of helpless little kids from organ thieves. That kind of behavior racks up big points fast.”
Tam made a derisive sound. “Oh, horseshit. That was just for fun. I was bored, OK? I needed some action.”
“Oh, yeah. Right. Bored,” Erin scoffed. “You are so full of shit. So you took Rachel on because you were bored?”
Tam choked on her coffee. “No, I took Rachel on because I was insane,” she muttered. “But I want to know, Erin. You’ve got Connor. Margot and Raine and Liv now, too. They’re so much nicer. You don’t need me,
“Hmm.” Erin looked quizzical. “I don’t know. Connor’s handsome, and he doesn’t expect to be worshipped. Except when he…ah, well, never mind.” She subsided, a blush rising up on her face.
Oh, please. The innocent, pink-cheeked milkmaid routine made Tam’s teeth hurt.
“I was thinking, you don’t have a date for Nick and Becca’s wedding, do you?” Erin said. “Why not ask this guy if he’s free on—”
“Erin. You are kidding, aren’t you?” Tam demanded. “Because if you aren’t, you’re scaring me.”
Erin looked at her with that sharp, narrow gaze that Tam disliked intensely. “There hasn’t been anyone for you since…” Her voice trailed off, but they both heard the name. It echoed through their worst nightmares, linking them together. Kurt Novak.
The sharp, instinctive gesture Tam made to ward off evil surprised her. One of her great-grandmother’s tics. One of the few things she remembered about the old woman. She’d died when Tam was small.
Strange. The man was stone dead, after all. No doubts about it. She’d seen pretty much every last drop of his heart’s blood decorating the walls, thanks to Erin’s amazing courage under fire. Which continued to surprise her years later. Girl nerds. You never knew.
“You can’t let him poison that for you forever.” There was a tight, vibrating intensity in Erin’s voice. “It’s just not right.”
Brittle laughter would have been the best response, but Tam’s chest was screwed too tight to move. “There is no ‘that’ for me, Erin.”
“But you can’t just shut it off like a faucet and—”
“I can do whatever the fuck I want. My choice.”
The edge in Tam’s voice put a hot flush of hurt embarrassment on Erin’s face. She sprang up and turned her back, sipping her coffee as she stared out the window into the forest. The children’s laughter and Rosalia’s low voice murmuring encouragements in Portuguese floated in.
Tam stared into her coffee. Angry for feeling guilty. Guilty for feeling angry. What a crock of pointless shit this was. Who needed it.
“I guess I should go.” Erin’s voice was tight. “It’s almost naptime for Kev, and I should take advantage of—”
“Why do you put up with me, Erin?” Tam asked abruptly.
Erin was startled into turning. “Huh?”
“I’m a rude, abrasive bitch. That’s not likely to change, ever,” Tam said, her voice stony. “So why? Why do you bother?”
Erin opened and closed her mouth a few times. “I—I—”
“Is it pity? Because I don’t need pity.”
“You certainly don’t deserve it,” Erin observed tartly, crossing her arms beneath her ample bosom. “But you did save my life, you know. And my husband’s life. That makes up for a few behavioral quirks.”
“You saved mine right back, so we’re even,” Tam said. “And besides, it was an accident. I wasn’t in that shithole with any heroic plans to save anybody. I just wanted to wipe out that psycho son of a bitch, get my revenge, and save my own skin. You owe me nothing. So why?”
Erin shook her head. “I don’t know,” she said slowly. “It’s true. You’re awful. You’re the rudest, most irritating, pain-in-the-ass friend I’ve ever had, or even imagined having. But you’ll also race off at the drop of a pin and risk your life to save a bunch of helpless little kids from organ thieves. That kind of behavior racks up big points fast.”
Tam made a derisive sound. “Oh, horseshit. That was just for fun. I was bored, OK? I needed some action.”
“Oh, yeah. Right. Bored,” Erin scoffed. “You are so full of shit. So you took Rachel on because you were bored?”
Tam choked on her coffee. “No, I took Rachel on because I was insane,” she muttered. “But I want to know, Erin. You’ve got Connor. Margot and Raine and Liv now, too. They’re so much nicer. You don’t need me,
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