Page 89 of Collateral Love
If she got pulled into this…
No.
I cut the thought off.
Fear for other people was how you lost yourself.
I focused on Denise.
On the rhythm of her footsteps when she came back the third time.
Her footsteps were getting faster, which told me she was getting agitated.
She didn’t bring the men with her again this time.
She set a chair down across from me and sat.
I didn't speak, just stared at her.
I let five seconds pass.
Then ten.
Then I spoke first.
“You don’t like him,” I said softly.
Her eyes snapped up.
“Who?”
“Charles,” I replied. “You flinch when he says your name.”
Her nostrils flared.
“You don’t know shit about me.”
“I know you didn’t grow up planning to hurt women for men who don’t see you,” I said. “And I know you think you're deeper than you are.”
It got silent, and the room felt heavy.
She leaned back.
“You always this mouthy?”
“Only when I’m assessing variables,” I replied.
She laughed despite herself.
“Variables,” she repeated. “You talk like you think this is a math problem.”
“It is,” I said. “Every system is.”
She studied me.
“You don’t look scared.”
“I am,” I said honestly. “Just not of you.”
