Page 56 of Danger

“And it’s you,” I say.

She just stares, the silence going a little too long."You know I don't quit when I want something,” she says.

“What is it that you want, Rylee?”

She steps closer. “Danger will always be mine. He’s using you to get back at me.” She looks me up and down. “He’d never actually be into someone like you. And you know what I heard? I heard he hasn’t slept with anyone since me. Not even you. If you’re his girlfriend, that’s a little sad, isn’t it?”

I’m thinking of a dozen ways to say fuck you, but I let her continue.

“I haven’t even seen you two kiss. I have a feeling that he knows he wants me back just as much as I want him. I came all this way for him and I’m not leaving without him.”

The words should slide off, but instead they stick. Maybe because I’ve wondered the same thing. Maybe because I don’t know what Danger wants, and I don’t know what I want, either.

But more than that, I see rage. I see every mean and hateful thing she’s ever said to me, and I have no control over what I’m about to do next.

I tip back the rest of my drink, toss the cup into the trash can beside us, and say, “You know what, Rylee? That reminds me. I need to go love on my man. I’m so sorry we've been so considerate anytime you’ve been around. It won't happen again.”

She doesn’t say anything, just watches me like she doesn’t believe I’m about to do anything. I can’t believe it either.

One second I’m standing there with Rylee’s voice still buzzing in my skull, and the next I’m marching across the field like I’ve got something to prove.

Maybe I do. To her, to myself.

People are dancing. Laughter rises. Someone is singing in the distance.

All I hear is her.

I’ve never even seen you kiss.

Fine.

Danger’s kicked back in one of those folding camp chairs, one long leg propped on the cooler, beer in hand. Hat turned backward. Relaxed, camo t-shirt clinging to his chest.God, I hate that he looks good in everything.

He looks up when my shadow falls over him, eyes narrowing slightly when he sees my face.

“Winnie?”

I step right up to him. "I'm going to kiss you."

His brows lift.

"And if you laugh," I warn quietly, "I'll kill you."

I wait for that infuriating smirk to spread across his face, or the smart-ass comment that's undoubtedly coming. But neither happens.

The men around him go quiet. I don’t think they heard what I said but they know it’s serious. His body goes still, his stupidly perfect muscles lock tight under his shirt as he sets his beer on the cooler. Slow. Careful. Like he knows this matters.

"Y'all mind?" He speaks to them, but his eyes stay on me. "Give us a minute."

Chairs scrape. Boots shuffle against dirt. Someone whispers something under their breath, but I don’t catch it—or maybe I just don’t care.

I don’t look.

I can’t.

Because Danger’s eyes are on me, dark and searching, like he’s trying to figure out if this is a joke or a dare or a mistake we’re both about to make. I climb into his lap before I can second-guess myself.

His hands find my waist as he pulls me the rest of the way down, my knees on both sides of his hips. "What happened?"