Castle's Fortress by Rhonda Lee Carver

Author:Rhonda Lee Carver
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lyrical Press
Published: 2011-09-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 11

Fall stepped back into the room and steadied herself under Jake’s curious gaze. Anger slowly disappeared from her muscles as she relaxed. Her heartbeat was returning to normal. Chris had a way of causing her to lose control.

“Chris Whitestone?” Jake’s accusing tone recharged some of her irritation.

She shrugged. She didn’t need Jake to rub in her three-month-long run of insanity. In hindsight, she knew she’d been foolish to date Chris. “Don’t throw stones if you live in a glass house.”

“My glass house is anchored, sweetheart. Do I need to remind you how he teased you when we were kids?”

That touched a chord in Fall. The last thing she needed from Jake was his high and mighty attitude. She remembered well how as a child, Chris had been a bully. Fact was, he hadn’t changed much as an adult. “Yeah, Jake, please remind me of the ungainly, dirty, reviled child I was because it’s gone from my memory. Poof, just like that.” She wanted to tell him to mind his own business but stopped as a chill swept across her exposed skin. She ran her palms up and down her arms to ease the goose bumps.

Jake pushed himself away from the windowsill. “Damn, Fall! All I’m saying is, you deserve someone who loves you for who you were, who you are now, and who you’ll be tomorrow.” His eyes turned the color of jade. The heat reached her, dissipating her coolness as warmth zipped through her veins.

“When did you start dictating Hallmark cards?” Fall snapped, then turned away. He, above anyone else, knew she didn’t believe in happy endings, at least not for herself. She’d had enough rotten finales to prove luck just wasn’t on her side. No–she couldn’t put the blame on luck. Doom was in her very genes.

Jake didn’t need to respond to her smart remark. His steely eyes and slanted mouth translated his inner turmoil loud and clear. He swept a hand over his dark locks, then pressed the bridge of his nose between forefinger and thumb.

“Why do you care, Jake?” she asked.

One corner of his mouth twitched. “Hell, Fall. The man’s a walking time bomb. Isn’t it obvious?”

Splaying her fingers across her stomach, she wished the butterflies would settle. “In a town this small, it’s hard to find someone to love me for who I am when everyone sees me as the poor, filthy girl whose father killed a teenager.”

“Since when do you attend self-pity parties?” he retorted with a shake of his head.

Fall clamped her lips shut to keep from verbalizing a pissed off country girl’s jingle. She reminded herself she needed Jake’s help in finding Renee, and using naughty hand gestures and four-letter words wouldn’t help the situation. She figured that, in a way, she deserved the comeback.

“Why do you stay, Fall? Move away. Leave these bastards with their haughty beliefs. Find another home.”

She averted her gaze to the dusty floor. His running shoes came into view as he took a step toward her. She brought her gaze up and the world melted around her.

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