Page 16 of Death, Interrupted

So walking in and seeing Joey tied up on the couch while a leather-wearing biker stood in front of him with a knife and a wrecked, honest look in his eyes flipped something in me. It wasn’t approval that what he had done to Joey was right, but it was a sharp click of recognition that I wasn’t alone in what I went through.

I was not the only person Joey had hurt. That realization rolled through me like heat, and then I felt the other thing. A tug. An instant, ridiculous pulltoward the man with the knife.Sly. The way he looked at me made me feel seen, and though it was inconvenient, it also felt nice. It did not help that he apparently felt it too. He stared at me with heart eyes from the moment I stepped inside, and he could not stop complimenting me. At first, I thought he was using it to throw me off. Then I saw him get skittish, and nervous, and sincere. That part was new. Joey never admired me. Joey only ever admired Joey.

I was impressed that Sly tied him up. Joey truly is a boulder. Moving him even an inch takes a whole lot of strength. While Joey kept squirming and mumbling on the couch, I kept my eyes on Sly and waited for him to ask the obvious question back.

But he didn’t. He just stared at me with those dreamy blue eyes of his. His hair was amazing, too. And his body—no, I can’t go there right now.

I pressed my lips together to hide the smile that wanted out. “Aren’t you going to ask me what my name is?”

“Babe, come on, what the fuck are you doing? He’s a literal psycho, and you’re flirting with him?”

Sly turned toward him, anger bright on his face. “Yes, she is, so let her, Joey! And I told you not to call me psycho! It hurts my heart.”

In any other circumstance, I would have rolled my eyes at how whiny Sly was. Butbecauseit was him, and the way he said it, it landed softly. He was beingopen. He was telling the truth about his feelings, even when the truth made him look weak. Joey never did that. Joey showed feelings with fists and violent words.

“So?” I nudged, because I wanted this conversation, and I wanted it with him. Right here in front of Joey.

Sly looked back at me and let out a heavy sigh. His shoulders dropped like someone let the air out of his armor. He was acting like he hadn’t wondered what my name is since the moment I stepped inside. “What’s your name?”

I smiled. “Sumner.”

“Summer?”

“No, Sum-ner.”

He squinted, as if I was speaking a different language. “Sumner? Sounds like a typo.” He tried to play it cool and seem unimpressed, but I saw the relief on his face that we were doing this. It was adorable.

I crossed my arms, amused. “It’s a family name.”

He tilted his head, trying to sound unbothered. “Sounds like your parents lost a bet.”

I narrowed my eyes, then laughed anyway, because he was funny and quick and I could feel my ribs loosening around the laugh. God, what I would give for a boyfriend who made me laugh this easily.

I raised a brow, a little cocky now. “Say it right.”

He tried to keep a straight face and failed. A grin broke through. “No, it’s too many syllables anyway. I’ll justcall you baby.”

He was shameless. He was also charming in a way that did not feel like a trap. I loved it. “Sumner has the same number of syllables.”

“What a dumbass,” Joey muttered from the couch.

We both ignored him. Sly lifted the hand without the knife and actually counted on his fingers, then huffed. “Doesn’t matter. You’ll answer to both once I’m done here.”

Heat crawled up my neck, and I didn’t care that Joey could’ve seen it. I felt steadier in this house now that Sly was standing in it, but all the bad memories and fear were still lingering.

His humor made it more bearable.

“Jesus fucking Christ, woman!” Joey roared, his loud voice cutting sharply through the air. “Will you just call the damn cops already? You’re acting like a crazy person yourself!”

“Hey!” Sly was quick to move, and without giving it too much thought, he shoved one knee between Joey’s legs, hitting him right in the balls, and holding his knife against the side of his neck. “Don’t talk to my girl like that!”

My girl.

Yup.

Iama crazy person because hearing those words coming out of a dangerous stranger’s mouth just made my heart skip a beat. And wet my panties.

I stood rooted and watched it all play out, not caring one bit how hurt Joey was, or how close that knife was to slicing open his neck. It felt honest to finally stop pretending I wanted him safe.