What Doesn't Destroy Us (The Devil's Dust #1)(26)

“They're nice,” I say cheerfully. “I would like to get a tattoo myself.” Seeing all the ink around me these last few days has me seeing tattoos in a different light.

“You do?” Shadow and Bobby say at the same time, clearly shocked that someone of my upbringing would want to ink herself.

I trail my fingers over Bobby’s shoulder blade and make my way to the kitchen to grab a beer for myself. I can't resist looking over my shoulder to see how my actions play out.

“I think she wants me,” Bobby teases Shadow as he grabs his beer off the coffee table and takes a sip. Shadow punches Bobby in the arm, reverberating the room with a 'smack'.

“Ow, f*cker!” Bobby yells, rubbing his arm where Shadow just plowed his fist.

“So what are we watching next?” I ask, plopping down on the couch opposite of them. I take a sip of my beer, watching Shadow as he stands up to put in the next movie.

“I got one for you,” Shadow says, his gorgeous mouth curved into a malicious grin. As soon as the movie starts I hear eerie music playing. He sits down right next to me.

I know what he is doing. He put a scary movie in hoping I would edge closer to him at the scary parts. Bastard. I scoot as far away as I can on the couch. Maybe not being able to eye-f*ck each other will allow me to actually watch this movie. But sitting near him brings his scent to my nostrils and my body becomes aroused instinctively. His presence right next to mine might make this harder than eye-f*cking from a distance.

Just like Shadow planned, every time something unexpected happens in the movie I jump and edge myself a little closer to him. Near the end of the movie I am so close, I can feel his hot breath on the back of my tender neck. He lays his hand on my knee, teasing me as he slides it slowly up my thigh. My heart is racing; thumping so loud I’m sure he can hear it. I look up through my thick dark lashes and see his stormy blue eyes staring back at me intently. I’m drawn to Shadow like a moth to a flame. I stand no chance of defying his magnetism. Whether he wants me only for sex or something more, at least he can’t seem to leave me alone either.

“Oh shit!” Bobby exclaims, making us jump apart and snapping me back to reality.

I need to distance myself from Shadow. Being this close to him is a sure way to wind up in bed with him again; only waking up regretting my actions.

“Uh, I’m going to bed,” I say, jumping up from my seat.

“Night, Darlin',” Bobby says, waving his hand in the air, not taking his eyes off the screen.

Shadow stands up as I start walking up the steps. “Please don’t follow me. Please don’t follow me,” I say to myself. He doesn’t and now I’m kind of disappointed. My body and mind are making me feel bipolar.

I slip off my shoes, socks and shorts and untie the knot in the Devil’s Dust shirt. I remove my bra like a ninja but leave the shirt on to sleep in. I’m not even tired; I guess I can listen to some music. I dig through my purse for my iPod when all of a sudden I hear something similar to firecrackers.

Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!

The walls vibrate with every pop. I fall to the ground and put my hands over my head in panic. I hear someone yelling my name from a distance. Suddenly, my door flies open and Shadow throws himself over my body.

“Stay down, Dani,” he shouts above the chaos. I can feel his heart beating as his chest covers my back, protecting me from the hostile world around us.

As fast as it started everything goes silent and still.

“Wh-what was that?” I ask, frantically.

“Bullets. You okay?” he asks, lifting his body off mine.

Bullets? Someone was shooting at us? I can feel my hammering heart trying to catch up with my frenzied breathing, causing me to feel light-headed.

Shadow takes my face in both of his hands. “Look at me. Breathe, baby,” he says calmly, his tenderness not going unnoticed.

I grab his wrists and stare into his stormy eyes as I inhale a deep breath.

“Baby?” I repeat, confused that he would call me that. Baby is a term you use for someone you care about. I’m not that, am I?

Shadow's eyes widen. He didn’t even realize he called me that in the heat of the moment. He drops his hands from my face, breaking contact instantly.

I look down at my body and feel around; making sure my limbs are still intact. Still looking down at myself, I spot blood dripping on the floor. Where is that coming from? I’m sure I wasn’t hit. I retrace the thick bloody drip to find it coming from Shadow's arm.

“Shadow, you’re bleeding. You’ve been shot!” I yell, pointing at his arm.

He looks down at where I'm pointing, “Oh, shit. I have been shot,” he says surprised.

“I’ll be fine. Are you okay?” He looks at his arm again then back at me. Seriously, that’s his reaction to being shot? I nod my head that I'm fine, physically. Mentally, I’m not sure yet.

“She okay?” Bobby asks, running into the room.

“Yeah, she’s fine. I caught one though.” He lifts his arm to show the damage.

“Did you get a look at who it was?”

“Nah, man. Motorcycles, but I couldn’t tell who,” Bobby says, taking a look at Shadow's arm, then at me. Suddenly I’m aware that I’m only in a t-shirt and underwear. I grab the bottom of the shirt and try to pull it further down to cover myself, but I'm not accomplishing much. Shadow grabs my shorts from the floor and hands them to me.