Duke smirks, puffing out his chest with pride. “I broke in through the basement window when you didn’t come back to school. I half-expected to find your decaying corpse somewhere in the house, but I found nothing. No sign of you, but all your shit was still here. Where the hell have you been, Sarah? You disappeared off the face of the fucking planet.”
I can’t help but smile at the concern in his voice. “I promise I’ll tell you everything, but I can’t tell you now. You’ve really got to go.” I push him toward the door and unlock all the locks. Before I can open it and give him the gentlest of shoves over the threshold, he puts his hand on the door to prevent me from opening it. He takes my hand in his. “Duke,” I whisper yell.
Duke looks down like he can’t believe he’s holding my hand again, rubbing his thumb over my fingers. “I missed you, is all. I’ll go. I’ll go. Just…just tell me that you’re okay. That you’re going to be okay. That whatever is going on with you isn’t a life or death thing.”
“I’ll be okay,” I tell him. “I promise.”
Duke flashes his winning smile. “Good, then I’ll see you back at school?” he asks, removing his hand from the door.
I exhale. “I’m not sure,” I say, dropping my shoulders. I reach for the door.
“Oh,” Duke stops me from opening the door again.
I’m not expecting Duke to wrap his arms around me and press his lips to mine. They are still as soft and skilled as ever but even though they are warm, his lips feel cold. Wrong. I don’t want this. I don’t want him. He doesn’t smell like oil and cigars and soap.
I push on his chest and disconnect my lips from his just as a deep voice cuts through the space between us. “Get the fuck away from her.”
Smoke’s standing less than ten feet away wearing only his opened jeans. His hair is wet and slicked back. Beads of water fall down his chest as he moves. His feet are planted wide. Dark eyes are cold, flinty. I can see his quickening pulse through the throbbing vein under the pocket watch tattoo on his neck. He raises his gun and aims it at Duke.