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"Charlie?"

"I’lass of water and I i beneath me tothe skirt of my short dress down to a respectable level I shudder in response

"You dropped like a bag of bricks What happened?" Ginger frowns

I shrug, trying to play it off "Not sure Just got dizzy for a

I’one I should be on a bus, close to Louisiana or Alabama--wherever my coin toss lands me I would have been, if the bank had released my money They told e sue a sum, I learned that Sam had deposited 25,000 dollars instead of the ten heThat’s typically how Sam operates, after all

It’s funnythe second the teller informed me that I couldn’t pull all that htness washed over me

Relief

Relief that I had a valid excuse to stay for oneht with Cain I’ll take one night with hiive me, to earn myself memories that I can hold on to

Cain’s concern hasn’t disappeared "Was it too hot? Too loud? What did you eat today?" There’s a frantic tone to his voice that tellsto work and he’s truly worried about me

"Oh, crap" I roll my eyes rather dramatically so he doesn’t ot" That’s partly true I didn’t eat, but I ell aware of it I just didn’t feel like it,into anxious knots

Cain heaves a sigh "Can you walk?" He stands and holds a hand out I take it, and an electric current instantly dances along h my core

"Good" His eyes drift toout behind my bar You need to eat"

"This place is nice," I ad to Biscayne Bay just below We’re seated at a s behind and a band playing soft alt-country music in the opposite corner

I was careful to watch for tails on ain, when I climbed into Cain’s Nav But noe’re far away from the noise of the club, the hustle of Miami’s streets, and for the first time all day, I feel safe Sheltered

A rare, broad smile on Cain’s face tells me that he’s pleased "It’s one of my favorite restaurants I live just over there" His index finger points out one of the tall luxury condos on the water It doesn’t surprise me Cain has "don bachelor" written all over hiht, "I haven’t been here in a while"

"What does that tell you?" I mutter dryly

His head dips once in assent "Yes, I know I need a life Storht chuckle escapes his lips

It acts as a sedative forinto my limbs The waitress arrives with a bottle of wine and we say nothing, silently stealing glances at each other as she fills our glasses with cabernet, the soft buzz of conversation andaround us

When the waitress leaves with our order, Cain finally speaks up, his voice cal Now that the shock has worn off, I’ "I don’t do that often" I’ve actually never passed out before but I don’t want Cain to know that, so I make sure my hand is steady as I take a sip ofback in his chair in a white dress shirt, unbuttoned at the top and looking casual yet tailored His dark hair, norhtly unkehtest five o’clock shadow across his jaw

He’s a kind of handsome I’ve never seen in real life I can’t believe I’ve been stripping for hi ht with a kind of reckless abandon I didn’t know possible And now I’o hoht