Melvin fell into a long, profound silence.


    "By the way," Jimmie added, twisting the knife, "you''re a year older than Shanley, aren''t you, Melvin?"


    If he recalled correctly, the three brothers were fraternal triplets, which exined their different appearances. At twenty-eight, Melvin was indeed a year older than Shanley.


    “Hello?” Melvin said, gritting his teeth, feigning a bad connection. “My signal''s cutting out."


    Jimmie: "No problem, I''ll say it again—"


    "Can''t hear you," Melvin cut him off before he couldnd another blow. "Let''s talk when we meet. Hanging up."


    Dammit. That bastard Jimmie. He hoped he''d be single forever!


    "Hahahaha." Hearing the dial tone, Jimmie threw his head back andughed heartily.


    "CRUNCH-”


    The next second, his joy turned to disaster. He''d rear-ended someone.


    "Sorry about that!" Jimmie''s smile vanished as he scrambled out of the car. "Are you hurt?"


    A car to his left had suddenly elerated, forcing him to swerve right and clip the back of a motorcycle. The bike wobbled and fell, shattering a mirror, though the rider seemed to be okay.


    Lue cursed as she climbed to her feet, pulling off her helmet. She was


    e''


    about to unleash a storm of fury when she saw Jimmie''s face. It was this pretty boy again. She was, staring to think she must haves desecrated his family''s ancestral graves in a past life. Why else would fate keep throwing him-and that menace Juniper-in her path?


    Jimmie froze, stunned to see her.


    "Tsk," Lue clicked her tongue, setting her helmet down. She leaned casually against her bike and ran a hand through her stylishly short hair, her eyes glinting with amusement. "I know I left you speechlessst time we met, Mr. Tate, but isn''t this a bit extreme? If you were going to try and take me out, you could have at least picked a dark and stormy night. Doing it in broad daylight is just rude."


    Jimmie''s face paled slightly, his throat tight. "It wasn''t intentional," he said, his voice hoarse. "Are you injured?"


    "I suppose so Lue flexed her


    wrist and strolled toward him, tilting.


    her head up: The faintest hint of


    dimples appeared at the corners of her mouth as che smiled "My hand is scraped, and my bike is damaged. How do you think we should handle this, Mr. Tate?"


    Her sudden proximity and that look on her face made Jimmie''s breath catch in his throat.


    "You want money, is that it?" he asked, instinctively taking a step back. He pulled out a business card from his wallet. "I have somewhere important to be right now. Here''s my contact information. I''ll cover your medical bills and the repairs."


    Money? Lue stared at the card, almostughing in disbelief. What did he take her for, a grifter trying to scam him?


    "You want money, is that it?" she mimicked. Seriously, what kind of nonsense was that?


    "What is it?" Jimmie frowned, noticing her intense stare. "Don''t worry, I''m not going to run off." He couldn''t shake the feeling that this kid had some strange animosity toward him.


    "Tsk." Lue took the card, casually stuffing it into her pocket. A cold, indifferent smile yed on her lips. "Of course you can''t run off."


    After all, she had Juniper.