“Do you want to sit down for a minute?”

A twinge of pain hit me again, and I nodded. “Yes, please, just for a minute.”

Slipping his arm around my waist, Jack led me to the nearest café and lowered me into a seat. He went up to the counter, and before I knew it, a sandwich and a glass of fresh juice was in front of me. That was it. My blood sugar was low because I’d missed lunch, and, combined with my recent blow to the head, my sudden bout of illness was totally understandable.

Jack slid into the booth next to me and gestured for me to eat the sandwich. I took an eager bite and almost groaned at how good it was. Ham and melted cheese.

“When was the last time you ate?”

I scratched my head. “Um, last night. I forgot breakfast…and lunch. I’ve had a lot on my mind.”

His mouth formed a sad little frown, and he looked out the window, all broody. God, did that come out wrong or what? He thought I meant him. That he was the lot I had on my mind. It couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, when all was said and done, my feelings for Jack were quite simple. It was everything else that was complicated.

He flexed his hand as I ate, forming a fist, and I recognised this as a sign that he was on edge.

“Like I said on the bus,” he started to say, “I understand. Shit, if I were you, I’d be running a mile.”

I placed my hand on his before he had the chance to form a fist again. “You’re wrong. That’s not what this is about. I’m worried about my mother trying to find me, and well, I’ve been having trouble with someone on the campsite.”

The moment the words left my mouth, he turned his entire body to face me as he tilted his head at an angle. Those thick, dark eyebrows drawing together made his expression a little unsettling. “What do you mean? Has someone been hassling you? Was it that little Brazilian twat again?”

“No, no,” I breathed, placing my hands against his chest. “It wasn’t Pedro. It’s…it’s…well, it’s Julie.”

His eyes widened a tiny bit in surprise. “What did she say?”

“It wasn’t so much what she said as what she did.”

He didn’t breathe a word, but he didn’t have to. His face said it all. He wanted to know what she’d done, and he wanted to know now.

“Yesterday when I was out looking for Bea, Julie followed me to the back of the tent. There was nobody around, and she had this plank of wood she must have gotten off one of the cargo trucks. I didn’t even know she was there until she clocked me with it.”

“She what?” Jack eyes flared black murder.

“She hit me with it, then tried to choke me out,” I said, tentatively tugging down the collar of my T-shirt and wiping away the makeup to show him my bruises. “She really hurt me. And honestly, I think she needs help. I mean, giving me evils in the gazebo is one thing, but attacking me is another entirely. She’s off her rocker, Jack. She told me you two were together and warned me to stay away from you. She said if I told anyone what she did, she’d cut out my tongue. That’s why I didn’t say anything last night. I was in too much shock.”

He absorbed my words and my bruises with a scary intensity. “She’ll regret this.” His hands went to my head, searching for the wound she’d inflicted with the wood. He hissed when he found it, and I winced. I felt squeamish just thinking about the mushy lump.

Pulling my body close to his, he clenched his jaw, and I could tell he was having a hard time with all this. It made me melt just a little so see how angry someone hurting me made him, and I regretted not telling him as soon as it happened. A long time passed before he pulled away and looked at me, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear.

“We travel great distances. However, sometimes living in close quarters with so many people can be stifling. I love the circus, but this life can make people go a little odd. I’ve spent a couple of nights with Julie, but those nights were spread over months, and I never gave her any reason to believe there was anything other than sex between us. Saying that, I really shouldn’t have touched her in the first place. She’s always been a wild card.”

I absorbed his words, our faces close as we spoke quietly. The sandwich I’d just eaten, alongside the idea of Jack and Julie together, started to make my stomach feel a little queasy. “Did you ever, you know…burn her?”

Hesitation flickered in his gaze before he answered, “Once, but it didn’t work out. Julie is more suited to being the one doing the burning. She doesn’t like to be made weak. Being with her was like masturbation, Lille, staving off a need, that’s all.”

I glanced away, cheeks heating. He took my chin in his fingers and turned me to face him again. “The first thing we do after we leave here is go to the police station and report her. I’ve had enough of letting shit go, and the fact that the prick who attacked Lola is still out there makes me want to break something. Then we’ll do the flyers. Then we go home. If you see Julie, you will not, I repeat, you will not act like you’re staying away from me. You’ll hold my fucking hand and show her she’s not winning. The police can deal with the rest. I also want you to stay at my place for the next few days. She won’t dare touch you again with me around.”

His plan was a good one…especially the suggestion I stay with him in his van. But still, the idea of reporting Julie, of causing drama for the circus, made me nervous. I was only just beginning to feel like a part of the community, and now I might end up alienating myself. I looked at the dark, brooding man sitting next to me, though, and knew it could be worse. At least in this scenario I got to have Jack.

He ordered another sandwich and shared it with me, but he ate most of it. I wondered absently just how much a big guy like him had to eat every day. I bet it was a lot. If he were a dog, he’d be a malamute or a German shepherd. And those things packed away the grub like nobody’s business.

Even though I had to do most of the talking, I never felt alone while we were at the police station. Jack was close to me through it all, giving me subtle touches or looks to show his support. It struck me that I felt so much stronger when he was with me. He’d worried that being with him would be bad for me, when really the opposite was true.

By the time we left the station, I was exhausted, but we still had to do the flyers. We started on a street with lots of little boutique-style shops. Most of them employed women, and most of those women practically wet themselves when they saw Jack. It began to grate on my nerves, having to suffer through them flirting with him, and in broken English at that. One blonde in her mid-twenties seemed to be fluent, though, and that was the most uncomfortable of all.

“Would you mind if we left some of these with you?” Jack asked, handing her a stack of flyers. “We’re with the circus just outside of town.”

She leaned across the counter and fluttered her eyelashes, her V-neck shirt showing a healthy dose of cleavage. I didn’t even think she realised I was there, standing by the door, uncomfortably holding my jealous/awkward girl of the year award.

“Of course not, mon cher, you look tired. Have you been on your feet all day? Come and sit down — I’ll make you some coffee.” When she reached for his arm, Jack moved out of the way.

“There’s no need. We can’t stop. We have more shops to visit, and it looks like the weather’s turning.”

The woman pursed her lips, and at his mention of “we,” she suddenly became aware of my presence. Her narrow-eyed look wasn’t too different from the ones Julie had been giving me of late, and I wondered if this was what I’d have to contend with from now on. Women hating me because I was with Jack.

Was I with him? It felt like we’d come to some sort of mutual understanding, but neither one of us had put into words what we were or what we were doing.