Chapter Thirteen
Leaving Sophia was hell. Once I got her settled in her house, I made sure she locked the doors. I’m more determined than ever to get hold of Ryder.
“Hey, Chief, can I talk to you?” I knock on his door.
“Of course. Come in.” He takes his glasses off, putting them on the desk.
“I’m going to do it.” I tell him from the doorway. “I’m going to take the test and join that task force.”
“Can I ask why you’re so sure all of a sudden?” His questioning gaze stares me down.
“I just need to keep someone safe. And this is the best way to do it.”
“Ah. Has the mighty fallen?” He laughs.
“Something like that.” I tap the door frame and walk out without saying anything else.
Once I’m back in the safety of my office, I lock the door to make my phone call.
“Ryder,” he answers on the first ring.
“Ryder, this is Officer Keaton.”
“Sorry. I think you have the wrong number,” he says.
And I immediately know he can’t talk.
“I know everything.”
A pause. “Sorry. Wrong number.”
Then the call ends.
Fuck.
My office phone rings, making me jump. “Officer Keaton,” I answer.
“This is Damon Tinston. I believe you just had the wrong number and were trying to reach me.”
“I want Ryder.”
“I’m here. I’ll be able to help you. Ryder is unavailable at the moment.”
“Damon. I need to know what you know.”
“Everything, sir. I’m Ryder’s right hand.”
I run my hands through my hair. “Is she safe?”
“As far as we know. The target is secure. We will contact you if anything changes.” The call ends again.
Once again, I’ll have to trust Ryder. Something I don’t like to do. I don’t put a lot of trust in other people.
A knock sounds on my door an hour later. “Wyatt, there’s someone here for you.”
I open the door, and Adam stands on the other side with a very large, older man.
“Thanks, Adam.” I step aside, ushering the man in.
Closing and locking the door, I take my seat behind my desk. “How can I help you?”
The man silently hands me a package.
“What is this?” I ask, taking it. “Who are you?”
“You’ll have everything you need. It’s from Damon.” With that, he stands and leaves my office.
Opening the package, I see a note on top, with a flip phone underneath.
Here’s a burner phone. There’s one number programmed in it. Don’t call any other numbers. Forget them all. I’ll contact you first. I have guys close by if needed. I sent them when the appeal started.
RC
I don’t know if this makes me feel better or not. That large guy was obviously part of his crew. A crew I don’t necessarily want in my area.
Stuffing the phone in my pocket, I shred the note and padded envelope it came in. Then I leave my office to go out and patrol. Only a few more hours, and I can go home to Sophia.
“Wyatt.” Cooper comes down the hallway toward me with a pissed off look on his face.
“What’s up?”
“You had one rule when it came to Sophia. One. And you couldn’t fucking follow it?”
I stare at him, knowing exactly what he’s talking about, but not how he found out. “It’s not what you think?”
“Really? You aren’t fucking Sophia? Tell me that she’s lying to Aubrey then. Because I just overheard them at the inn giggling like fucking school girls over you.”
Damn it. She was supposed to stay home.
“Well. I mean, I haven’t actually fucked her yet. We’re just playing around.” I shrug and put on my playboy facade.
“Wyatt. Are you fucking kidding me?” His fists are balled at his side, but he knows better than to try and swing.
“What? She’s hot.”
“Leave her the fuck alone. It’s not a good fucking idea.” He turns and leaves. Doesn’t ask me about anything else or think better of me.
Obviously he knows the truth, and I can appreciate him being protective of her. But I can’t let him know that I know the truth about her. So I let him go. I let him think that I’m the piece of shit they all believe me to be when it comes to women.
My day went to shit at work after Cooper berated me in the office. My mind stayed on Sophia the entire shift. How I’m going to keep her safe with Hugh back out of prison. How my brother thinks so lowly of me that he wouldn’t trust me with Sophia.
But none of that compared to spending the afternoon riding around with Adam gushing about Tiff and having to hear about all the sex they’ve been having.
Good for them. Really. But I don’t give one shit. And if he told me to try and make me jealous, it didn’t work. I could not give one shit what the two of them are doing.
Pulling into my driveway, I see Sophia in the window, waving to me. Naked.
Goddamn, she keeps me on my toes. She needs to move in here. I’m not risking her safety out there alone in the cabin.
I rush to get upstairs and tell her my plan. Finding her on the couch, I join her, pulling her to me.
“Hey, Officer. How was your day?” She straddles me, her tits in my face before she sits back on my lap.
“Well, it’s a lot fucking better now. But I want to talk to you about something first.”
Her eyes grow wide as she stares at me. “What about?”
“With Hugh out, I think you should move in here. I can keep you safer under my own roof.”
Shocking me, she hops off my lap. “What?”
“Move in with me. It’s safer here. You can have the guest room if you want it, or you can stay with me in my bed.”
She moves to grab her tee and shorts, slipping them on. “I’m not moving in with you, Wyatt. Hugh has taken enough from me. I don’t want him taking anything else.”
“What?” I stand, following her to the door, completely dumbfounded at what just happened.
“I’m not moving in with a man because of Hugh.
The next man I live with is going to want me to live with him for me, not because Hugh Chiave is dictating the situation.
And even though he’s not forcing you, he is.
Just the mere threat of him is pushing you to ask me.
I’m not doing that. I lived with Hugh my whole life.
If he finds me, I’ll figure it out again. ”
Then she opens and shuts the door, leaving me on the other side.
Shit. This day keeps getting better.
I should have taken a minute to think of things from her point of view. I never stopped to think about what it was like to grow up with him. I only thought of my need to keep her safe.
And that’s exactly the kind of selfish shit she doesn’t need in her life right now.