41. Chapter Forty-one
Chapter Forty-one
Phoebe
Somehow, I fell asleep.
And in the morning, I woke up and moved through my routine like everything was normal.
Deacon watched me the entire time.
I wasn’t much of a talker first thing in the morning—he knew that—but something in my silence must have set off alarms. His eyes never left me as I dressed, got ready, made coffee—not once.
When we sat down to eat a quick breakfast, he finally spoke. “Something happened last night.”
I lifted my gaze to his. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.” He dragged his fingers through his hair, his expression tight, troubled.
My stomach dropped as I braced. “What happened?”
He averted his focus to his plate. “My phone woke me up. Don’t know how long it’d been blowing up, but I had all these texts from an unknown number, telling me it was urgent, they were outside my apartment, and we needed to talk. I figured it was a prank, but I didn’t want you waking up, so I went out to check.”
Oh god, I could barely breathe. My pulse pounded. “Was it a prank?”
“Nope.” He raised his eyes to meet mine. “That woman who was with Richie, Jennifer, she was out there waiting for me. Her friend knows Joy, and she passed along the information that I’m renting this place from her. She didn’t know which one was mine, but she got my number from Richie’s phone.” He shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. Fact is, she was freaking out, and I didn’t want her anywhere near you, so I took her up to my place to find out why she was here.”
I swallowed hard. “What did she say?”
“I don’t know this woman, but she was genuinely scared. Said she’d left Richie and wasn’t going back. He’s gotten mixed up with someone connected to a drug cartel and owes this guy money. A lot of money. She wanted me to know he’s getting desperate, and she was afraid of what he might do.”
I released a shuddering breath. “To you? Does she think he’ll come after you?”
“She didn’t know his plans, but if I had to guess, yeah. She’s worried about that, but more so that he’s gonna get himself killed. Don’t know why, but the woman really loves my brother, and I guess she was hoping there was some way I could help him.”
A nightmare unfolded in my mind. Deacon reaching out to Richie, getting involved with him. Richie latching onto him like a lifeline and dragging them both down.
Both of them dead or in prison.
Either way, I’d lose Deacon.
“You can’t help him,” I rushed out urgently.
He reached across the table, gripping my hand. “No, I can’t. I won’t. But I need to be smart about this. If he comes after me, I have to have a plan.”
I swallowed back panic and fear, focusing on actions we could take to end this. “My parents have lawyers. I think we should talk to one before even considering the police. Chris’s dad should know too, but the lawyer comes first.”
He nodded, jaw tight. “I don’t want to bring your parents into this. It kills me even thinking about it, but it’s better they know. Things like this fester when they’re in the shadows. If there’s light shining, it’ll be harder for Richie to get to me.” His eyes darkened. “Or you.”
“I think you’re right.”
Pushing back from my chair, I moved to him. He scooted back from the table, looking up at me with worry-rimmed eyes. Dark bruises from lack of sleep surrounded them, breaking my heart.
I settled into his lap, straddling his legs, my hands resting on his shoulders as his arms wrapped around my waist.
Pressing my cheek to his, I whispered, “I love you so much, Deacon. So, so much. And I’m sorry this is happening.”
Without a word, he buried his face in my throat and held me as close as he could. Guilt stirred my gut. I shouldn’t have doubted him. He’d proven to me again and again he wasn’t a liar, and he was all in with me.
“I know you saw me leaving last night,” he murmured. “I can tell when you’re not sleeping, angel.”
I squeezed my eyes closed and nodded. “I wanted you to tell me.”
His hand traced soothing circles on my back, comforting me when I wasn’t sure I deserved it. “You thought I was sneaking out to be with another woman?”
Shame burned my throat. “I hate that it crossed my mind.”
“You believe me now?”
“Of course.” I pulled back to meet his eyes. There was no accusation there, just quiet understanding. The worry had lifted, replaced by something much softer.
“I knew that wasn’t what was going on,” I admitted, “but I have this stupid voice in the back of my mind that sometimes won’t leave me alone. It has nothing to do with you. I trust you implicitly. It’s just—”
“ He put that voice there.”
“Yes.” I sighed. “But you keep it quiet.”
“But I keep it quiet?”
“You do.”
He cradled my face in his warm hands, his thumb brushing over my lips. “Love that I do that for you. I hope a situation like this never arises again. If it does, I won’t leave you guessing for hours. We’ll talk and resolve it immediately. Is that good?”
“That’s great, honey.” I kissed his thumb as it passed. “You’ve taken care of me now, so let’s focus on you.”
“Nope.” He drew me close again, touching his lips to my throat. “I’m not done loving on you yet. You spent the last few hours thinking the worst, so let me hold you for a while.” His voice was low, steady. “We’ve got some time this morning. There’s no need to rush through this part.”
“Okay.” I relaxed in his arms, letting him give me all he wanted to.
His breathing stuttered as he resumed stroking my back. “To tell the truth, I needed this just as much. Maybe more.”
It was impossible he needed me more, but I’d let him believe it if he kept holding me just like this.