Chapter 19
CHAPTER NINETEEN
AVA
Amuffled groan pulls me from sleep.
It takes me a handful of seconds to remember where I am, recognizing the bedroom only when I pull the blankets higher and catch a whiff of the familiar woodsy smell of Kasey.
Then I remember I’m in his guest bedroom—my new bedroom—the unfamiliar weight of the ring on my finger a perfect match to the stone in my gut.
I strain my eyes and look around the dark room, trying to figure out what stole me from sleep, but I literally can’t see a thing—it’s so dark out here on the ranch without streetlights or porch lights from neighboring houses.
I’d been exhausted when I peeled my dress off and fell into bed, and I don’t even remember what kinds of furniture decorate this room.
There’s a window on the far wall I’m pretty sure looks out the back of the cabin, but the curtains are closed and out of reach.
Maybe it was an animal outside? One of the horses in the pasture?
“Run!” a male voice shouts from somewhere in the house, tone urgent and full of intense, bloodcurdling fear.
I scramble to sit up, tossing the blankets off my body and twisting to plant my feet on the cold hardwood floor.
A shiver runs through me as I push off the bed to do just as the voice directed and run, but my big toe makes contact with the biting edge of something hard, sending a jolt of pain that radiates through my foot.
“Ow!” I squeak, the urge to cry out muffled only by the fear of a possible intruder. It would be just my luck to stub a toe and lead them right to me. I bend over to rub at the skin, giving myself to the count of ten to wallow in my suffering before moving again.
There’s an unmistakable sound of shuffling coming from across the hall: a thud of something smacking against the wall, the low groan of a bed.
Kasey, I realize, and a new bolt of fear slices through me.
And then I’m running again, because if there is an intruder, it sounds like they’ve already found him.
This time I make it across the room, brushing a hand along the wall to guide me toward the door. I search for the doorknob, cursing when I can’t find it, but then I try the other side and my hand closes around the cool metal, twisting and pushing until I’m in the hallway.
There’s a little more light here, bleeding out from an open window in the living room, but it’s still not much. I can just distinguish the outline of Kasey’s bedroom door on the other side of the hall right as I hear a muffled “Fuck you” from inside.
I don’t hesitate.
Bursting into the room, my eyes fly to the broad male form in the center of the bed, the light of the moon through the window like a spotlight in the heavy darkness.
His sweat-soaked face is crumpled in anguish, the sheets around him twisted into knots and clutched tight in his fists.
His dark comforter lies in a heap on the floor at the foot of the bed, a rogue pillow teetering on the edge behind his back.
It’s Kasey—just Kasey, I realize with striking relief.
No intruder to be found. He’s in the throes of a nightmare, his body thrashing as he grunts and mumbles his protests against whatever’s happening to him behind closed eyelids.
He barks out a strangled curse, his brows pulling together and etched in fear.
I hurry over to him. “Kasey,” I say, shaking his damp shoulders. He flings out an arm but I block it from hitting my knee. “Kasey, wake up!”
His eyes fly open as his chest heaves. “Ava?” he asks, voice hoarse, his terror far from abandoned.
“It’s me,” I say calmly. “You were having a nightmare.”
“A nightmare,” he repeats, squeezing his eyes shut as both frustration and relief war across his face.
“Just a nightmare.”
He groans, leaning forward to bury his face into my lap, a heavy arm wrapping firmly around my hips to draw me in closer.
I soothe my hands across his back, rubbing my fingers into the taut muscles still clenched tight.
“You’re okay,” I tell him, tracing the divots of his long spine. “It was just a dream.”
He curses softly, his face pressed against the fleshy meat of my thigh. “I’m so sorry,” he mumbles.
“Don’t be,” I insist, dragging a hand up to his neck so I can knead my fingers into his shoulders. “I’m just glad you’re okay. I thought someone had broken in. It sounded like you were fighting someone off . . . I thought you might be hurt—”
He abruptly sits up to look at me, his eyes wild. “You thought I was being attacked and you still came in here?” he demands.
I nod, swallowing.
“Ava, don’t ever put yourself in danger like that. You could have been hurt—”
“I wasn’t,” I say back. “No one’s here, Kasey. You’re safe—we’re both safe.”
He blows out a long breath, and I feel his hand tremble where it still grips my waist. “I’m sorry,” he says again.
“You don’t need to apologize. I just want to make sure you’re okay.”
He looks at me, face pained, but stays quiet.
“What were you dreaming about?” I ask. “It sounded awful.”
“Nothing,” he says quickly. “Just . . . stupid shit.”
“Kasey,” I press. “That wasn’t nothing. Maybe if you tell me about it, it’ll help your body settle down. It’ll help your brain process that none of it is real.”
A shadow passes over his expression, and I realize he doesn’t want to tell me. “I’m okay, sugar. We don’t need to talk about it.”
I frown. “Is it about me?”
“No,” he assures me. “Nothing like that.”
“Then tell me,” I try again. “Let me help.”
He groans again, pulling my left hand into his lap and running a thick finger over my new gold band. Even in the dark, I see the ways his muscles bunch at his shoulders, the strong curve of his biceps as he shifts on the bed. It suddenly becomes clear to me: he’s hiding something.
“Kasey?”
“Something happened a few weeks before you got back into town,” he says, his voice tight. “I can’t tell you much or it’ll make you an accomplice.”
Dread sinks through me. “You can tell me, I’m a lawyer. I’m bound to confidentiality.”
“But I haven’t hired you—”
“Consider it a consultation,” I interject firmly. “Plus, as your wife, you’re protected by marital privileges. What you say stays between us, I promise. Tell me what happened.”
He just looks at me, pressing his lips into a firm line.
“Does it have to do with the ranch? With Huck?”
“No.” He shakes his head. “Something else.”
“Something with your family?”
“Rhett’s a part of it,” he concedes. “And Wells too, I guess—he was there. But it’s something I did, not them.”
“Something you did?” I repeat. “Like . . . a crime?”
Again, he doesn’t answer.
“Kasey, I just committed fraud by marrying you to help your family keep the ranch. I’m already complicit in things that have to do with you. Whatever it is you’ve done . . . let me help.”
“It’s a lot worse than fraud, sugar,” he says.
My stomach flips. “I need to know,” I tell him. “I’m married to you—if there’s something you’re worried about . . .” I decide to take a different approach. “If something happens to you, it affects me now. And it affects her too,” I say, hoping he understands what I mean.
“Fuck,” he says, looking utterly miserable, and lets out a resigned sigh. “You have to promise you won’t freak out.”
I narrow my eyes. “It would take a lot to freak me out.”
“You swear?”
“I won’t freak out, Kasey.” I swat at him. “Just tell me.”
He raises his brows like he might want to bet me on it.
And then he says something that decidedly freaks me out.
“I killed someone.”
I gasp, eyes widening, as I cover my mouth with both hands.
“Oh good,” he mutters. “Love that you’re totally not freaking out.”
“You killed someone?”
“Shhh,” he shushes me, looking out his window for any potential midnight onlookers. “Quiet, Ava,” he demands.
I wince. “Sorry,” I say through my fingers.
“It was self-defense,” he’s quick to say. “Rhett got caught up in some illegal card games and someone pulled a gun, shot two undercover cops—”
“Cops?”
“—and then turned the gun on Rhett. I swear he was going to shoot him, Ava, I didn’t have a choice.”
“Holy fucking shit.”
“The guy who hosted the game promised he’d take the fall if anyone starts sniffing around, but . . .” He trails off, looking blatantly scared.
I don’t even know where to start. “Who knows?”
“Ellis, Colt, and Wylie Jo Rustler—we were on their property, and it was Ellis’s game. The other two were at the table along with Rhett. Wells and I got there later, and Olivia stayed in the truck, but she knows.” He frowns. “Layla probably knows too.”
“Who else was there?”
“Two undercover cops who were there to investigate Ellis were both killed by a man named Maverick. None of us knew they were cops until things went to shit and they pulled their badges. Maverick had two guys with him. One was killed, one ran away.”
Shit, I think. “Do you know the man’s name? The one who ran away?”
Kasey shakes his head. “Maverick ran with a rough crowd. None of them were saints. But I don’t know any names.”
“Would you recognize him if you saw him again?”
He considers that. “Maybe? I’m honestly not sure, it’s all kind of a blur.”
“What about . . .” I try to find the right words. “What happened to the bodies? The guns?”
“Ellis dealt with all of it. I didn’t ask, and I don’t want me or my brothers knowing; I think it’s better to remain ignorant in case anyone starts sniffing around.
” A shadow passes over his face again, the weight of this secret pressing down around him.
“You must think I’m a monster,” he whispers, his voice breaking.
“No,” I say quickly, reaching out a hand to cup his face. “I’m . . . processing. I guess I’m in a bit of disbelief. But I know you, Kasey—you’re not a monster. You were protecting your brother. Anyone else would have done the same thing.”
He scoffs. “I wish it had been anyone else,” he admits. “The anxiety is eating me alive.”
My heart breaks at the vulnerability written in the lines of his mouth, the exhaustion I now recognize in his eyes.
“Hey,” I say, tilting his face up to look at me.
I scooch closer to him until my legs are pressing into his, my hand gliding along his jaw.
“You’re all right. We’re going to figure this out together. ”
He looks at me with a reverence that steals my breath. “How are you not running from me?”
Emotion pinches behind my eyes as I give him a small grin. “Tried that already, remember?”
He huffs out a laugh, but he keeps his eyes trained on me.
The air between us charges as I feel his pulse thrum beneath my pinky.
“You’re going to be okay, Kasey,” I say again. “I promise.”
His eyes squeeze shut as his shoulders slump.
I reach for the comforter and pull it back up on the bed, spreading it out around our legs. His eyes open and his gaze catches mine as I slide up beside him, dragging the blanket with me as I go. “Come on,” I say gently. “You need sleep.”
“Ava.” It’s only a half-hearted protest.
“Come on,” I say again. “Come lie with me.”
Kasey relents, settling his weight back down on the bed. He sinks into the mattress, holding an arm out in silent invitation.
I take it, curling my body against his and resting my head on the strong expanse of his chest. He rumbles out a pleased sigh, not quite content, but still edged in relief. “Thank you,” he murmurs, the low timbre of his voice vibrating through my cheek.
I trail light circles across his skin with my fingers until his breathing evens out, and he falls back asleep.
We stay like that, clutched in each other’s arms, for the rest of the night.