Chapter 9 #2
Big guy? Oh no, we weren't on good enough terms for him to be giving me nicknames.
Ray slipped out of the changing room, taking my tenuous sanity with him. If Lara didn't tell me who was threatening her, I might lose my mind.
"Jonah." Lara sighed as much as she could, with my weight restricting her lungs. She wriggled in a bid for more freedom, but I couldn't let her go. "Jonah, please."
"Tell me."
Her eyes darted to the side, but there was no escape. My body turned hot and cold as she explained the texts her ex sent. She wasn't telling me the whole truth. Her gaze slid to the side before I could search deeper. It rankled my suspicion. Was it worse than she admitted?
"How do you know you're safe in Greenich Bay?"
Lara pressed at my chest with a frustrated click of her tongue. My head spun with dizzy reluctance as I took a step backward. I missed her warmth immediately, and panic rushed to fill the space between us.
"I just know. He wouldn't follow me here, and I'm not scared. Ray is blowing everything out of proportion because of his bruised ego."
The tilt of her chin became defiant. I noticed my reflection in the mirror. My reddened cheeks and unsteady breaths.
"This ex-boyfriend," my lungs ached as I filled them. "Did he hurt you?"
"No, of course not. But I need you to promise not to tell Adelaide."
I don't know what compelled me, but I reached out and traced the path Ray's touch had taken over her sharp jawline. The tips of my fingers tingled.
"I promise. You can trust me to protect you. We'll deal with him together."
Her lips parted in soft surprise, and the brown of her eyes warmed. Shades of gold shimmered among the dark colors. I would have made any promise to see her look at me like that always.
"Why do you care, Jonah?"
I fought for oxygen. Was it because nobody saved me?
On nights when footsteps loitered outside the bright strip under my shadowed bedroom.
Lara took her bottom lip between her teeth, and I fought the urge to brush my finger across it and find out if her kiss would assuage the bone-deep thirst I nursed.
"How could you think I wouldn't?"
Later that night, when I was supposed to be guarding Adelaide, I watched Lara instead. Surviving my twisted stepfather had been the most grueling thing I'd endured. But having to stand like a statue and watch the woman I wanted on a date with someone else tore me in two.
At least I wasn't the only one.
Ray watched Lara like a predator, tracking each sip she took of wine with a barely restrained sneer.
Her date's dark gray suit jacket buckled around his pretty muscles.
This was a man who spent hours perfecting his workout, but I could crack him in two.
He waved his hands when talking, and Lara tilted her head with a bemused smile.
She played with her diamond necklace, twisting the delicate chain until I thought it would snap.
Why couldn't I tell her I wanted a chance?
The prospect of her saying no hurt too much. I didn't want to find out if she would wait for Ray to end his agreement with Adelaide.
But my turmoil was interrupted, as one of Adelaide's enemies strode into the restaurant.
Beck Goldman.
Greenich Bay's new chief of police. His reputation for being incorruptible made him dangerous to Adelaide.
She needed a police force that could be controlled.
He crashed their dinner without shame, jaw tight.
My heartbeat pounded in my ears as I made my way over.
I wanted to throw him out on his ass, but Adelaide waved me away.
I gritted my teeth and stared daggers at the man. Something didn't match about him. Stiff in an ill-fitting brown suit. The cuffs of his pants dragged under his scuffed shoes. But as he shifted his focus between Adelaide and Ray, his face was a mask of calculation and precision.
Did he have any sense of self-preservation?
Beck should have approached the undisputed queen of the Greenich Bay underworld with more humility. But the chief was a bull, intent on pressing until he crushed her. Adelaide was steel. He would be the one to break.
My heart lodged in my throat as Lara raced over from her table and tapped him on the shoulder. The chief turned with a curled lip, a sharp retort melting away as he took in Lara. She looked beautiful tonight, and he wasn't immune.
The sight of her rendered him speechless.
"We've not met officially, Chief Goldman." Her hand wavered in the air, with a slight tremor. "Lara Miller. I work with Adelaide at the Orazio Foundation. I overheard you've been trying to book a meeting with Adelaide. She's quite busy, but if you like, I can spare some time?"
My tongue thickened with protestations, and my breath turned to cement in my lungs. This man would twist her up in mind games so quickly. I waited for Adelaide to protest where I couldn't. But she assessed them with narrow, cold eyes. Lara spread out her arm, coaxing him further with a sultry tone.
"I know a lovely little place around the corner. It serves wonderful pancakes."
"Call me Beck." He raked his heated gaze down her paneled dress and the intricate straps of her heels.
"Of course, Beck. Let me help you. It would be for the best." Lara waited until Adelaide dipped her head, an infinitesimal movement that made me clamp my tongue between my teeth.
Iron flooded my taste buds as Lara turned on her heel and the chief followed. My body swayed after them, and I had to stop myself. My job was to protect Adelaide. That was my life, and I'd never been conflicted about it before.
No matter what happened, I was supposed to protect her. But my boss's crisp voice interrupted my fog of indecision.
"Follow them."
Her instruction released the chains squeezing my heart, and I raced after Lara with an icy, sharp inhale. For the first time in my life, my duty and my heart fought, and I didn't know which one was going to win.