Chapter 7 #2
April splashed some cold water on her face and eyed multiple tubes of lipstick in fancy golden cylinders.
She pulled out a basket from underneath the sinks and swept them into it along with the sable makeup brushes and bottles of perfume, wincing as the glass clinked, hoping she didn’t just break anything.
She could resell them online for good money if she had to.
I’m thinking like I did when I first got to Vegas. Gaging the value of everything and how I can squeeze out every last penny. She’d gotten soft the past few years, too comfortable. Vulnerable. Weak.
“I don’t even know where I’m going,” she told her reflection, realizing even as she said the words it was a straight-up lie. She was going to the one place she didn’t ever want to see again.
“Home.”
But saying the word didn’t hurt like it had since she’d left Lyons.
Instead, it coated her insides like warm honey.
Her mom was there, a woman who’d shown her nothing but love.
Her little sister, who’d always looked up to her.
Same with her cousin, who might as well have been her sister.
And her Papa, the model of a loving, protective man.
The opposite of the bastard she’d married.
“I’m going home,” she whispered to her reflection. She cupped her belly. “We’re going home.
Three hours later, she stood in the foyer with four large suitcases and a stack of boxes to be mailed. She shrugged her lucky Louis Vuitton bag higher onto her shoulder and scrolled through her contacts until she found the one she trusted the most and hit call.
Bunni answered on the first ring. “I saw the news.”
April’s stomach tightened. Word had gotten out quickly, which was no surprise. But, she was hoping her old friend would still be there for her.
“So, whatcha need from me, kid?”
April smiled with relief. Bunni understood. “I need a ride. I’m leaving town.”
“Fucking finally,” Bunni sighed. “But why not drive yourself?”
“The car is in his name, and it can be traced. He might even accuse me of stealing it.”
“Ah, yeah, gotcha.”
“I’ve got everything packed and ready. Could you come—”
“Uh-uh, no,” Bunni interrupted her. “We’re not doing it that way. I’m not coming direct to you. Too many eyes. Here’s what you do.” Bunni gave April instructions that made her sigh with relief. She wasn’t thinking straight, so Bunni had her back.
An hour later, April relaxed in the back seat of Bunni’s cab.
She’d picked her up at the bus station after April had mailed her boxes at the post office, driven to the station, and parked her ex-fiancé’s car on the street nearby.
Then, she went inside and bought a one-way ticket to Los Angeles, using her credit card.
She went back outside to the curb. When Bunni pulled up and parked, her eyes went straight to the white Louis Vuitton slung over April’s shoulder.
The rainbow LVs flashed in the sunlight, and her brows shot up.
“Still got your lucky bag,” Bunni said as April slid into the back seat.
April smiled faintly and rested her hand on the smooth leather handle. “I don’t know if you can still call it lucky, considering how everything turned out. But I love it as much as the day I bought it. My first splurge. And I never had to pawn it.”
Bunni nodded as she pulled away from the curb and pointed the taxi at the airport. “What time’s your flight?”
“I haven’t bought the ticket yet. I’ll buy one and pay in cash when I get there.
” She knew paying cash would probably flag her for an extra security screening, but that was a risk she’d have to take.
Her April Meyer identity had held up, especially after she renewed ‘her’ driver’s license and got a Nevada one.
Once she got home, she’d slip back into her April Taylor identity.
She was sure her mother had held onto her birth certificate.
“I’m glad you’re getting out, but I’m gonna miss you, kid.”
April felt her heart breaking. She’d never see Bunni again, since returning to Vegas would practically be a death wish. “I should tell you, my real name is—”
“Stop right there. What’d I tell you about Vegas?”
“Not to trust anyone.” April laughed sadly. “I guess I never learn. But you’re the only one I trust, Bunni. My name is April Taylor.”
The cab pulled up to the curb at Departures. Bunni popped the trunk while April snagged an abandoned baggage cart for free—my lucky purse must be working she thought ironically. The women loaded the bags onto the cart then faced each other. April blinked back tears.
“Don’t say it because you’re gonna make me cry and I don’t do tears.” Bunni held up her hand. “Just be happy.”
April lunged forward anyway and hugged her old friend. “I’ll never forget you.”
“Better not.”
“I feel like I’m going home a failure, Bunni.”
Bunni pulled back from their hug just enough to glance at the purse again. A slow grin tugged at her lips.
“Remember how you felt walking out of that store the day you bought this thing? Shoulders back, like you were the queen of the whole damn Strip?”
April’s throat tightened. “Yeah.”
“Hold on to that feeling all the way home. And for the rest of your life, kid.”
"April—" Shane's voice came out rough, guttural, bringing her back to the present. He reached for her but she held up her hand. If Shane touched her now she just might shatter, proving him right—that she was fragile after all.
"So, the day he got arrested, I packed my bags and ran. Same day I realized I was pregnant with a baby he never wanted." She suppressed another shiver, hearing Vince’s threatening voice that morning when she’d excitedly told him her period was late.
He’d told her to ‘do something about it.’ That was when she really knew she needed to leave.
"I came home. I told my family everything. They kept quiet and I went back to being April Taylor.” She smiled softly.
“Sort of a do-it-yourself witness protection program.
I worked with the detectives, helped build the case, Vince went to prison, and they kept my true identity a secret.
As far as I know, he still thinks I'm April Meyer.”
She swallowed hard. “But I know him. He’s very charismatic and he knows how to make deals.
He always knew a guy who knew a guy who could get things done.
When the drive-by happened, we all panicked.
We thought it might be him, that he’d found me and was seeking revenge.
That he’d sent some goons to shoot up Riversong.
" Her lips twisted bitterly. "I felt equal parts horrified for Rochelle and guilty relief when I knew it wasn’t Vince. "
Shane's hands flexed, his chest rising with a long, deep breath.
"So that's it," April said quietly. "That's what Kevin overheard."
Shane was quiet for a long moment, processing. "When is Vince supposed to get out?"
April gave Shane a tentative smile. This was where she could reassure him.
“He’s been out on parole just over a year.
He got out right before the shooting, so you can understand why I was afraid.
But, he hasn’t shown up here in all this time.
Really, with each day that passes, the less I think he’s coming for me. ”
“Except for today, right?”
April closed her eyes. Busted. “Except for today.”
“When you answered my call, you thought I was him.”
She nodded. “I…did.”
When she opened her eyes, she expected Shane to look angry. Instead, his eyes were full of sympathy.
“Baby,” he whispered. “I don’t know how you’ve carried this fear for so long without breaking.”
“I have my family.” She shrugged. “They’re the best. They talk me down, as you know now. And I have—”
You.
“—a whole lotta friends who would protect us.”
“Friends.” Some of the light left Shane’s eyes when he said the word.
April grabbed his hand. “Good friends.”
He glanced away for a moment. “Let me help you with that worry.” He pulled out his phone and typed quickly.
“What are you doing?”
"Sending Vince Romano’s name to Kyle now. We’ll keep an eye on him, make sure he’s behaving himself."
"Shane, you don't have to—"
"Yeah, I do." He looked up from his phone, and the intensity in his eyes made her breath catch. "Kevin asked me to protect you. But even if he hadn't..." His voice dropped lower. "I'd do anything for you, April. Anything."
The words hung between them, heavy with old pain and new possibility.
"This is ridiculous," April said, but there was no real heat in it. "I'm probably just being paranoid. What would you even do—park yourself at a corner table all day?"
Shane's eyes lit with humor and something warmer. "Twist my arm."
Despite everything, April found herself smiling. "You're serious."
"Dead serious. Kyle can run background, track his movements, see what he's up to.
If he's behaving himself and staying put, we'll know.
If he starts heading this way, we'll know that, too.
" Shane leaned back slightly. "You don't have to look over your shoulder anymore, April. Let us do that for you."
April studied his face—the quiet confidence, the way he made it sound so simple and reasonable. Not like she was asking for the moon, just basic peace of mind. And after the day she’d had, how could she say no to that?
“Thank you.”
“It’s the least I can do.” He grinned. “Now, about the bodyguard gig.”
“Of course you don’t have to.”
“Mom?” Kevin’s voice came from the crack in the door. April and Shane moved apart quickly.
“Hey, I thought you were up front watching Pete,” April said, her voice pitched just a little too high.
“He has to go potty so I’m taking him out the back.” April opened the door to see Pete wagging his tail beside Kevin, looking way happier than her son. “You need a bodyguard and Shane said he would.”
“I said I’d discuss it with your mom,” Shane corrected.
“Please, Mom. I don’t want you to get hurt.”
April blew out a breath. “I’m not going to get hurt, honey.”
Kevin switched his stare to Shane. “Then if Mom’s not going to hire you, teach me how to be a bodyguard. Please.” He was near tears.
Shit. If I tell him no, I’ll find him hiding under the bed again. I’m not going to let my stubbornness get in the way of my kid’s happiness.
She looked at Shane, whose expression told her he was out of his league. Funny to see such a tough guy look so helpless in the face of a third grader.
"For Kevin's sake," she said quietly. "A trial period?"
Shane nodded, though something in his expression suggested it was for his sake, too.
Kevin's grin could have powered half of Lyons. He dug into his pocket and pulled out a crumpled fifty-dollar bill and tried to give it to Shane.
"For your retainer," he said solemnly. “You can keep the whole thing.”
Shane looked down at the money, then back at Kevin. With one smooth motion, he folded Kevin's palm and wrapped the boy's fingers around the bill.
"Pro bono, remember? But I appreciate the vote of confidence."
As Kevin beamed and launched into questions about bodyguard protocol, April felt something she hadn't experienced in years: the dangerous, terrifying sensation of inviting Shane back into her life.
Shane caught her eye over Kevin's head, and his small smile promised everything she was afraid to hope for.
Don't get used to this, she warned herself. Remember how he ran out on you when you needed him the most.
“Better take Pete outside before he starts doing the pee-pee dance,” April warned.
“Okay, Mom.” He threw himself at her and hugged her around the waist, almost knocking her over. “Thanks.” Then he dashed out the door with Pete more than happy to run at his side.
Kevin came back a minute later and they all walked back into the main shop together. Kevin ran up to Sonny and launched into a complex negotiation that involved giving Pete the other half of his sandwich. It sounded like an elaborate international trade agreement.
"April." Shane's voice was soft beside her. "Whatever happens next, you're not handling this alone. You won't ever have to run again. I promise."
Looking into his eyes, April tried to believe him.