Dare to Lie

by Jen McLaughlin

  He tried to sit up, but I pushed his shoulders back down. “Where do you think you’re going?”

  “Chris. I need to see—”

  “I’m alive, man,” Chris called out from the other couch. “I’m here.”

  Scotty collapsed in relief. “Thank God.”

  “Glad to know you care,” Chris said.

  “When I feel better I’m going to kill you for that stunt you pulled.”

  Molly stiffened. “What stunt?”

  “Nothing, Princess,” Chris cut in. “Nothing.”

  Their voices lowered, Molly’s sounding pretty darn angry, and I turned my attention back to Scotty. He was silent, letting me clean him up, and then he took a breath, holding it in for a while, cringing when he let it out. “I thought they were going to kill us.”

  Where were the paramedics?

  “They still might, if you don’t get medical care soon. This isn’t Steel Row, they should be here by now.”

  “I have you,” he said, smiling slightly. “That’s enough.”

  “No, it’s not.” I had a small pile of used and filthy alcohol wipes, but Scotty needed actual medical intervention. I got up and retrieved a bag of frozen vegetables from the freezer, and wrapped it in a kitchen dish towel. When I returned to Scotty, I held it gently to his bruised cheekbone. “I thought they were going to kill you, too. This is the worst day of my life.”

  “It’s pretty high up there on my list of shitty days, too,” he said, smiling again.

  The smile made him wince, and I frowned.

  “How can you smile about this?” I kept the ice pack on his face as I caught his hand, holding on tightly. “My brother almost killed you.”

  “Because I’m alive, and so is Chris. We’re out, and we’re not dead, and you and I can be together now. We can be happy, sugar,” he said, his voice fading out at the end.

  I smiled, even though tears blurred my vision, turning my view of him into a messy watercolor painting. “You’re right. That’s something to smile about.”

  Sirens sounded in the distance, getting closer, and I exchanged glances with Molly. She offered me a reassuring nod, kissed Chris’s forehead, and stood.

  As she made her way to the door, I turned back to Scotty. “So it’s over?”

  “It’s over. No more gang wars, no more death. No more bloody surprises.” He reached out, cupping my cheek. “Just you and me, sugar.”

  Thank God.

  “I love you,” I said, leaning down to gently kiss his lips as the paramedics rushed in. After I pulled back, I stood and moved out of the way. “So much.”

  “I love you, too, sugar.”

  My phone buzzed with a text message.

  I ignored it.

  “That’s probably your brother.”

  I shrugged.

  “You should answer him,” Scotty said, frowning as the paramedic poked at his arm. “He did the best he could, considering the circumstances. He voted in our favor.”

  Biting down on my tongue, I shook my head. “I don’t care. I’m still mad at him.”

  “So be mad. But he loves you.” The paramedic wrapped a splint around Scotty’s finger, and he cursed under his breath. “And you love him,” he finally gritted out.

  Wrapping my arms around myself, I said nothing on that matter. In my opinion, this discussion was over. “Do I need to call anyone for you?”

  “Nah.” The paramedics lifted him slightly. “They’ll find me,” he gritted out. “Shit. I’m going to the hospital for the third time since you met me.”

  “You know what they say,” I murmured. “Third time’s the charm.”

  He laughed, but it ended on a groan.

  Molly came up to me. Her guard followed behind her, a cell phone pressed to his ear as he spoke quietly. “Want to ride to the hospital with me? I’m going to follow the ambulance.”

  “Sure.” I pushed my hair behind my ears, watching as they loaded Scotty onto a stretcher. Chris was already being wheeled out. “Thanks.”

  She smiled and headed for her purse, her bodyguard trailing her.

  As the paramedics pushed the stretcher past me, Scotty grabbed my hand. “Wait.”

  They stopped, one guy shooting me a hurry up and let us do our jobs look.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  “Nothing. I just wanted to kiss you.”

  A smile lifted my lips, despite the fear that still coursed through my veins that he might not be okay. “Silly man.”

  “Over you, I’ll always be a little bit silly.” He reached out and caught the back of my neck, pulling me down. “Kiss me, woman.”

  I did.

  He whispered something deliciously naughty in my ear, then nipped it. I laughed, covering my mouth, and stood straight, my cheeks heating. “Scotty.”

  “Later?” he asked, his voice thick and full of promise.

  Cheeks heating, I nodded. “Oh yeah. Definitely later.”

  He finally let me go, and the EMTs rushed him out of the house. Despite everything that had happened in the past twenty-four hours, my heart expanded with hope, happiness, love. Because, despite all the odds racked up against us, we’d won.

  We’d gotten our happy ending.

  EPILOGUE

  SCOTTY

  One year later

  The restaurant around us was packed tight, filled with conversations, laughter, and wine. The tables were covered in fine white linen, and tall pink and green candles gave the room a romantic glow, which provided a soft ambience that was perfect for what I wanted. And it was symbolic, too, me bringing her here. It was the restaurant we’d gone to for our first date, when I’d tried to scare her off and failed.

  Thank God.

  A life without Sky in it wouldn’t be a life at all.

  I’d learned that the hard way, and it was a lesson I’d never forget.

  We’d been dating for a year now, and we’d never spent more than two nights apart, and those two nights were always the worst nights I’d had in a long damn time—including all the nights when I almost died. I couldn’t sleep without her by my side, snuggled up against me, all softness where I was hard. She was my heart. My world. My life. And if I was lucky enough . . .

  Soon she’d be my wife.

  Absentmindedly, I rubbed my thigh where I’d been shot in that parking lot over a year ago. I still had residual pain from the injuries I’d sustained in those first few weeks we were together, but I’d miraculously managed to avoid going back to the hospital since.

  Life had been calm. Quiet. Perfect—because of Sky.

  She sat down across from me, smiling. I forced my mind back to her, focusing on her words. “. . . said he might stop by on his way home. He wanted to say congrats to me for having the best GPA.”

  That’s why we were here celebrating. She was immersed in school right now, but it had paid off, and now she was number one in her class, which was huge. She studied every night, and I usually went over files, or read, or just enjoyed being with her as she scribbled notes, her forehead furrowed with concentration as she—

  “Scotty?” she asked, frowning.

  “What?” I snapped out of it. “Huh?”

  “Is something wrong?” She leaned in and nibbled on her lip. “Are you upset because Tate’s coming? Because I can tell him not to—”

  “No, of course not.” I forced a smile, but my heart was pounding because at any second, the waitress was going to bring the champagne. “You know I don’t mind that.”

  It had taken her a while to start to forgive Tate. They’d gone months without speaking, but eventually, I’d put my foot down. Life was too short to hold on to grudges, and she loved Tate as much as he loved her, so I finally interfered, something I’d sworn not to do. When she came home and found him sitting there, drinking a beer with me, they argued
for a good ten minutes, and then everything was fine.

  Tate and I had come to an understanding of sorts, too. He did his thing in Steel Row, and never talked about it, and I did mine with the DEA on the opposite side of the city, and stayed equally silent. I wasn’t undercover anymore, and I hadn’t gone back to Steel Row since the day I almost died. I might have lost my home and my cover, but I’d gotten a promotion, and Skylar.

  I didn’t miss my old life in the slightest.

  I was done with secrets. Done lying.

  Now, I was just me, and I liked myself again.

  Agent Torres hadn’t been happy I was dating Tate’s sister, but after a thorough background check on her, I’d gotten the green light. And life had been pretty much perfect since then.

  I’d gotten everything I wanted, and I was still fighting for Steel Row . . .

  Just from the outside.

  “Then what’s wrong?” she asked slowly.

  “Nothing.” I rested an elbow on the table, eyeing the kitchen door. “Remember the first time we came here?”

  She glanced around us. “How could I not? You were a jerk to me the whole time.”

  “Yeah . . .” I winced. “But even so, that night, I knew we had something. And when you were talking and yelling at me because you thought I was different, I remember watching you and thinking, ‘Holy shit, this girl is right. She feels the same things I do, and she’s not afraid to admit it.’ That scared the shit out of me, knowing you saw me, the real me, within an hour or two of meeting me. I wasn’t sure what to do, but I knew that I couldn’t walk away after you said all those things. I had to stick around to see what came next. I had to know.”

  She laughed nervously. “Well, that, and your bosses kind of made you, so . . .”

  “Doesn’t matter. I would have stayed anyway, because I needed to. And I still feel like that, every single day I spend with you.” I took a deep breath, dragging a hand through my hair. “Usually, I let you take the lead, because you’re so much damn better at this shit than I am. When you rolled over, kissed me, and asked me to move in with you, I knew that it was the right thing, just like I knew staying with you that first night was the smartest thing I’d ever done at the time. And that falling in love with you was the best thing. And now . . .” I glanced over her shoulder. The waitress approached, two glasses of Sky’s favorite champagne in her hands. “Now I know what comes next.”

  She gripped the edge of the table, her cheeks flushed. “And that is . . . ?”

  The champagne was set down in front of us, and she glanced at the ring tied to the stem of the glass with a small blue ribbon that matched her eyes perfectly. I slid out of my seat, down to one knee, and the room around us hushed.

  She covered her face, her eyes wide. “Scotty.”

  “Skylar Marie Daniels, I love you with all my heart, soul, and mind. Before you came into my life, I was lost on a crusade, and my life was empty. Everything was gray. Nothing was bright, or shiny, or colorful. But now . . . everything is filled with vibrant colors, and shades, and life, and that’s because of you. Because you love me, and I love you, too. Now I’m ready for the next step, and I’m hoping you are, too. Will you marry me and make me the luckiest man alive?”

  She nodded frantically “Yes, God, yes.” She fell to the floor on her knees and threw her arms around me, pressing her mouth to mine. She tasted like champagne, tears, and Sky. It was a combination I’d never forget. Pulling back, she laughed nervously and buried her hands in my hair. “So much frigging yes.”

  Grinning, I helped her to her feet, and the room clapped. I bowed and Sky curtsied. I untied the ring and she watched, biting down hard on her plump lower lip. As I slid it onto her finger, a shadow fell on us. “I assume double congratulations are in order?”

  “Tate!” Laughing, Sky flung herself at him. “Did you know?”

  He caught her easily, meeting my eyes and nodding once. “Of course I did. Scotty asked for your hand, and I said yes. Let me see the ring.”

  She stepped out of his arms, still smiling, and held her hand out. It was a simple round diamond in a halo setting, platinum. It fit her perfectly. Tate had helped me get her measurements, and Chris went with me to pick it out, even though he’d been getting little to no sleep lately. Newborns weren’t on the best schedule, after all.

  “It’s gorgeous, Skylar,” Tate said, holding her hand steady so he could admire it. “Congrats.” He glanced at me, nodding once. “To both of you.”

  She beamed at me. “Thanks.”

  “I have an early wedding present for you. I’m going to walk you down that aisle,” Tate said, looking at me briefly. “And before I do . . . the Sons of Steel Row will be no more.”

  I stiffened. “What?”

  “I’m going straight. I’m going to have little nieces and nephews soon, I’m assuming, and I don’t want to be the uncle that’s in jail. I don’t want to miss out on their lives because someone finally caught up to me. I’m done. I never wanted this life in the first place, and it’s time to let it go.” He stuffed his hands in his pockets. “I’m going to see it done.”

  Sky smiled even bigger. “Thank God.”

  Tate and I locked eyes, and he gave one shake of his head. Sky might be happy that her brother was going clean, but we both knew he couldn’t just walk away. If he was disbanding the gang, then it was going to be dangerous, and ugly, and . . .

  Shit.

  I was going to have to save his ass.

  Again.

  A woman came up to Tate, and he stiffened. She had olive skin, brown hair, and even browner eyes. Her lips were red, and she was beautiful—almost as beautiful as Skylar. Tate stared down at the woman, his face paling as he stepped back, his jaw tight. “Lucille? What—?”

  She smiled, flung her brown hair over her shoulder, and slapped him across the face. Tate staggered back, shock written all over his face, and she stormed off, not looking back.

  Both my and Sky’s jaws dropped.

  Tate tightened his mouth and stared after the woman, his eyes narrow. I cleared my throat, putting an arm around Sky, and asked, “Is she a friend of yours?”

  “Yeah.” Tate touched his cheek. “Something like that.”

  He turned and walked away without another word, following the woman with long strides.

  Sky tried to go after him, but I tugged her back. “Let him go.”

  “But—”

  I kissed her, effectively silencing her. She curled her hands into my shirt, holding on tight, and moaned into my mouth. By the time she pulled back, we were both breathing quickly. “Let your brother handle his own battles. He’s perfectly capable. Are you ready to order some snails?”

  She laughed, her lips plump from my kisses. “You hate snails.”

  We sat again, taking our time throughout our meal, but Tate never came back. When we walked out a few hours later, hand in hand, there was still no sign of Tate or the mystery woman, and the night air was pleasantly cool. Sky shivered, so I shrugged off my black suit jacket, slinging it over her shoulders. She cuddled into it, and the moonlight played with her strawberry blonde hair, making her even more beautiful than ever before. I couldn’t look away. She caught me staring, and smiled. “Like what you see?”

  “Love it.” I wrapped my arm over her shoulder, urging her against my side. “What do you think of Hawaii?”

  “I think it’s warm and sunny.” She side-eyed me. “Why?”

  “Our honeymoon.”

  “Hmm . . .” She smiled and rested her head on my shoulder as we walked side by side. “I think that sounds perfect. You. Me. A tiny bikini.”

  My cock hardened, and I caressed her shoulder. “Or no bikini at all . . .”

  She laughed, and the sound washed over me like music. Her soft floral scent tickled my senses, and her hair teased my fingers. We walked down the dark streets
of West Boston, where there were no leather jackets and no badges. Just us. Now that Tate was also working toward ending the Sons, my dream of making Steel Row a safe place might come true yet. Then Lucas could come home, and meet Sky. Steel Row, and Boston, could be different. Better. And I would have made that mark on the world I ached to make for me, Lucas, and Ma.

  I could be that man, the man my father had never been.

  There were more battles to fight, but I knew I’d win.

  With Sky by my side, how could I possibly lose?

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