by Lily Ryan
“You really don’t remember, do you?” He looks at me with concern in his eyes. “They left earlier today for your father’s conference in Australia. They’re still in transit and won’t be able to get back for at least another day and a half, and that’s if they turn right around when they get there.”
“Why don’t I remember anything?”
“It must be the drugs.”
“Drugs? Did they give me painkillers? Tell them not to give me any more.”
“Don’t play dumb, Leila. I told you I can’t help you if you’re not honest.”
“I am being honest. I don’t know what you’re talking about. All of you are talking in fucking riddles.”
Shea looks at me, disappointment clear in his eyes, and shakes his head. “I shouldn’t be telling you this, but they’ve got you dead to rights. Dead to fucking rights. The heroin in your bloodstream gives you motive. The fact that you claim you don’t remember, that could be from the other shit they found. The liquid ecstasy. Between the cash in your purse, being covered in Jimmy’s blood, and me finding you leaning over him with the murder weapon in your hand, it looks bad. Really fucking bad.”
No. I don’t take drugs. It’s wrong. It’s all wrong.
“You believe me, Shea. Don’t you? You believe that I’d never hurt him. Dylan is my friend, and Jimmy is all he has.”
Anger flashes in Shea’s eyes. They’re cold. Hard.
“Yeah. I know he’s your friend. The one that got you hooked on drugs, and as a result, into all kinds of legal trouble.”
“No.” I insist. “He didn’t. He doesn’t do drugs, and neither do I.”
“That’s why he spent six months in juvie for selling heroin,” Shea spits at me.
Okay, I need to forget Dylan for the moment and plead my own case. “I’m not hooked on anything.”
“Can’t even admit it to yourself, can you?” Shea bites his lip, and I’m pretty sure he’s biting back a few comments with it. “You know that I love you. I can’t pretend I’m okay with the choices you made. We were happy before Dylan came along.” His fingers wrap around and stroke mine. “Before you changed. Even still, I can forgive you. I mean, provided you don’t see him anymore, which I don’t think will be a problem, since he could barely stand to look at you when he saw what you did.”
“I didn’t do it. I swear, Shea.”
“Then what were you doing there? How did the shit get into your blood stream if you didn’t take it?”
I respond with silence. I have no explanation. And while I don’t like his questions, both are reasonable enough. Unfortunately, I have no answers.
“Look, I haven’t given my statement yet. Another perk of being the Chief’s son. My father let me put it off until I knew you were going to be okay. But now I have to tell them, Leila. I hate to think that they’ll call me to testify, and that I’ll be the one to put the nail in your coffin.”
“Please, don’t!”
“I don’t have a choice. I’m a witness. The only witness. I have to testify. Or else they can press charges against me for obstruction of justice.”
“There has to be some way… Please, Shea. I need you to buy me time, so I can prove I didn’t do anything.”
He pulls his bottom lip into his mouth and takes a long, deep breath before he speaks again.
“The only way I can get out of testifying is if we’re married. But I know that’s out of the question. I mean, I’d be willing to, but I know you don’t feel the same about me.”
Fuck. Marriage. I’m too young to be married. And then there’s Dylan.
Dylan.
My chest aches when I think of him. I have to talk to him first. But I can’t just decline. I need to consider this. If things are as dire as Shea’s making them out to be, what choice do I have?
“They arrested Dylan, too.” It’s a statement, not a question.
Shea nods. “Yes. They took him down for questioning, but they’ll let him go. There’s no real evidence against him. Everything they have points to you.”
“I didn’t do it!”
Shea nods. “But they can make the case that you did.”
“How long do I have to decide?”
“Shea.” One of the officers who questioned me a few minutes earlier pokes his head in. “We can’t wait any longer. We need your statement.”
“Looks like we’re out of time.” He gives me a final sad look as he squeezes my hand. His eyes water with tears as he leans down to kiss my forehead. “I’m so sorry, Leila.” He turns and takes two steps toward the door.
“Shea, wait!”
He turns and looks back at me.
My body trembles. I know I’m not thinking rationally, that fear has taken hold of my mind. This is wrong, but I don’t have a choice. I’m out of options.
“Are you sure Dylan will be okay? That they can’t turn this around and blame him?”
Shea nods. “Dylan’s fine. Besides. He could prove his innocence with the surveillance tapes. In fact, I should’ve thought of that to begin with. If you’re really innocent, that will prove you didn’t kill Jimmy, either.”
Except it won’t. The surveillance system hasn’t been working for days. The cameras were on, but nothing was recorded. I could always marry Shea and then annul it once we prove I’m innocent.
“Okay, Shea, I’ll marry you. But how does that help if you have to give a statement now?”
“Give me a few minutes. I’ll ask my father for one hour. I know I can convince him. We’ll get married here. Now.”
“Okay.”
I hope this doesn’t blow up in my face as bad as I know it could, or else I just fucked my entire life up. Not just mine, either, all of ours. But I have no other choice. I’m scared, and alone. Shea’s the only one here. The only one I have to lean on, and I know he’s looking out for me. In spite of everything he loves me, and in my own way, I love him, too. Maybe this is for the best.
Maybe.
Other books by Lily Ryan
His Condition
Stark Me
Friends are for Sharing
Destination Wedding.
Stalk me sights. I love interacting with my readers, oops, I mean stalkers!
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Acknowledgements
I’d like to once again thank my husband for being my wall of strength, and you my fan, who gave me the opportunity to enter your life. There are so many other people that have been helping me out and supporting me along the way. Thank you Lainey Da Silva for everything. For helping me with everything so I can navigate through the writing process in timely fashion. Thank you Serena Worker. Its all about the happy ever after, Hopelessly addicted to romance, Unnofficial girls night in, Inbetween the Pages book blog, Its all about the happy ever after blog, Magical words of a book, Lety’s Book Blog, The Lawless land of books, TheThree Bookeaters, Jaqueline and Nikki’s book corner, The Club Blogs Books, Escape Reality Book Blog, Fictional Book Fantasies, The Club Blogs Books & Book Boyfriends, AB Fab Book Blog, Inbetween the Pages Book Blog, and to anyone who has read, posted, tweeted, reviewed or recommended me or any of my books. I am eternally grateful.
About The Author
I spend my days playing house with my husband and kids, and my nights lost in a fictional world with the sexy alphas of my imagination.
