My stomach clenches. “And you think he kept me alive to get access to my father’s assets?”
There’s no stopping the tears now. I’ve cracked open.
My uncle is a bad man. I’ve always known that. But to kill his own brother over a casino… He has no limits. No one is safe. Not me. Not Charlie.
Hayes tucks my hair behind my ear with the gentlest touch. “You know how it works with men like him. Nothing is ever enough.”
A sob shakes my chest, and my last bit of composure falters. I bury my face in Hayes’s shoulder and soak his shirt with my tears. He rocks back, sitting on the patio and pulling me into his lap. It can’t be comfortable, but he says nothing. Hayes holds me as the last of the sunset fades. As night settles.
When the tears finally stop, my eyes burn. My cheeks are soaked. Hayes swipes his thumbs under my eyes, looking at me with so much love it breaks my heart even more.
“Thank you for telling me.” My throat is raw, rasping my words. “And thank you for believing I’d have nothing to do with that.”
“I’ll always be honest with you. And I’ll always believe you.” His thumb drags down my cheek, wiping the tears away.
A man with a history of violence, and yet, I trust every word he says. He isn’t my uncle, ruining others for his own benefit. Hayes protects those who can’t fight for themselves. He stands up for those he cares about.
“I love you.” It slips out, and his fingers freeze. “I don’t know what comes next or how we fix this. And you don’t need to say it back, I just—”
“I love you too, Emery.” A beautiful, genuine smile blooms on his face, heating through to the coldest parts of my heart. “I’ve loved you since the moment I laid eyes on you.”
“Are you sure that was love?” The laugh that breaks free is part sob from the whiplash of emotion. “I think it might have just been the pink dress.”
Hayes’s smile widens, and he pulls me closer. “Maybe it was a combination of both. I do love that pink dress too.”
He pulls me in for a kiss, and even if everything is broken, his love is a balm over the shattered pieces. His lips seal to mine, and he hands me the one thing I didn’t think could come from tonight’s confessions—hope.
Hope that together, we can find a way to make this right.
Hope that the truth is out so we can work our way through now.
I’m still clinging to it as Hayes’s phone rings, cutting through the moment.
“Hold that thought.” He pulls it out, opening his mouth as he answers, until a voice on the other end of the line cuts him off. “When? They weren’t stopped at the gate?”
The ease from a moment ago shatters as Hayes’s eyes darken, tightening the knot in my stomach.
“Fuck… All right… Yeah… Who else?”
The hair on the back of my neck stands tall when he hangs up, shoving his phone into his pocket.
“What’s wrong?”
“Cops.” Hayes helps me to my feet. “They’re headed here now.”
“I’m not ready. I can’t—”
“Emery.” He cups my cheeks. “They aren’t here for you. This isn’t the Feds, and it’s not your uncle. They’re here for me.”
“For you?”
He swallows hard, his fingers grazing the sides of my neck. “After the Iron Sinners fell, we put a few contingencies into place so that if anything tied the explosion back to the club, it would fall on me, Chaos, and Venom.”
“Why you three?”
“We had nothing to lose at the time. And now—” He shakes his head. “Don’t worry, our attorney will deal with it. Steel said Tanner is already headed to the station, and he’ll meet us there.”
“You just said you set yourselves up? How is he going to get you out of it?”
