Page 59 of Weston’s Treasure

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Well—”

“Silver.” Alec stood, not letting me finish my explanation. “Straight up, now that this is over, if you turn your back on Weston, you are not the woman I thought you were.”

That felt like a punch to the gut.

“I think you have it backward. Now that I’m safe, he has no reason to put up with me. There’s no reason for me to be in Maryland. There’s no reason—”

“For someone who’s fuckin’ smart, you’re not too bright.” His insult didn’t sting—it sliced through me. “Let me tell you a secret about Weston, he doesn’t put up with anything. And if you think he let you into his life, he wound you up with his team, with McKenna, put you in his bed, only to cut you loose when this shit was over, you’re seriously not the woman I thought you were.”

“You don’t understand,” I bit out, getting super-pissed Alec was being so mean.

“I damn well do. I get you’re scared. I get you were thrust into an extreme situation. I get things around you are moving fast. But mostly, I get you’re insecure as fuck. I know, Silver, because it’s written all over you. I know because, while you are damn good at your job, smart as hell, beautiful, and courageous you still hide. I know because when I look at you I see myself. I also know what it means to lose something because you can’t see what the other person sees. Clue in, Silver, before you push away a good man.”

Alec didn’t allow me to respond before he stalked out, leaving me sitting behind Weston’s desk surrounded by the things that meant the most to Weston. I didn’t move mainly because I couldn’t. Alec’s accusation stunned me. But his admission did, too. He saw himself in me. And that sucked for him. And sitting there frozen, I began to realize just how much it truly sucked to be paralyzed by your past. I was insecure.

And if I wasn’t careful, I’d lose Weston.

21

Something had happened, and whatever it was had Silver pulling into herself.

Weston had come back from picking up lunch and found out in the thirty minutes he’d been gone, McKenna had wrapped up their case in a tidy bow, and Alec had taken the intel and gone back to DC.

He was also told that Alec had informed Silver. Instead of being happy that Alec was making the necessary arrangements for Howard Sposato, Avon Chapman, Jason Scott, and Gary Goldbloom to be picked up, she seemed upset.

While Weston was contemplating what to do about Silver, a bond skip had been punted to Gemini Group, taking his attention. The skip was believed to be in Montgomery, Alabama. As he read the details of the case an idea came to him. It was a federal case, meaning the Marshals Service would pick up the skip and take him back to New York. It was a low-risk corporate case, the skip was not thought to be a danger to himself or the community.

The more Weston thought about his idea, the more he wanted to give this to Silver. The more he wanted to give it to himself. Now all he had to do was convince her to take off a little more time from work and come with him.

Thirteen hours in the car with Silver alone sounded perfect. Getting her away from all the shit that had infiltrated her life, even better. The added benefit was while they were in Alabama, she could meet his parents.

So with all of that going on in his head, he hadn’t had a chance to suss out what was bothering her. But now they were home—alone. Holden was at his place and Chasin out doing whatever it was Chasin did. Probably hanging with Jonny. The two of them did that a lot, met up for a beer, which meant they were carousing. Weston knew, because he’d gone out with the two of them a few times and that was exactly what they’d been doing.

It was time to figure out what was wrong, even if Weston was fairly certain he knew.

“You ready to talk now?” he asked.

Silver was sitting on the couch in front of him, eyes on the TV, Weston behind her with his arm over her resting on her hip. They’d eaten dinner then settled in the living room to chill. When he felt her body go solid, he figured the time he’d allowed for her to unwind hadn’t been enough.

“Babe?” he encouraged.

“I’m insecure,” she whispered.

“Didn’t miss that, sweetheart.”

His answer in no way made her relax.

“I have a temper.”

He knew that, too, so he remained silent.

“I’m stubborn, not because I want to be right, but because I’m tired of people walking on me.”

“People…or Dale and Silvia?”

“Dale and Silvia,” she admitted.