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“Dad—” The use of my nickname filled me with guilt.
“Don’t argue. Save your strength. We’ll talk when you aren’t lying in a hospital.” His smile hid his ulterior motive. He wanted to grill me about going undercover without bringing him in on it. “Perhaps Tyler will join us.”
“Uh, um,” I stumbled. “I don’t think—”
“It’s the Circle of Trust. And seeing as he’s inyourcircle now, I think it’d be wise to let him in on how our family does things.”
“Oh my God, Dad. No.”
“Don’t take that tone with me. Tyler will come”—he looked to Tyler—“won’t you?”
He nodded as he asked, “Circle of Trust, huh?” Intrigue and excitement colored the cadence of his words. I swore I could hear the shared laughter between my father and him.
“Oh, jeez,” I grumbled.
“She's like a storm, isn't she?” my dad asked.
The question earned a nod from Tyler, who answered, “And we're the lucky ones just floating in her wake.”
“Ha-ha. Very funny,” I said, trying to get comfortable. “Oof,” I cried out as a sharp shooting spasm of pain rippled through me.
“Settle down. Don’t get yourself all riled up, Mari.” My dad placed a kiss to my forehead, smiled, and gave me a wink. Then he put his hand on Tyler’s shoulder. “I’ll give you two some time alone. I’m sure you have things you need to discuss.Otherthan the case.” Dad had a sneaky grin on his lips, a gleam in his eye, and a hint of mischief in his tone. “You’re in good hands, Mari,” he told me. “I’ll talk with you later,” he said to Tyler.
I opened my mouth to respond, but Tyler beat me to it. “Talk later,” he answered. My dad whispered something to Tyler, who responded with a laugh. What was going on here? Something was fishy. My dad was acting coy. Tyler was acting smug.
I watched like an outsider. Dad strolled out with a pep in his step and a whistle on his lips. It was unsettling witnessing my dad acting like this. I narrowed my eyes at Tyler and asked, “What was that about?”
“Hm? What was what?”
“All that.” My eyes moved from him to the door my dad had just walked through.
Tyler shrugged. His movement reminded me of a little kid trying to get off the hook when he just got caught doing something he shouldn’t be doing.
“Don’t play games. What’s going on?”
“Nothing, Siren.” He grinned then. An adorable boyish grin. He couldn’t fool me, and he knew it. “Just something he said while you were sleeping.”
“What’d he say?” I asked and immediately followed with, “And don’t tell menothing.”
He sat down and took my hand, placed a kiss to the top of it, and then set it on top of my other. I clasped my hands together, nervous energy moving through me. My heart felt like it was going to pop out of my chest, and my hands felt clammy and cold. Whatever Tyler was about to tell me was going to be bad. I just knew it. I braced myself for the impact, for the pain he was about to inflict. I kept my eyes on my hands. I heard him sigh once before saying the one word I wasn’t expecting. “Love.” The one-syllable word was said with such simplicity. But Tyler’s voice saying it packed a punch.
If my dad’s words about having a Circle of Trust talk snapped me out of my sleepiness, Tyler’s mention of love hauled me out of it by the collar.
“I almost lost you, Siren.” Tyler’s lips quivered. “I thought I did.”
I gripped his hand as hard as I could. “I’m okay, Tyler.”
“You are now. But—” His eyes reached out to me. “The thing is, Siren . . .” His voice trailed off, but his eyes were still glued to mine. He drew in a deep breath. “I love you. I love you, Marisa. And I almost didn’t get the chance to tell you.”
The words hit me like a freight train. It felt as if my heart and time had come to a simultaneous stop. Gathering a breath, I tried to sit up, tried to reach out for him to bring him closer. When all attempts proved useless, he scooted as close as he could.
“I love you, too, Tyler.” He didn’t respond but looked shellshocked. “I do.”
“Are you sure this isn’t just because of what happened? When you got shot?”
“Yes. No. Maybe.”
My indecisiveness earned a chuckle from him. “I’ve felt this way for some time,” I explained. “I tried to deny it. But why does that matter now? I love you, Tyler. More than I ever thought possible.” I shrugged with a silly laugh. It hurt, but I forced myself to swallow the pain down. “Maybe it did take a bullet and getting shot to give me the courage to tell you how I feel.”
