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My phone starts to ring. More than likely Nicole wondering why I haven’t jumped when she said how high.
“Mom?” Rogue pushes the Jeep to its limit on an open stretch.
“Probably. But I’m not going. I’m spending the night with you.” I’ve never ignored Nicole. I don’t know how she’s going to handle it, but I’m sure there will be repercussions.
Rogue glances at me for a long beat. “You were always spending the night with me. Your place or mine? I’ll cancel our table and we’ll get takeout. These fuckers are not getting another minute of my time with you.”
“Yours,” I say.
“Great.” He shifts gears and takes another corner at breakneck speed.
“I think we’ve lost them,” I say after a minute, when no more familiar cars are behind us.
“Good.” Rogue smiles like a little boy who finally got his favorite toy all to himself. His palm covers my thigh and squeezes. I love the reassurance. He makes me strong in ways he doesn’t even realize. The way he treats me like I’m important. Like I’m everything…I will do whatever it takes to be with him.
We cruise along for a few minutes. I watch his face. It’s so expressive when he thinks he doesn’t have to keep his guard up. The tension eased once our pursuers fell off. His smile melts at the corners and the bridge of his nose crinkles. His jaw starts to bulge rhythmically, like he’s chewing on his thoughts. “Nathaniel Croft; the name is familiar. Why do I know that name?”
“He’s a lawyer,” I say. “Business mostly. He owns a billion-dollar corporate law firm.”
“That guy does?” His sky blues darken with thought.
I nod. “He used to be friends with my dad. Well, he used to be my dad’s lawyer. He was at the house a lot. Still is…”
“With your mom?”
I glance out the window, almost expecting that the paparazzi have caught up with us. Thankfully we’re alone. “She keeps pushing us together.”
“What do you mean by pushing you together?” There’s an edge to his voice.
“I think she wants me to be the bridge my dad used to be, so she orchestrates for him to show up whenever I agree to see her.”
“And him. What’s his stance on all of this?”
“He won’t leave me alone.”
“He wants you?” Again his jaw bulges. A nerve jumps in his neck.
“That’s how it seems,” I admit. And it scares me, but not because Nathaniel Croft refuses to stay away, although I hope he will now that he’s aware I’m with Rogue. What truly scares me is that Nicole was making headway toward her goal before I had my breakdown. I’d convinced myself that dating Nathaniel was what my dad would have wanted for me. They were good friends after all. In business together. Dad trusted Nathaniel and he’s not a bad guy. The same arguments I told myself were the ones Nicole used against me too.
She knew how to manipulate my emotions. She was so close to knocking me off my wobbly feet and into a relationship that I didn’t want for the sake of the family. And what does that really mean? If I hadn’t almost drowned I would probably be married to Nathaniel and I wouldn’t even know why. Or what Nicole finally decided my worth was to her. What would I have secured for her in their little arrangement?
A shiver creeps up my spine, and I shake it off. I don’t need to know why Nathaniel and Nicole are in cahoots. Or relive all the hurtful things she’s said to me.
I’ve come so far since then. Especially in these last few months. But now Alec has me right up on that edge again, shoving at me, trying to break me. Manipulating me into spying on the man I love so that he can destroy him—and his twin.
I’ve been weak for so long. It's going to take everything I have to keep my balance.
“Was he the one that called you?”
“N-no.” I knew we’d have this conversation eventually. I’d thought I would be confessing about my connection to Alec. Begging for his forgiveness. Now, I can’t do any of that without hurting my bestie. Or fearing what Rogue will do.
As much as I was scared to tell Rogue about Alec…as bad as I feel keeping it from him …and Adira…and practically everyone…I’m not alone in plotting Alec’s downfall. I have to remember that there is more in play than just my relationship with Rogue.
“Are you certain? You don’t sound certain.” He glances at me out of the corner of his eye.
“It wasn’t Nathaniel. He cornered me on campus that day after you and I had coffee. That was the last time I spoke to him until this afternoon.” I tug at the cuffs of my sweater. “It was my mom.”
“Your mom.” He stares at his thumb as he taps it against the steering wheel. “You lied to me because your mom called?”
