“Quiet,” I ordered, pressing my hand over her mouth as I crowded her against the kitchen counter. I leaned down and spoke softly into her ear. “You know your neighbors? You know how thin these walls are?”
She sucked in a harsh breath and then nodded her head, reaching up to pull my hand away from her mouth.
“You’re okay?” she asked, pulling my head away so she could search my face. “Everything’s okay?”
“It’s fine,” I said again, running my hand through her hair. “I’m just fuckin’ exhausted.”
“I bet,” she murmured, leaning forward to press her head against my chest. “I was worried.”
“Nothin’ to worry about,” I soothed, wrapping my arms around her. “I’ll take care of it.”
I led her to the bed, shutting the lights off as we crossed the room, then stripped down and joined her underneath the blankets.
“You were careful, right?” she whispered as soon as we were comfortable. “They won’t find anything?”
“They got nothin’,” I murmured back, running my fingers down her spine. “It’s a cold case. They’ll give it up quick.”
“And they won’t ever find him,” she said so softly that I barely heard her.
“And they won’t ever find him,” I confirmed.
“It still doesn’t matter,” she said as she kissed my chest, reminding me of the night before. I hadn’t confirmed anything, but she’d guessed, and she’d known for sure the minute the cops had picked me up earlier.
The panic I expected to feel never came, but I lay there awake for a long time after she’d fallen asleep. If I’d learned one thing growing up on the Aces compound, it was the more people outside the club that knew your secrets the less likely they were to stay that way. I’d planned on taking my secrets to the grave, but I hadn’t counted on reconnecting with Heather, the only other person on the planet who would see the connection between me and Mark Phillips.
She was the weak link. No matter how I looked at it, she was the only thing that could get me locked up. I could keep my shit together, no problem. I’d been dealing with cops and learning how to answer questions since I was old enough to talk. Heather wasn’t like that. She panicked. Worried. Was intimidated as fuck by the police.
I ran it over and over in my head that night. How I’d keep her safe. How I’d calm her fears. How I’d keep the police away from her.
Only one answer made any sense.
I fell asleep with my brother’s face smiling at me behind my eyelids and I woke up twice, gasping for breath with the echo of Micky’s voice ringing in my ears. Thankfully, Heather slept right through it.
* * *
“Marry me,” I said the minute she opened her eyes the next morning.
I was already up and dressed by the time she woke up and she looked at me in confusion for a long time before making a dismissive noise in her throat and stuffing her head back in the pillow.
“Hear me out,” I said quietly, reaching out to rest my hand on her hip.
“I don’t talk to crazy people this early in the morning,” she mumbled back.
“As my wife, you’re protected,” I said, squeezing her hip. “The Aces watch out for you. Always. No matter what happens to me.”
“I don’t need protection,” she replied, leaning up on one elbow. “What are you talking about?”
“If for some reason I get locked up—”
“You said everything was fine,” she hissed, sitting up. “You told me last night that—”
“Heather!” I interrupted roughly, making her freeze. “Once we’re married, you can’t testify.”
“What?”
“If we’re married, they can’t make you testify.”
“I don’t know anything,” she said quickly, her eyes widening. “Why would they ask me anything? I don’t know anything.”
I leaned forward and kissed her, smoothing my hands up and down her arms until I felt the tension in her body fall away.
“You know enough,” I whispered, pulling back to meet her eyes. “You know about Mick. Only a matter of time until they find that connection—if they haven’t already.”
“You think they’ll come to me? Wouldn’t they go to your parents first?”
“Even if they do, my parents don’t know anything,” I said, swallowing hard. “I was hopin’ they’d never know.”
“But your dad could help,” she argued. “The Aces, they could help, right?”
“Maybe,” I conceded. “But it might never come to that.”
“But if you think that, then why all this marriage stuff?” she asked shaking her head.
“Sugar, they saw you with me yesterday,” I reminded her, pushing her hair out of her face. “Probably know who you are by now. They start askin’ around they’ll know you were best friends with Mick. They start lookin’ into Mick? Bingo.”
“But married?” she asked, searching my face. “That’s crazy.”
“Was up half the night thinkin’ about it,” I said, sighing. “Can’t think of any other way to keep you outta it.”