Hidden Sins (20 page)

Luke closed the door and slowly walked around the front of the car. I watched his careful movements as his eyes scanned the lot. He was a man always on alert, which I appreciated. He opened the driver’s door and sank into the seat, turning on the engine before he even buckled in. He popped the car into drive and drove off the lot.

Being in such a confined space with Luke was difficult. Really difficult. The light scent of his cologne, soap, or something just Luke filled the air. If he weren’t sitting right next to me, I’d probably take a deep, exaggerated breath in to absorb everything about him.

“I don’t want you to run away again,” Luke said, taking me off guard. “I can protect you much easier if you’re here.”

“Who said I needed to be protected?” I asked, glancing at him. “I can take care of myself.”

“I don’t doubt that for a minute, but why chance it? Wouldn’t it be nice to have a little peace of mind, knowing that you weren’t by yourself in this world?”

I looked out the window as we whipped by the clubs and restaurants, which were shutting down for the night, the lights extinguishing one by one as I thought about his words.

“It’s not an alternative that I’ve given much thought to, honestly,” I responded, as he pulled in front of Mia’s.

“I’m not asking for an answer this second, but I want you to think about it.” He turned off the car. “And I want you to think of something else.”

“What’s that?” I asked, shifting in my seat.

“Go out with me. One date. Before you leave.” His voice was low, pleading.

I let out a sigh.

“Well, that’s a first,” he joked.

I laughed and turned to look at him, which was a big mistake.

“I’ll tell you what,” I began. “If you can find a place that is built upon dreams and is filled with nothing but happiness and another existence, then yes, I’ll go on a date with you.”

Luke smiled and laughed, giving me a sideways glance. “Then I’ve got just the place.”

Luke

I was standing in line to grab a quick lunch when I got the information over email I’d been waiting for. Donald Jamison was no longer in California. Flight records showed that he’d left L.A. two days after he’d been released, but that didn’t lessen my worry about Hannah. My guess was that the NLC wasn’t pleased with Donald’s ineptness and traded him out for someone new. But who knew if that someone else was already here. These were all things that I wanted to discuss with Hannah, but I knew we weren’t there yet.

She had softened slightly toward me. I noticed it in small ways. The way her hand grazed mine and stayed there a second longer than it needed to. The way she looked at me, smiled at me, the fear diminishing. There was no denying the connection we felt, but I could see that she was fighting it every time we were together, which only drove me more insane for her. It was the little things about her that had me completely at her mercy; how her gaze would dip slightly when I smiled at her or when her cheeks would redden when my gaze stayed on her for a beat too long. Those were the moments I couldn’t stop thinking about. The moments I wanted more of.

My fear was that the more I dug into her past without her permission, and the longer it went, the less she’d be able to forgive me, both on a personal level and a professional one. But there was something making me take it slow on both accounts, which was my fear of losing her before I had the chance to have her, feel her, against me.

“Sir? Sir? What can I get for you?”

I looked up to see about ten feet between the cashier and me. All of the other customers had already placed their orders and paid while I stood here like an idiot daydreaming. This was definitely not something I was used to. No woman had ever taken up every single thought I had.

I made it to the counter and ordered a burrito, everything on it, for me and two crispy tacos for my sister. We were meeting for lunch so I could fill her in on everything I’d learned about Hannah, and to gauge her ease about being in the same house with someone who’s being targeted. I already knew where Mia would stand on the issue, but I thought it was only right to give her an easy out. I could find another place for Hannah.

I walked over to where the orders were called when I saw my sister walk into the restaurant. She gave me a quick wave and pointed at a corner table near the window. I nodded and grabbed our tray of food.

Mia looked refreshed. It was a familiar expression, one that usually appeared after she’d finished a piece. I placed the tray on our table and smiled.

“Hey, big brother,” she said, hopping up and giving me a quick hug.

“How are you doing?” I asked, sliding into my seat.

“Better than you I’d say. You look like shit.” She grinned right before taking a bite of a taco.

“Appreciate it. Wish I could say the same of you, but you look great.”

“I finished a piece. I’m sure you know which one I’m talking about. And I started another. Hannah’s agreed to let me paint a series. At first, she wanted nothing to do with it. Not a model, blah, blah. But once I explained to her how easy it would be, she finally agreed. Actually, I think it was the modeling fee that helped persuade her.”

“Ah.” I nodded. “Another way to stockpile money for when she’s ready to hit the road.”

Mia nodded sympathetically. “Yeah. Probably so.”

“Do you think she’s a flight risk?” I asked.

My sister burst into laughter.

“Sorry. Lack of sleep.”

“Glad you apologized because I didn’t want to have to beat your ass. You and I both know she’s not just a client, a flight risk. And you better figure out which way you want to go with her because it’s one or the other with her. She can’t be treated like your past girlfriends.”

“I haven’t had girlfriends. You know I don’t do girlfriends.”

“Exactly. That’s my point. She’s too—” my sister stopped.

“She’s too what?” I prompted.

“Nothing. I don’t want to say. It’s not my place.”

“Oh, no. You can’t stop and start like that. She’s too what?” I asked, digging my fork into the burrito.

My sister looked at me, her brows furrowed. “Inexperienced.”

And the water continued to be muddied.

“You okay over there?” she laughed.

I nodded and took a bite of the burrito. “Listen, I’ve found out some more information about the group she used to be involved with. There’s some evidence that ties the NLC and at least one drug cartel together. I think she found out something about it and they know that she knows. At least that’s my guess.”

“Shit. Are you gonna get the feds involved?” Mia asked.

I shook my head. “Not yet. I need her cooperation. And there are too many loose ends that I need to follow.”

“Poor thing. No wonder she’s scared shitless.”

“I think she’d probably clobber you if she heard you say that.” I smiled.

“You’ve got it bad. I’ve never seen you like this.”

Ignoring her, I continued, “You okay with her staying at your place? I mean if you actually used the security system I set up for you, everything should be just fine. But getting you to do that is an entirely different story.”

“She needs somewhere to be,” Mia said, her expression softening. “And I can’t let the subject of my paintings run off. I’ll see about dragging it out. The one thing I’ve learned about her is that she never wants to let anyone down. Remember that.”

I smiled. “Thanks. I’ve gotta head to San Antonio tonight. New client.”

“A real client?” she teased.

“Yes. It’s a paying client. Thanks for the concern. But not nearly as interesting of a case as Hannah’s.”

Swallowing another bite of the burrito, I began telling my sister everything that I’d uncovered about Hannah and the NLC’s mysterious connection to the drug world.

Hannah

Several days had gone by and I’d heard nothing from Luke. Apparently, finding a place to meet my specifications was just as hard as I’d predicted, which was what I wanted, right? Pick a place that didn’t exist so I didn’t go out with him. But the truth was I was hugely disappointed. I had two days off from Buttons, today and tomorrow, and both were taken up with modeling for Mia. I stayed in my bed and stretched out my legs, feeling the cool crispness of the sheets against my skin. There were plenty of days where I just wanted to hide from everything and stay in bed. Today was one of those days. It had been extremely uneventful since moving into Mia’s home and that had me worried. The NLC wouldn’t let me off this easily, not with everything I knew.

Yeah. This was definitely a day I wanted to stay in bed. I let out a sigh and shifted onto my side, grabbing my cell. My heart sped up when I saw there was finally a text on it. There were only two people who would text me. One was upstairs and the other was Luke. I quickly opened the message.

Sorry for the delay. I was out of town and your request took a bit of time. I’ve got the perfect place all lined up. I’ll pick you up tomorrow at eleven.

My heart pumped with excitement as I reread his message. I wondered where he was taking me, but then my mind raced with worry. Where was this going? It couldn’t go anywhere. But I wanted it to so badly. And then I thought about Mia. I had promised her I’d sit there for her all day tomorrow.

I promised your sister that I’d help her with something tomorrow. I can’t back out. I’m so sorry. Is there another day?

I actually felt relieved sending that message. This wasn’t what I needed to do. What I needed to do was continue stockpiling my money in preparation to leave.

Nice try. Mia’s fine with it. I’ll see you at eleven.

My heart fluttered, and I texted back.

Looking forward to it.

He texted back.

Sure you are.

I tossed my phone on the bed and let out a laugh. This would be good. We’d go out. He’d see how boring I was, and then he’d no longer feel the need to interfere. Easy as that. I threw off the covers and walked into the bathroom to brush my teeth. I heard Mia in the kitchen, grinding coffee beans. There was something so easy about living here. I didn’t feel out of place. I felt safe, and I felt like I fit in without any judgment.

I’d felt nothing but judged back at home. I always felt out of place, slightly out of step with everyone else. And no matter what I did, I never felt comfortable in my own skin, and that was a horrible feeling. I assumed it was because I didn’t really know who I was, but the longer I was away, I realized I knew exactly who I was. But the problem was that I knew there was no place for me in the only world I’d known. Scary thought.

I tossed my toothbrush on the counter and decided on a cup of coffee before a shower. Then I could find out what Mia wanted me to wear for our little session. I had to admit there was a tiny part of me that was excited about being painted. This would be considered so taboo back at home. Art was considered a frivolous commodity. But when I looked at Mia’s paintings, I knew her works were an expression of being, of existing, in a world that made no sense. Her paintings provided a feeling of empowerment, and that certainly wouldn’t be what anyone in the NLC would want its members to feel.

“Good morning,” Mia said, pouring a cup of coffee. “Want some oatmeal?”

“Sounds great. Thank you.” I grabbed a mug and poured myself a cup of coffee as Mia scooped the grains into the bowl and added water.

“Today’s going to be amazing. I can feel it.”

“You’re going to have to tell me what to do every step of the way. I’ve never done anything remotely like this. We didn’t even have school pictures,” I laughed.

“That’s not a completely bad thing,” she joked.

“True.” I took a sip of coffee. “So what’s my wardrobe?”

“I wanted to start with the most difficult one so you’d see even the most complicated session is no big deal.” She smiled.

“So says the woman on the other end of the brush.”

“Seriously. You’ll see. There’s a boutique down the street I thought we could hit up. I called down already and asked them to pull some dresses that fit the feel I’m going for.”