My head perked up.
He shook his. “I want you to know everything before you leave, so sit back. We would like you to help us, and we can hold you a whole hell of a lot longer without officially arresting you if we need to. But we’re not going to do that as a sign of good faith. Call me a hopeless romantic, but I have a feeling you won’t be able to not help when we’re done.”
That was stupid of him. I leaned back in my chair and settled in. No matter what he said, I wasn’t a narc. “You’re not from around here, are you?”
His eyebrows moved forward before flattening back into place. “Why do you ask?”
“You recently moved here?”
He didn’t reply, but he didn’t need to. His mouth flattened. “I don’t know what that has to do with this, but here are the facts. A girl overdosed. She is in the hospital, and she may never wake up.” He pointed to the picture. “Do you know this girl? Did your boyfriend sell drugs to her?”
I didn’t know her, and I had no idea if Elijah did or not. Until this morning, I hadn’t even wanted to admit he was a drug dealer.
I remained silent, and after another two minutes passed in silence, he stood up and a disgruntled sound came from him. It sounded like a groan mixed with a gurgling bark. “Fine. We have nothing to hold you. Elijah has been adamant that you have no part of his organization. He’s insisting we release you before he will comply, so with that said, you are free to go.”
I shoved my chair back and stood. “Can I get my phone?”
“No. That stays with us.”
“I thought you said you were letting me go?”
“You’re the girlfriend of a known drug dealer. We have every indication that he might’ve used your phone to set up deals. Your phone stays with us.”
They think he used me? Used my phone? My jaw squared, and I stalked down the hallway. Leaving didn’t take long. They never fingerprinted me. No paperwork had been filed so the only thing I waited for was my bag. As the cop moved to hand it to me, he held it a moment. I glanced up to see him staring at me. It wasn’t a crude stare—not like a lot of the guys in school or Elijah’s friends. It was in a way that my mom used to look at me. His eyebrow raised as he said, “Dump the bad boy. He’s not worth it, and in the end, he’ll just take you down with him.”
He let go of my bag.
“Thanks,” I muttered under my breath, pulling my bag on my shoulder as I headed to the front of the station. Little did they know it was already over. I was an idiot, but I was a single idiot now. Then I stopped and turned back to the clerk. “Can I use your phone?”
“What number?”
Oh, this would not make me look good. “Rowdy’s.”
His nostrils flared.
“Just call. My brother’s band practices in the basement. They’ll still be there. They’ll answer.”
He did and it wasn’t long before I heard someone answer. He straightened and his hand scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, hello. This is Officer Malley. I’ve got a…” He paused and held the phone against his chest. “What’s your name?”
“Bri.”
He held the phone to his ear again and continued to frown at me. “A Bri here. She reassures me that her brother’s band uses your basement to practice…” He stopped, and after another moment, he nodded and hung up. “The owner’s sending someone to pick you up.”
I nodded and headed outside to wait. I didn’t want to stay in there. If I did, who knows what could happen. They could change their minds and take me in for more questioning. I knew they probably wouldn’t, but I didn’t want to chance it. Visions of my bed were taunting me, jumping all around in my head and laughing at me as I sat on the curb and waited for Braden.
Twenty minutes later, my brother’s truck slid to a stop in front of me. Grabbing my purse, I didn’t see who was behind the wheel and said, “I know you guys played tonight and figured you’d still be partying, but I was nervous you would’ve passed out or with some girl…” Then I saw who was staring back at me and forgot what I was about to say. “Fuck me.”
Luke Skeet. His dark brown hair fell over his forehead, but he ignored it. A hint of dark humor entered those grey eyes of his, and he shook his head. “No, Bri. All those nights I crawled into your bed, fucking was the one thing we never got around to doing.” His eye twitched, and his hand tightened its grip on the steering wheel. He skimmed me up and down. “Pity about that.”
I tried to stop my body from reacting. I did, but I failed. He was still gorgeous. My body grew heated, and I swallowed, already feeling my pulse quickening. Until three years ago, Luke Skeet had been my neighbor and best friend. I had made avoiding him into an art since Luke was still my neighbor and still friends with my brother. Oh yeah, he was in my brother’s band, too—the band I helped form when we were in middle school.
All of that ended when I found his bloody body lying unconscious on his kitchen floor. It was the same night I started dating Elijah.
I didn’t move to climb inside the truck. I couldn’t. My throat was dry, and my arms wouldn’t reach out to grab the handle. I couldn’t look away from him. “What are you doing here?”
Wearing his signature tattered jeans and a simple white T-shirt, he looked delicious as he stared back at me. For a moment, just one moment, it was like when we’d been best friends. He was gazing into me, reading my thoughts, just knowing me. It was only the two of us. The world had melted away. I had missed this feeling. I licked my lips, and his gaze darted down to them, lingering there. Then he rolled his eyes, leaned back in his seat, and raked a hand through his brown locks. “What’s the problem, Bri? You called Rowdy’s for a ride. I’m your ride.” The corner of his mouth curved up, and he chuckled. “Wouldn’t that be fun?”
I flushed. Swinging the door open, I climbed into the passenger side with a sigh. “Why didn’t Braden come?”
Luke shifted the gear into drive and pulled away from the police station before he answered. “Because he was busy, if you know what I mean.”
Meaning my brother was with a girl. My twin brother had a pretty boy face. He looked young with soft skin, round cheeks, and dark brown eyes like mine. Girls loved him.
“You guys were still partying?” I looked down at my lap. I didn’t know why I had asked that. I knew the answer.
He shook his. “I want you to know everything before you leave, so sit back. We would like you to help us, and we can hold you a whole hell of a lot longer without officially arresting you if we need to. But we’re not going to do that as a sign of good faith. Call me a hopeless romantic, but I have a feeling you won’t be able to not help when we’re done.”
That was stupid of him. I leaned back in my chair and settled in. No matter what he said, I wasn’t a narc. “You’re not from around here, are you?”
His eyebrows moved forward before flattening back into place. “Why do you ask?”
“You recently moved here?”
He didn’t reply, but he didn’t need to. His mouth flattened. “I don’t know what that has to do with this, but here are the facts. A girl overdosed. She is in the hospital, and she may never wake up.” He pointed to the picture. “Do you know this girl? Did your boyfriend sell drugs to her?”
I didn’t know her, and I had no idea if Elijah did or not. Until this morning, I hadn’t even wanted to admit he was a drug dealer.
I remained silent, and after another two minutes passed in silence, he stood up and a disgruntled sound came from him. It sounded like a groan mixed with a gurgling bark. “Fine. We have nothing to hold you. Elijah has been adamant that you have no part of his organization. He’s insisting we release you before he will comply, so with that said, you are free to go.”
I shoved my chair back and stood. “Can I get my phone?”
“No. That stays with us.”
“I thought you said you were letting me go?”
“You’re the girlfriend of a known drug dealer. We have every indication that he might’ve used your phone to set up deals. Your phone stays with us.”
They think he used me? Used my phone? My jaw squared, and I stalked down the hallway. Leaving didn’t take long. They never fingerprinted me. No paperwork had been filed so the only thing I waited for was my bag. As the cop moved to hand it to me, he held it a moment. I glanced up to see him staring at me. It wasn’t a crude stare—not like a lot of the guys in school or Elijah’s friends. It was in a way that my mom used to look at me. His eyebrow raised as he said, “Dump the bad boy. He’s not worth it, and in the end, he’ll just take you down with him.”
He let go of my bag.
“Thanks,” I muttered under my breath, pulling my bag on my shoulder as I headed to the front of the station. Little did they know it was already over. I was an idiot, but I was a single idiot now. Then I stopped and turned back to the clerk. “Can I use your phone?”
“What number?”
Oh, this would not make me look good. “Rowdy’s.”
His nostrils flared.
“Just call. My brother’s band practices in the basement. They’ll still be there. They’ll answer.”
He did and it wasn’t long before I heard someone answer. He straightened and his hand scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, hello. This is Officer Malley. I’ve got a…” He paused and held the phone against his chest. “What’s your name?”
“Bri.”
He held the phone to his ear again and continued to frown at me. “A Bri here. She reassures me that her brother’s band uses your basement to practice…” He stopped, and after another moment, he nodded and hung up. “The owner’s sending someone to pick you up.”
I nodded and headed outside to wait. I didn’t want to stay in there. If I did, who knows what could happen. They could change their minds and take me in for more questioning. I knew they probably wouldn’t, but I didn’t want to chance it. Visions of my bed were taunting me, jumping all around in my head and laughing at me as I sat on the curb and waited for Braden.
Twenty minutes later, my brother’s truck slid to a stop in front of me. Grabbing my purse, I didn’t see who was behind the wheel and said, “I know you guys played tonight and figured you’d still be partying, but I was nervous you would’ve passed out or with some girl…” Then I saw who was staring back at me and forgot what I was about to say. “Fuck me.”
Luke Skeet. His dark brown hair fell over his forehead, but he ignored it. A hint of dark humor entered those grey eyes of his, and he shook his head. “No, Bri. All those nights I crawled into your bed, fucking was the one thing we never got around to doing.” His eye twitched, and his hand tightened its grip on the steering wheel. He skimmed me up and down. “Pity about that.”
I tried to stop my body from reacting. I did, but I failed. He was still gorgeous. My body grew heated, and I swallowed, already feeling my pulse quickening. Until three years ago, Luke Skeet had been my neighbor and best friend. I had made avoiding him into an art since Luke was still my neighbor and still friends with my brother. Oh yeah, he was in my brother’s band, too—the band I helped form when we were in middle school.
All of that ended when I found his bloody body lying unconscious on his kitchen floor. It was the same night I started dating Elijah.
I didn’t move to climb inside the truck. I couldn’t. My throat was dry, and my arms wouldn’t reach out to grab the handle. I couldn’t look away from him. “What are you doing here?”
Wearing his signature tattered jeans and a simple white T-shirt, he looked delicious as he stared back at me. For a moment, just one moment, it was like when we’d been best friends. He was gazing into me, reading my thoughts, just knowing me. It was only the two of us. The world had melted away. I had missed this feeling. I licked my lips, and his gaze darted down to them, lingering there. Then he rolled his eyes, leaned back in his seat, and raked a hand through his brown locks. “What’s the problem, Bri? You called Rowdy’s for a ride. I’m your ride.” The corner of his mouth curved up, and he chuckled. “Wouldn’t that be fun?”
I flushed. Swinging the door open, I climbed into the passenger side with a sigh. “Why didn’t Braden come?”
Luke shifted the gear into drive and pulled away from the police station before he answered. “Because he was busy, if you know what I mean.”
Meaning my brother was with a girl. My twin brother had a pretty boy face. He looked young with soft skin, round cheeks, and dark brown eyes like mine. Girls loved him.
“You guys were still partying?” I looked down at my lap. I didn’t know why I had asked that. I knew the answer.
