Page 63 of Masked

“Well I was going to go talk to Parker the other day and she came to his door as I was leaving.”

She narrowed her eyes. “What were you going to talk to him about?”

“You.”

At least he was honest.

“I would appreciate it if you didn’t talk to him about me if you can help it.”

“Believe me, sweetheart, I don’t want to talk to him about you either. But I can’t walk away from you. I won’t. That might make me a selfish bastard but it is what it is. I also won’t let him bully you or put you in danger.”

“What are we going to do about this?”

“What would you like to do?”

She sighed and leaned over to pluck a cucumber out of the salad he’d just mixed.

“I honestly don’t know. I don’t want confrontation. But I get that this is weird for him. And probably is weird for you too.”

Noah shrugged. “Mandy and Jacob are the ones I’m closest with. I told you how his mom kind of turned him against me. It ruined our relationship and while I’m open to fixing it, I’m not going to force myself on him. We haven’t been close in a decade. Even when I was with their mother he was stand-offish towards me.”

“Why does Parker want my money?”

“It turns out he’s practically broke and has some serious debt. Gage isn’t sure where it came from, but we’re still working on finding out. How did Parker find out about your trust fund?”

“I told him about it in a moment of weakness. No. Scratch that. I told him because I thought he was my partner and I could trust him.” She paused as she remembered the night she told him. “Actually, I wonder if he already knew. He asked me to tell him about my family. We never really talked about it before. But he came home one night and was being really sweet, asking all kinds of questions and the lawsuit that resulted in me getting the money came up. That’s when things started changing between us.”

He set a dish aside and went to the fridge and started pulling things out. “I’m sorry he treated you that way.”

“You don’t have to apologize for him. Are you mad I didn’t tell you about the money?”

He slammed a bottle of soy sauce on the counter and she jumped.

“Sorry. I’m frustrated with the entire situation. I am not mad at you, sweetheart. I’ve already said you don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to.”

He returned to making dinner and Reva took a deep breath. “It’s a simple story, really. An aunt I don’t really like sued the drunk driver who killed my parents and sister and won. But part of the settlement was setting up a trust fund for me. I didn’t want it. Don’t want it. And I begged my aunt not to sue. Things would have been so much easier on me if she hadn’t. So I agreed to a trust fund that I couldn’t touch until I turned twenty-one. And I’ve left it there since. It’s growing interest. I really should do something with it. But the idea of using that money makes me sick to my stomach.”

He wiped his hands on a towel and came around to pull her into his arms. “There’s nothing wrong with that. And you don’t have to.”

She laid her head against his chest. “But I can’t just let you foot the bill for my life either. That’s not right.”

“First of all, I don’t see it like that. Taking care of you brings me great pleasure. Second, you just got a great job and you’re almost done with your PhD. You’re going to be fine financially. With or without my help.”

Deep down she knew he was right. Things usually worked out for her, and even without touching the money she’d always survived. Sometimes it was because she worked multiple jobs, but she always got by.

He kissed her forehead and returned to the stove to finish their dinner. They at at the bar and made small talk about their plans for the next few days. As they were clearing their plates, his phone rang and he excused himself while she finished cleaning up the kitchen.

When he returned, his hair was messed up like he’d been dragging his hand through it, and he looked frustrated. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. It looks like I have to go to work. Will you be OK here by yourself?”

She nodded. “I understand. Go. We’ll talk more when you get back.”

Chapter 17

Reva

“Thisissomuchfun. Thank you for inviting me.” Reva held up her glass and clinked it with Darci’s. Olivia Harrigan and Carrie Mercer also sat at the table. Adara Kent-Silas was also joining them after a city council meeting.

“Of course. We love having new members at the club, and it’s good to get together elsewhere sometimes.”

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