Page 26 of Dirty Deeds

Staring at her legs, and the way the fabric of her long dress stretches over them, I bite the side of my cheek. That isn’t exactly news to me. My father has surveillance cameras on his tomato plants. I’m just surprised it never dawned on me that he’d check the footage from Christmas Eve. All this time he has known about my involvement with Danica and not once did he bring it up to me. He just held out his palm and collected Brent’s checks, knowing I fucked his wife. I don’t know what to make of that.

“How did you know I was at the Hilton?” she asks, bringing her eyes back to me. The strap of her dress slips down her shoulder. Reaching out, I fix it, but I don’t take my hand away. My fingertips skate across her shoulder, finding their way around all that blonde hair.

“After Nico told me about the silent auctions, I did some digging of my own and saw he was holding another fundraiser. You being attached to his hip for the last six months led me to believe you’d be there too.” I pause, my fingers wrapping around the back of her neck. “I was going to corner you outside, but I saw you and him arguing.”

She cocks her head, giving my hand more access and I bite back a smile.

“I was trying to confront him about the money. He blew me off.”

“I got that much.”

She lifts her hand, her slender fingers wrapping around my forearm. It’s the first time she’s touching me, and it feels like sensory overload. It’s like I’m about to combust at any second.

“I went to the cops this morning and gave a statement.”

“You went to the cops?”

“Well, yeah, of course. I don’t know if it’ll help your case, but I told the police you were only acting in defense of me.”

Processing the fact she went to cops on my behalf, I give her neck a gentle squeeze. When I named Danica as a witness to Finley, I wasn’t entirely sure her story would match mine. She may have left Brent at the scene, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t have had second thoughts. I certainly didn’t expect her to voluntarily drag her fine ass to the police to give a statement.

“Thank you,” I say hoarsely.

She gives me a soft smile, but it vanishes as quickly as it appears.

“What happens now?”

That seems like a loaded question. What should happen and what I want to happen are two different things. I sigh, squeezing the back of her neck. “Well, for starters I need to have a conversation with my father. It’s not okay that he threatened you.” I release the pressure from her neck and thread my fingers through her hair. “I guess I’m going to have to meet with my lawyer and see what happens next with the case too.” I pause, angling my head to get a better a look at her. “But I’m more concerned with what happens between you and me. I need to know where you stand with Brent.”

Her perfectly groomed eyebrows draw together.

“Brent and I aren’t together, Enzo.” She lowers her hand from my forearm and pushes my hand away. “I think I need to explain why I left you.”

We agree there.

“I’m all ears, baby.”

“When I saw you at the mall, I was celebrating my divorce, that much was true, but when I got home, Brent was waiting for me.”

My body goes still. I don’t think I want to know what happened next. I’m already skating on thin ice with the law. If I find out he laid a hand on her or hurt her in any way, the state is going to tack on more charges because I will fucking kill Brent Matthews.

“He was there to tell me he was running for congress, and to ask for help. He thought if we portrayed a united front, he’d have a better chance of winning.” She shrugs her shoulders. “He never expressed an interest in politics when we were married, and thinking back, I probably should’ve asked a lot more questions, but what he said next is all I heard.”

Curiosity runs through me, and my brows pinch together.

“My brother, Ro’s husband, he’s in prison for a murder he didn’t commit. Brent told me if I helped him get elected, then he’d ask the governor to pardon his name once he got into office.”

A lot of questions run through my mind. I vaguely remember her mentioning her brother, but I would’ve remembered if she told me he was in jail for murder. That aside, did she really believe the man who proved to be untrustworthy throughout their whole marriage would follow through on any kind of deal? A man doesn’t get the pull of the governor overnight. Danica never struck me as a naïve woman, so I’m finding it a little hard to believe she’d buy his bullshit. Then again, I’ve got one dead brother and I can tell you there isn’t a thing I wouldn’t do to have him back here with me.

With Anna.

I’d sell my soul and jump through fire. I guess I’d believe someone, even a person who I categorized as an enemy, if they were saying something I wanted to hear too.

Desperation is the devil.

It fucks with the best of us.

Tears fill her eyes as she stares back at me. The urge to pull her into my arms is great, but I manage to control myself. If I want another shot at her, and I’m realizing I do, then I need all the facts.

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