Page 90 of A Favor Owed

“I’m fine,” I murmur, shifting my weight and examining my toes.

The door flies open and one of the librarians walks in. “Oh, uh—”

“We were just leaving,” says Brady. “Sorry. You ready, Pines?”

I grab my things, and he holds the door open for me.

I start walking toward the library, head down, not looking at him, searching in vain for my next escape. I take a left and head out to a small courtyard at the back of the building.

“Angela.”

I stop. Every molecule in my body wants to run toward him, not away from him. But I shake my head and wrap my arms around myself, sealing off the feelings I’m not supposed to have. “How can I trust you, Brady?”

His voice is quiet but shaking slightly when he answers. “I never lied to you. I told you as much as I could. I even told you that what I was hiding would hurt you, that it would end us. I left when you told me to leave. I let you go when you told me to let you go. I would lay down my life for you, Angela. How can younottrust me?”

My shoulders slump. I try clutching myself tighter, but it’s no use. He’s right. He hadn’t known me when this all started. By the time he did, he didn’t want me anywhere near the feds. He protected his secret, but he protected me, too.

He tilts my face up with his thumb.

“I know better than most people that life can be really short. I love you, Angela. I miss you like crazy. It sure sounded like you miss me, too.”

“You weren’t supposed to read that message,” I grumble.

“I’m keeping that message for the rest of my life. I’m doing the same with you, by the way.”

“I think your life and my life might have different expiration dates,” I say softly.

“That’s usually how it works, princess. But my hope for you is that after I kick the bucket at around the age of ninety-five, you get yourself an eighty-year-old boyfriend and live to a hundred and ten.”

It would be safer—for both of us—to hold on to my anger. But it’s impossible in the face of his sunshine and light.

“This isn’t funny, Brady,” I say, my mouth twitching with an unwelcome grin. I force myself to picture my dad. I remember the boyfriend of the seamstress. That has the desired effect of sobering me up. “My father isn’t a joke. He’s a dangerous man, and if he doesn’t already know I crossed him, he will soon. I can’t let you be around for that.”

“He has a pretty good idea, and he’s not going to do anything to us. He just doesn’t want to see you for a while. Probably until he pays off or intimidates the jury and gets a not-guilty verdict.”

“What are you talking about, Brady?” I say, my knees suddenly feeling weak. “How could you possibly know that?” Brady looks uncomfortable for a moment before straightening up and looking me in the eye.

“I talked to your dad.”

And there go my knees. Brady catches me by the upper arms and holds me upright. “Oh my God,” I say, my voice coming out as a whimper. “Oh my God, Brady. What were you thinking?” I shove him as hard as I can, which isn’t very hard, since he’s holding onto me and I’m a puddle of shaking limbs. “Where? How? What the hell did you say to him?”

“Metro Detention Center in Brooklyn. Lou set it up. I asked him to leave you alone.”

“Oh my God. I think I’m going to be sick.”

“You’re going to be fine. Let’s sit down.” He grabs my stuff and leads me over to a bench. I sit down and lean over with my head in my hands. Brady rubs my back. “Everything’s okay, Ange. I’m pretty sure if he wanted me dead I’d be dead right now. Anyway, he was pretty pissed when I suggested he might have it out for you. And, uh, he’s known where you’ve been the whole time.”

“Oh my God.” I can’t form a single coherent thought.

“You know what his biggest concern was, though?” I make some kind of whimpering noise. “That you were happy.”

I don’t realize I’m crying until I feel Brady’s arms around me and feel his warm breath against my neck. He’s telling me everything’s going to be okay. And I desperately want to believe him.

“You ran into a burning building for me,” I say when I can talk again.

“Did you ever doubt that I would?”

“I never want you doing anything like that again.”

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