Page 25 of Corrupted Lies

“I should get the door.”

“Jake, wait.”

He froze at her words. Was she going to ask him to make love to her? If she did, would he say yes or no?

“You're only wearing a towel,” she reminded him.

Disappointment put a stop to his growing erection. Of course she wasn't going to ask for sex. Only as he turned around to head back into his room to put on a pair of pants, he couldn’t miss the hungry look in Alannah’s eyes. Or the way she blushed harder when he caught her staring and scurried away to the room she was staying in.

Something was changing between them, and he had no idea if it was what either of them wanted or just a result of the high stakes of the last few days. Or if these changes were going to be a good thing or a complete and utter disaster.

October 15th

9:03 A.M.

“I wish I could walk outside without worrying someone is going to set a fire around me,” Alannah said with a shudder as she climbed out of Jake’s SUV.

Was this ever going to end?

Was her death the only thing that would stop it?

As much as she was trying to reassure herself with the facts that Cole and Susanna, Connor and Becca, and Cade, Gabriella, and Essie, were all alive and mostly in one piece—although all bearing scars, both physical and mental from their ordeals—it wasn't working.

They’d all survived, but she wasn't stupid enough to believe that was a guarantee that she would too.

Whoever this final man was who was desperate to stop the Charleston Holloway family from finding out his identity wasn't just suddenly going to give up and go away. He couldn’t. Not after everything he and the others had invested in keeping their secrets. If the truth came out, he’d be ruined.

This family was the only thing standing between him keeping whatever lifestyle he was accustomed to and winding up in prison for rape, for treason, for so many attempted murders she’d almost lost count.

Which meant he had to keep fighting as hard as he could.

“I'm sorry, Alannah. I truly am. I should have continued keeping my distance from you.”

There was so much guilt and pain in Jake’s voice that she snapped around to look up at him. Instead of his usual gruff expression, the same raw guilt and pain she’d just heard in his voice was written all over his face.

While she absolutely got why he was blaming himself, that wasn't what she wanted. Not at all. It was not his fault that he’d brought these people to her. She was his best friend and he should be able to come to her with his problems. And he’d stayed away for three long months, leaving her to wonder if she’d done something wrong to cost her his friendship.

She’d much rather this.

Huh.

Actually, she really would rather this, even with her life in danger and all the close calls she’d had over the last few days. Because without Jake in her life, she felt so alone. She had other friends, but none could even hold a candle to her best friend. Not because they weren't great people who cared about her and who she had fun with, just because they weren't … Jake.

Stepping up to him, she didn't hesitate, just wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her cheek to his chest. Right above his heart so she could hear the steady beat of it. Even though she’d been the target of the second two fires didn't mean that he wasn't the real target. She was just something to be used to try to manipulate him. Alannah couldn’t imagine how bad that made him feel, but she didn't want him taking on guilt that wasn't his to bear. The people to blame were the ones who had raped his stepmom then gone to the extreme to try to cover it up.

“Don’t blame yourself, Jake. I don’t,” she whispered.

For a long moment, he didn’t say anything, and his arms hung limply at his sides. Then, ever so slowly, he lifted them and curled them around her.

Cocooned in his embrace, a small sigh slipped past her lips and she nestled closer. They might be best friends, but they didn't often touch, at least not like this. A quick hug, sure, a high five or fist bump, definitely, but they didn't stand there looking like a pair of lovers entwined in each other’s arms.

Lovers.

The word whispered through her mind.

It made her the worst best friend in the world, but last night when she’d been leaving the bathroom wrapped in nothing but a towel, and bumped into Jake wearing nothing but a towel, she’d wanted him.

Unable to tear her gaze away from his ripped body, all she’d been able to think about was how good it would be to touch and kiss every inch of his tanned skin. She’d seen him topless before,they worked out at her gym together a lot, and they hung out at the beach in the summer.

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