Page 86 of Romeo

“Okay.”Jules stares out her window, so I reach over and take her hand, threading my fingers through hers.

“Do you think Odie is capable of murder?”I ask her.

“No.Then again, I never thought he’d put money above family.Now I’m not sure what he’s capable of.”

Chapter29

Jules

“Morning,” I greet as Riley steps into the kitchen.It’s barely seven in the morning, and I’m honestly surprised he’s already up since he was still awake at midnight when I’d finally turned in for the night.Romeo looks just about as tired as he trots in beside Riley and heads straight toward the food bowl I already filled.

“Morning,” he replies as he crosses over and cups my cheek.Gently, he tips my head up and kisses me.It’s a tender caress of his lips against mine, a whisper of a promise that melts away even more of the walls I’ve had up for what I’m now realizing is far too long.

“Coffee?”I ask as he pulls away.

“Yes, please.Thanks.”

“Of course.”I pour him a mug of coffee then hand it over to him before refilling my own.“What time did you finally head to bed last night?”

“Three,” he replies.“I spoke to Frank Loyotta.He’s the one trying to find video evidence of what happened to you.”

A bit of hope leaps in my chest.“Did he find anything?”

“Not yet.He’s having a hard time getting the private airport Dodger typically uses to relinquish the footage without a warrant.And with no actual proof, he can’t obtain one of those either.”

The hope I’d felt only moments ago vanishes.

“Tucker is still looking for proof that money left Dodger’s account, but so far?—”

“What about my grandfather’s money?”An idea forms in my mind.It’s twisted, and I seriously hope I’m wrong, but I can’t shake it.

“You think Odie paid the killer?”

“I think that, if we operate based on the idea that Odie was blackmailing Dodger, he might have felt pressured to take action in order to keep the truth from surfacing.”It makes my stomach churn to even consider that he might have had something to do with our grandfather’s murder.Then again, he made it clear that, to him, our family was a business move.A way to keep himself taken care of.

But could he have killed?

“It’s possible.I can have Tucker switch focus to Odie’s accounts.Then maybe he’ll find something before you go see him today.”He practically spits the words out, they’re so full of anger.

We’d talked about it some more last night, and he’d tried hard to convince me not to meet with Odie.But out of everyone we can talk to, he’s the one with all the answers, it seems.And I desperately want to face everything I’ve been running from.Maybe then I’ll be able to move forward.

Finally.

“I’ll be fine.”

Riley doesn’t respond right away.“After the only serious relationship I had back when I was in the service went sideways, I decided I was going to remain focused only on the job and not allow myself to be distracted by a woman ever again.”

I swallow hard.

“But then I met you.”He moves in closer.“You fought me every time we faced off, challenged me, called me out—I was completely and utterly frustrated with you from the moment we met.”

I smile.“The feeling was mutual.”

“But now,” he starts, then takes a deep breath.“I want this, Jules.Whatever is between us, whatever started that first moment we met, I want to know what it means.”

“So do I.”Reaching up, I place my hand on his chest.Touching him, these casual moments of contact, is far easier than I ever thought it would be.Especially when I could hardly stomach hugs even when they came from the man I trusted most in this world.

“I told you that I believed God placed me in your path for a reason.But I also think He brought you to me.”Riley covers my hand with his.“So I need you to stay alive, Jules.I need you to value your life as much as I do because, if something were to happen to you—” He trails off then leans down and rests his forehead against mine.“I don’t know how I’ll survive it.”

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