Page 92 of Coff

I toss the paper towel into the garbage. “But that doesn’t change the fact that my brother and best friend used me to try to… What was your brother doing that they wanted stopped?”

He sighs. “I found out when I came to see you that winter that my brother had been investigating your father for a couple of years. He said I had to get out of there, or it would jeopardize everything. That was why I asked you to run away with me right then.”

I turn away from him as the tears come. “They put us in an impossible situation. Either you betray your brother, or I lose my family.”

“Yeah, that’s about right.”

I turn around to face him. “And we both chose our family.”

He steps closer. “No. Even if my brother hadn’t been investigating your dad, I still couldn’t have stayed once I found out what your dad was doing. I couldn’t stand by and do nothing.”

“So, you had to go.”

“Yes.”

I want to tell him how his leaving crushed me. How I never wanted to get close to another man again. But Duke kind of already did in the parking lot of that hotel. And right now, I’m too raw with everything that’s happened. I need time to process. But first, I need some answers.

I storm out of the bathroom to my brother’s room. Sam is kissing Duke, and she jumps back.

“Delaney? I-I was just checking on Duke.” She narrows her eyes as she focused behind me. “Logan. It’s been a while.”

“Save it. I overheard you two talking. Why did you set Logan and me up to meet all those years ago? What was in it for you?”

I glare at Sam, then at Duke. Both are wide-eyed, and they exchange glances.

“Delaney, I’m sorry. I never meant for you to get hurt,” Sam says. She walks to me and reaches out, but I back up.

My eyes are on my brother. “Answer me.”

He licks his lips. “I’m sorry, Delaney. Dad told me the FBI was monitoring him, and he had a private investigator look into the main agent.”

I glance at Logan, and his jaw clenches.

“Dad found out the agent had a brother who was on leave. Dad ordered me to get you on a date with the brother.”

“All we needed were photos or you two kissing or something,” Sam says.

“Sam was with me when I got the call from Dad that I had to get you to the bar. I asked Sam to help me.”

I sit in a chair as I remember. “That’s why you rushed me to get ready to go out. You said it was because happy hour was about to end.”

“I’m so sorry, Delaney. I really thought with the shots you had that you two would make out and that would be that,” Sam says.

“We never thought you two would fall in love and it would blow up your life,” Duke says.

I stand up and walk out of the room without a word. Logan stops and says something to Fox, then he’s by my side. Neither of us speaks on the way back to the hotel room. It’s what I need as I replay all my interactions with Sam and Duke from twelve years ago.

But then I realize I never confronted them about being together and lying to me. It’s too much to take. I want to go home, crawl into bed, and cry. I can’t because someone is after us. When it comes to Duke, danger follows him. And apparently, me too.

CHAPTER19

Logan

“What’s going on?”Reed asks over the phone.

I left Delaney in the hotel room and walked outside to call Reed. I have to talk to someone about my brother.

“I overheard something my brother said, and—” I swallow, not sure how to say the words. “And I think he may be dirty.”

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