Page 72 of Like You Know

Donna raised a single eyebrow, only slightly.He’s definitely saying all the right things, but I still don’t like that he lied to you.

I rolled my eyes.I know! Same. But ...I bit my lip and glanced at him.He’s so cute though. And he’s being all protective. And I think I love him too.

Mena bounced on her toes and grinned as she gave me a meaningful nod.Aww! You love him? I think you should forgive him. I think you already have. You guys are so cute.

I bugged my eyes out at her.Stop!

Harlow slowly crossed her arms and stared at me until I met her gaze. Her lips rose into a smirk, and she glanced between me and Jet before fully grinning.You guys totally did it.

“Shut up,” I said out loud, pointing a finger at her.

Jet looked between us, a deep frown on his face. “What have I missed?”

The girls and I burst into laughter, which made Jet even more confused. It was a wonderful little release of tension.

“You’re in luck.” Donna put him out of his misery. “We discussed it, and we’ve decided you’re forgiven.”

Harlow came around the island and sat down next to him, giving him a pat on the shoulder. “We just want what’s best for our girl, and you seem to be it, so yeah. You’re forgiven but not off the hook.”

“Think of it as a probationary period.” Mena leaned on the counter. “Don’t fuck it up.”

“Huh?” Jet pinched the bridge of his nose. “You discussed it? Discussed what? And when?”

Harlow tapped her temple and bugged her eyes out at him. “We have ESPN.”

The girls chuckled at her joke and Jet’s continued confusion, but I couldn’t find it in me to be happy. Even the laughter from a few moments earlier—the laughter I’d been so grateful for—had me feeling guilty. I had no business laughing while my mom’s life was in danger.

Jet’s warm fingers wrapped around my hand, pulling my attention back into the room. He gave me a tentative tug, and I went willingly into his embrace. He held me tightly for a moment, his strong arms around my back, his knees on either side of my hips where I’d stepped between them.

I breathed him in, let his fresh, bergamot-tinged scent ground me.

“Amaya.” He tenderly brushed my hair back from my face and opened his mouth, no doubt to say something comforting. Some bullshit placating comment I just didn’t want to hear.

“I need to do something,” I rushed out before he could. “Please, Jet. I know you can’t tell me any of your super-secret, classified cop information or whatever, but I can’t just sit around and worry. It’s killing me.”

“I can only imagine how hard this must be, princess.” He gave me that puppy-dog face—the one that told me he wasn’t going to give me what I wanted, but he also didn’t want me to be mad at him. “But I won’t do anything that will put you in danger.”

I stepped out of his embrace but kept a hand on his shoulder. “I’m not asking you to. I’m just asking you to talk to me. We’ve been dealing with BestLyf bullshit all year. There has to be something we know, something we can do to help, even if it’s the smallest little detail ...” I wasn’t even sure what I was saying anymore, what I was asking.

“Why have no arrests been made?” Donna asked. She could tell I was floundering, and she got right to the point. God, I loved her.

“They don’t have enough evidence or something.” I huffed. Jet had explained this yesterday.

“What does that mean?” Donna pressed.

“We’ve been building a case against—” Jet stopped himself, clearly fighting an internal battle. He wanted to tell me more, but his sense of duty was strong. “We’ve been building a case. This has been in the works for some time—over a year. Those in charge don’t want to make a move—and alertanyoneto the level of the investigation—unless we are positive that what we have is airtight. Do you understand? We want to do this once, do it well, and make sure it sticks.”

“Kidnapping isn’t enough?” Donna asked. “It happened in front of two police officers. How is that not enough?”

“It’s a crime, certainly, and it’s being taken seriously. It’s being investigated.”

“And off the record?” Harlow leaned forward, and we all held our breath, waiting to see if he’d break and give us more info.

Jet pressed his lips together so hard they went white. Then he released a massive breath and hung his head, and I knew we had him.

“Off the record, we know this was BestLyf, probably at the direct order of Raine Clayton, but we don’t have enough to tie it all together. It’s not like Raine jumped out of that car in her cocktail dress and shoved your mom into the trunk herself.” I winced at the visual, and he gave my hip a squeeze. “Sorry.”

“It’s OK.” I waved him off. “What would be enough? What do you have now? Maybe we can help you find the evidence you need.”

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