Total pages in book: 45
Estimated words: 43444 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 217(@200wpm)___ 174(@250wpm)___ 145(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 43444 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 217(@200wpm)___ 174(@250wpm)___ 145(@300wpm)
“That’s illegal right?” Bronte expected to see the police descending at any moment. “I mean, how do you know all that?”
Tasha patted her hand. “I told you he had skills, hon. Anyway, he wouldn’t have gone so deep if that asshole hadn’t decided to mess with our family.”
“I’m n—” She nodded bracingly, her hands flat on the table. “Okay, so you know who he is. How worried should I be? Should William be?”
“You shouldn’t be worried at all. Kevin—that’s his real name—isn’t the brain of any operation. He’s the muscle. He’s not even all that good at it from what I can tell.”
Bronte leaned closer. “Who’s the brain?”
“Mahoney. That one is connected by marriage to William’s old boss, but they’re not all that close. Mahoney wanted to talk to William so he tapped Kevin, the laziest criminal in the world. With your husband out of town and all those pesky relatives in law enforcement, Kevin needed a safer, easier way to find his missing person. He chose you.”
Tasha frowned at that. “So this wasn’t about delivering a message. You think he used her to find William?”
Ken merely raised his eyebrows. “We’re taking care of it.”
We? “What does he want with William?”
He glanced at her, and she thought she detected a glimmer of discomfort. “You need to ask him about that, Bronte.”
“But you know.”
“I know.”
“Did you know before you sent him to Baltimore?”
He blinked at her in surprise. “I did.”
“I knew you were hiding something,” Tasha said angrily. “Did he pass the test, yet?”
Bronte glanced between them sharply. “What do you mean, test? I thought you were using your connections to help him stay in the country. That we hadn’t gotten an annulment because we were waiting for that to go through. Are you the reason it hasn’t happened yet?”
“I wasn’t testing him, I was protecting him,” Ken assured them both through clenched teeth. “Getting him away from temptation. Giving him time away from everyone who, let’s be honest, knew enough of his past to expect him to fail. He was starting a new life. He needed time to figure out what direction it would take.”
“That sounds like a test to me.”
Bronte had to agree.
Ken’s temple was pulsing as he spoke to Tasha. “As much as we love the Finn men, you and I both know if he’d stayed while tempers were high, they would have blamed him for taking advantage of Bronte. Their marriage would have been annulled before the next sunrise, William would have gotten pissed, disappeared and been forced to deal with this current situation on his own. I don’t think anyone at this table would have been happy with that outcome.”
He was right. About all of it.
Damn it.
Her family and the Finns would have closed ranks to protect her, because he hadn’t told them about her dare. He’d let them think it was all his idea. Just to protect her.
Even then, he’d been trying to take care of her.
She took a breath. “One thing at a time. Is William in danger because of me? Should he get out of Baltimore?”
Ken shook his head. “I would never have sent him here if I thought he or the Collins family would be in any danger. We’ve been taking care of it. I didn’t expect Kevin to screw everything up and send you racing out here without any warning, but even that looks like it can work to our advantage.”
“Okay.” She nodded. “Okay, then I’ll just go tell him about stupid, lazy, bad-at-his-job Kevin so we can get this insanity resolved and finally move on.”
“Move on?” Ken studied her quietly until she shifted under the scrutiny. “Have you decided to divorce him?”
No. The rejection was so vehement she had to bite her tongue to keep from shouting it out loud. “I think that’s between William and me.”
A few months ago, “Of course” would have been her answer. Because she couldn’t stay married to someone who would only be in his forties when she hit retirement. She couldn’t live with a man she married on a drunken lark. Build a future with him. A family. No one made that kind of decision after one night of sexual oblivion.
She looked up in time to see Tasha and Ken share a speaking look, getting the distinct impression both of them knew exactly what she was thinking.
“I should go.” She pushed her chair back and got to her feet, Ken standing beside her.
“Bronte.” He hesitated. “Brady and I… Well, let’s just say we had our own issues to overcome. And some crime,” he added with the barest hint of a smile. “Maybe that’s why I wanted to help William. No matter what he’s done or what he thinks of himself, he’s no hardened criminal. I think you know that, too.”
“I do.”
Ken nodded, slipping his phone back into his pocket. “We’ve got a room for tonight and I’ll be dealing with the situation. You don’t need to worry, Bronte. We have it under control. If you need us for anything, we’ll be nearby.”