Page 78 of Forever Always

I snorted, but then, maybe he was serious? Holy fuck. “Um, I don’t know,” I answered honestly, deciding to take his question as legit.

Wes just nodded. “That’s fair. That’s not the plan right away regardless. I do try to do things legally if I can.”

“What’s your plan then?”

“Luca’s gonna see what he can find on this Mr. Chase. Chances are, if he did this to you, he did it to someone else.”

I dug at the skin on my palm. I needed to do . . . something. “Y-yeah. I was . . . I was afraid of that. I shoulda said something sooner.”

Ri grabbed my chin, wrenching my head toward him. “This ain’t your fuckin’ fault. Don’t start goin’ there, baby.” He glared at Wes. “This ain’t his fault. Don’t you dare tell him otherwise.”

“I would never, Riley. It’s not his fault. Or yours.”

I couldn’t speak, but I tilted my head once Ri let my face go, so Wes knew to keep going.

“Once we have eyes on him and more information, we can go one of two ways. Either we’ll handle it. We’ll try the legal way first and get this bastard arrested. If that fails, then well, we’ll try other ways. Either way we’ll take care of it.”

“I thought you had to go to South America?” Ri asked suspiciously.

Wes sighed, the first sign he was at all affected by this. “I did. I still do. I wish I could push it off, but I can’t.”

“We’ll be fine,” Riley said, already shutting down. “You don’t gotta do any of this for us. You don’t owe us anything, and we sure as shit don’t wanna owe you.”

“Ri,” I hissed. Normally, I’d agree, but I was just so tired. I couldn’t do this anymore. I wanted to know Riley had someone else in his corner, and if that meant exposing myself and trusting someone, then I would.

“It’s fine. I don’t expect either of you to trust me. It’s smart, really. All I can do is prove myself. And show that I’m not going anywhere.” He leveled Riley with a look so similar to the one he gave me sometimes that I shuddered. I could feel Riley doin’ the same next to me. “I can’t avoid this trip, unfortunately, but Luca and his guys are staying on top of it.”

“What does that mean?”

“It just means that they’ll make sure the information gets where it needs to get and they’ll keep an eye on this bastard.”

I met Wes’s eyes. “You trust them to keep Riley safe?”

“Yes.” No doubt. No hesitation.

“Seriously, Beckett. You’re okay with this?”

I kissed Ri, not caring that Wesley was there. “Not really, but, butterfly, I can’t do this on my own anymore.” Riley gasped, understanding how much that confession must’ve taken out of me.

“Okay.” He turned back to Wesley.

“Don’t fail us. I’m not sure we’ll survive it.”

Wesley stood, his expression hard. “I won’t.” He hesitated, like he wanted to reach out to us, but I knew we both looked unapproachable.

“Don’t go anywhere alone. Keep your door locked at all times and don’t open it without checking to see who it is, and only to someone you know.”

“Okay,” I responded, just wanting him gone before I broke down.

“Be safe.” Thankfully, he left.

“Becks, talk to me,” Riley said quietly, like he was afraid that if he talked too loudly, I’d implode. He was probably right.

I didn’t even open my eyes to look at him. I shifted in the bed.

“Nothin’ to talk about,” I mumbled when it was clear he wasn’t leaving.

I really needed him to go, even if I couldn’t bring myself to say the words. I’d never told Riley to leave me alone before, and even when I was pissed and on the brink of losing it, it was hard to say it out loud.

---