Page 26 of Offside Angel

Running.

Hiding.

Afraid.

“Hey.” Evan sits down on the bench next to me, his large hand heavy on my knee. “What’s wrong?”

I blink up at him and realize I’m crying. “God, I’m sorry. This is embarrassing.”

He hands me a tissue from his pocket. “Don’t be embarrassed.”

“I was just thinking… I don’t want to get out of town and start over like Sariah did. I want to stay.”

“You will. That’s why I’m here.”

I give him a sad smile. “Dante hasn’t done anything like what Tom did to Sariah. In this story, I’m the murderer.”

“No,” Evan growls, shaking his head. “This is the kind of messed-up shit I’m talking about. The system never manages to help the people who need it most. You were abused your entire life, Mira. You finally get free and now, they want to lock you up? It’s bullshit and I’m not going to let it happen. Zane isn’t, either. I’m going to make sure Dante doesn’t get close to you, and then I’m going to make sure you get the life you deserve.”

I swipe the tears from my cheeks. “Thanks. But it’s not my life I’m worried about. Zane is taking care of me, but I’m putting him and Aiden at risk, too.”

“He knows that. He won’t let anything happen to Aiden.”

I know Zane will do everything in his power to protect Aiden. I know he doesn’t want anything to happen to his son.

But the what ifs keep swirling in my head until I turn to Evan. “I need you to promise me something.”

For the first time, the large man looks uncertain. “I don’t know if I can do that.”

“You can and you have to. I know you’re being paid to watch me, but when I’m with Aiden, you need to swear to me that you’ll protect him first. No matter what happens, Aiden has to come first.”

Evan winces. “I made a deal with Zane. I signed a contract, Mira.”

“Fuck the contract!” I snap. “We’re talking about a four-year-old little boy we both love. You, me, and Zane would all throw ourselves under a bus to save him. You know that.”

He nods. “Yeah, I know.”

I hold out my hand for a shake. “So, promise me.”

Evan stares at my hand. “This is pointless. Aiden is going to be fine.”

“You don’t know that. If Dante finds out where I am and who I’m with, he’ll go after them to get me. Aiden is the easiest target.” A knot forms in my throat, and I have to swallow around it. “My brother could use Aiden as bait to lure me out. Or as leverage to get me to go along with whatever he wants. You said yourself he’s a loose cannon. We don’t know what he’s capable of.”

“That is why Zane hired me to watch you and why Aiden is at a preschool with world-class security. You all are safe.”

“But if we aren’t—” I thrust my hand towards him again. “—I need you to swear that you’ll save Aiden first. You know it’s what Zane would want, even if he won’t say it out loud.”

Evan sags, and I know I’ve got him. Finally, he grabs my hand. “I’ll protect both you and Aiden with my life.”

I shake my head. “That’s not what I said. I want to know that you’ll choose him over me if it comes to it.”

“It isn’t going to come to that.”

“But if it does,” I grit out.

“But if it does,” he sighs, “I’ll choose Aiden over you.”

Instantly, I can breathe a little deeper.

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