Page 55 of The Hideout

Paige flopped down on the couch, yawning again. She hadn’t slept much last night; Juliet had felt her toss and turn in the night.

“Looks like someone needs to go back to bed for a while.”

Paige waved a hand, resting her head back on a cushion and closing her eyes. “I’ll be fine. It’s just taking me a minute or two to wake up this morning.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“Honestly, no. I just want him to leave me alone. Is that really too much to ask?”

Juliet offered a weak smile, handing Paige a large cup of strong, black coffee. “You’d think it would be simple.”

“He just…” Paige groaned, bringing her hands up to her face. “I’m trying not to think about what would have happened if you hadn’t been there at the main entrance. Okay, he wouldn’t have thought to come here, but if I’d been at my apartment…well.”

“Mm. I see where you’re going with this.” Juliet snuggled down beside Paige, covering them both with a blanket. “Maybe you need a day outdoors. The countryside. I know the perfect picnic spot that nobody else uses.”

“Sounds amazing, but you’re forgetting the small matter of your business.”

Juliet grinned. “Bar is closed today. I’ve sent an email out. Emergency maintenance.”

“You…shouldn’t have done that.” Paige turned her body towards Juliet’s, their legs tangled beneath the blanket. “But thank you. I’d love to spend the day with you.”

“We all need a day off now and then. I really should look into employing someone to take care of the place so we can be off together more often. I know we have Thursdays, but it’s still a lot. Surely you agree?”

Paige leaned in, her coffee cup resting on her thigh, and kissed Juliet. “I don’t care where I am so long as I get to see you. If that means working six nights and watching you from across the bar, so be it.”

Juliet’s skin prickled at those words. Paige, when James wasn’t interfering with her day-to-day life, was an absolute joy to be with. Okay, she was a joy to be with whatever the situation, but when Paige was like this…snuggled up and seemingly happy, Juliet adored it. “But if we could get an extra day off?”

“I can think of many activities to replace work.” Paige slid her hand along Juliet’s thigh beneath the blanket, smiling into another kiss. “But for now, we should drink our coffee and get ready for this picnic you mentioned. Can’t remember the last time I got out into the countryside.”

“You’re going to love this place. It’s off a dirt track, and it looks out onto a lake.”

Paige sighed, resting her head on Juliet’s shoulder. “Sounds really nice. And it means we get to spend some extra uninterrupted time with one another.”

Yes, it did. And Juliet couldn’t wait for that extra time with Paige. “I’d really like that.”

* * *

“So, tell me about this guy who watches your place.” Paige turned in her seat, the soft leather interior of Juliet’s car hugging her. “Is someone threatening you?” Paige didn’t want to imagine that possibility, but there had to be a reason.

“I…yes. It was suggested that I should watch my back by the family of someone inside. I had him sent down. I’m not sure how it would have gone if I’d lost the case. I was representing the lesser of two evils.”

“Just a little fish, though, right?”

Juliet cleared her throat. “Not quite. Are you familiar with Shay Fitzgerald? Drug lord and murderer?”

Paige’s heart sank. She knew exactly who that was. The whole country knew his name. “Y-yes.”

“Well, him. He got sixty years without parole. His brother is trying to take over his empire for him and seems to think I should be the one in the firing line. If they hadn’t hired such a poor defence lawyer, then maybe he’d have got off.”

“Yeah, but then look at the trouble he could still be causing if he wasn’t inside.” Paige couldn’t recall all of Shay Fitzgerald’s crimes, but she would never forget the news article about him being responsible for a house fire that killed a woman and her four children. That story had stuck with Paige for a long time. “You did the right thing.”

“I know. I just wish I didn’t have to bring work home with me.” Juliet tightened her grip on her steering wheel, pulling off the main road and onto the dirt track she’d mentioned. “If that’s going to be an issue for you, Paige—”

“It’s not.”

“But if it does become one, you’ll tell me? You have enough of your own stuff going on without mine coming into it.”

Paige reached out a hand, grazing her nails across the back of Juliet’s neck. “You think some scumbag is going to scare me off? No chance. His brother is probably all mouth.”

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