Page 113 of Blade

I pulled her knees forward, so she pressed up tight against me. She wrapped her arms around my waist, and I felt like my heart could beat again.

We rode through the gate, but instead of heading directly for the trail, I took her for a ride through town first. I wasn’t ready for her to put any more space between us yet.

Not being with Becca all week just about killed me. She didn’t know it, but I never left her.

King ordered me to give her some space after what happened at the diner and then finding Grams when Jack took her home. I made sure she didn’t see me, but I had eyes on her the whole time.

My eyes.

With Grant out there somewhere, I wasn’t leaving her safety in anyone’s hands but my own.

Guiding the bike up the trail to our spot, I knew this was the only option for coming clean. This was where we told each other our secrets. Where we shared our dreams and our fears. This was where we screamed at the world on our bad days and celebrated the good days.

Here, I would tell her everything. About my dad, WITSEC, the accident, her mom. I wouldn’t leave anything out; I just prayed she loved me enough to forgive me.

Pulling up to a stop, I let the bike idle for a minute while I soaked up every moment I might have left. I turned off the ignition and tapped her leg to let her know she could climb off. Swinging my leg over, I took a deep breath. Placing her helmet on the seat, I grabbed her hand in mine, and we walked over to the edge.

We stood there looking out over the town while I tried to find the words I needed for her to understand why everything happened the way it did.

“Blade,” she said, breaking the silence.

I looked down at her.

God, she was so beautiful.

I turned to face her, taking her other hand, so I was holding both now.

“First, you need to know, I noticed you. I noticed you on that first day. I didn’t want to let you into my life because I didn’t want to lose you. Even at seven years old, I knew you were special.”

She closed her eyes, and I knew she was trying not to cry.

“Let’s sit down, and I’ll start at the beginning.”

Sprawling out on the ground, I eased her down to sit between my legs with her back against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her tight.

“I need to hold you while I tell you this,” I said, and she relaxed back against my chest.

“You knew the rumors about my dad. That he was into some shady shit. Well, they were true. He was an accountant, but he was an accountant for the Mob.”

She gasped. Sitting forward, she turned to look at me.

“What?”

“Please, baby, let me get through this,” I implored, pulling her back against me. “My dad got caught doing something. I still don’t know what. I never asked. But the FEDs got involved and to stay out of jail, my dad offered to turn state evidence against his employers. So when I was two years old, my parents entered WITSEC. I want you to know I didn’t lie when I told you my name was Justin. That was the name on my birth certificate originally.

By the time we moved to Diamond Creek, I had been in four different schools. Every time we got settled, our location would somehow get leaked, and we’d have to move again. I grew tired of losing friends, so I had decided I wasn’t making any more friends. You disagreed,” I said, and she giggled.

“Somehow Diamond Creek became home. I don’t know if it was because it was so small and remote or because our handler told no one where we were. He was the only person who knew. For eight years, no one knew where we were. We were safe. Until we weren’t.

“Remember when you told me you were going to break a big story because the Mob had come to Diamond Creek? I tried to convince you Old Man Johnson had a gambling problem?”

She nodded her head. Maybe she was afraid to say anything.

“Well, you were right. They had found us. A few days later, when I kissed you, I knew it was the last time I would see you. I couldn’t leave without tasting you just once. Because I had noticed you, Becca, and I wanted you. I was so afraid of ruining our friendship that I had decided you were off-limits.”

She tried to sit forward, and I held her tight.

“Please stay with me,” I urged her. “After the staged accident, the FEDs whisked us away yet again. Sent further out west to another small town. When I was seventeen, they found us again. They killed my mom.”

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