Page 73 of What I Should Have Known

And a shrill ringing from my phone seared through our blissful escape, jolting me back to the looming disaster hurdling our way.

Chapter 24

KAT

Without me even having to ask, he’d somehow known I was thirsty and hungry, and through the conversation with this Griffin guy, he quietly led me out of his room.

I slowly followed Bernie down the stairs, the words from his buddy on the phone drifting like a butterfly during an intense wind. They were there, but they struggled to sift through the crash of everything else, and his fingers lazily threaded in mine.

Griffin’s buddies in law enforcement had informed him that the police were aware of this little gang. The Cobweb Crew bloomed onto the market a few years ago, around the time Wyatt got wrapped up with them, and no matter what the police had tried to do to get them gone, they seemed to stick around as if they were spider silk themselves. So, while they continued to be monitored by the cops, they’d put the gang on the back burner while going after bigger fish in the sea instead.

“There’s nothing they can give you that would help me keep Kat out of this shit until Wyatt gets outed? Like, I don’t know, how to get him fucking arrested so he doesn’t try something?” he grumbled, placing his phone down on the kitchen counter, and braced his palms against the edge.

“I mean, you could call in an anonymous tip or something, but you’d have to know where he deals and when,” Griffin replied, his voice booming from the speaker.

“That’s really fucking helpful. I should just find out where the fucking headquarters for this crew is and blow that shit up,” he snarled, pinching the bridge of his nose.

I stood beside him quietly, my world spinning dizzyingly around me. Warm from Bernie’s obvious and very protective stance, yet terrified by the knowledge that I only mattered to him.

“Bernie, we’re not overseas, so you can’t exactly do that,” Griffin replied.

“I know. I just—”

“Look,” Griffin inserted. “I’ll make some more calls to see what information they might be able to give me. But Bernie, this isn’t a mission where you need to go after the bad guy. Your job is to protect Kat and avoid getting caught with her for a week until her brother informs her parents, right?”

“So, I’m supposed to sit back and fucking do nothing? What about after Sawyer tells his parents?” Bernie asked; his voice held a tone that sent a shiver up my spine.

A heavy sigh came from the speaker as the front door creaked. As it swung open, I glanced away from Bernie’s bare back, his muscles rollingwith tension that had me drooling despite knowing how horrendous the situation looked for me.

Ford crept scarily silent inside the house. Several grocery bags slung over each of his arms. The only thing adding ambience was the rustling of the plastic scratching together.

“Then, we’ll assess the situation and create a new game plan. At this point, I know you’re assuming Wyatt will get pissed so he might try something. Prepare for that, but, and heavy on the fuckingbut, a violent response should be the last resort. One toe out of line, something a little suspicious happens, and the Navy will get involved. You and I both know how that’ll turn out for you,” Griffin cautioned.

Bernie closed his eyes and braced against the counter. “Yeah, I know.”

“I’ll let you know what else I find, but no guarantees, so don’t be a dumbass about this. And, I don’t know, maybe go try to enjoy some stable, normal civilian life with your girl for once,” Griffin warned, and the line went dead with a click.

Wandering around his back, I quietly sifted through cupboards, searching for a clean glass. Silence filled the room as quickly as smoke in a burning building. Everything around me seemed to be on fire, yet there was a blissful simmering I bathed in.

I finally located a clean cup as the rustling of plastic bags settled on the counter and Ford spoke. “You gonna tell me what the fuck is going on?”

Bernie opened his eyes as I quietly closed the cupboard. And we both began to explain the situation. Hearing him speak about it, about me, sent a ripple of strange exhilaration through me. He seemed more obsessed than I’d originally thought. Respectful, yet, as his voice deepened, the animalstalked forward because of his inability to do anything. I eventually found myself sitting on the counter with Bernie between my legs.

He leaned back against me, one hand running gently up and down the outside of my thigh. “I can’t just sit back and do nothing,” he grumbled again.

Ford munched on a cookie, the groceries were put away, and my belly was full of leftover spaghetti Bernie’s mom had made last night. “I heard Griffin warn you.”

His fingers tightened, digging into my thigh. I could see the war going on inside his head, torn between what he should do and what he wanted to do. The impulsive Bernie versus the rational, mature man. And I hoped he knew I liked both sides of him.

“I know,” he finally muttered. “So, what am I supposed to do?”

“Exactly what Griffin said,” I replied, butting in.

Ford nodded and took another bite of his cookie.

Bernie remained silent, and the way he mindlessly wandered his hand up and down my thigh sent a chill across my skin.

Then Ford shrugged his shoulders and raised a brow. “When did you say Sawyer’s deadline is up?”

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