Page 27 of The Secrets We Share

The subway stops, sending both of our bodies jolting to the side. Harkin drops his hand from the pole and holds it out for me, which is the only indication we’re exiting here. As we emerge above ground, he surprises me when he heads straight for the curb to the unmarked car idling there. Without checking the driver, he pulls open the backdoor and guides me inside before sliding in after me and closing the door.

It’s stifling in here, with the heat turned on full blast as if we’re still in the dead of winter. I peel out of my coat and cram it on the floor near my feet.

“He sent you the pin?” Harkin asks the man in the driver’s seat.

“Yes, sir. Are we heading straight there?”

“Yes, but don’t take the direct route.”

“No problem. We’ll be there in about forty-five minutes with current traffic.”

“Very well. Excuse us.” Harkin ends the conversation by pressing a button and raising the partition between the front and back of the town car.

His body shifts in my direction, and his shoulders relax. It’s the first time since I saw him in the hall where he looks like the man I’m used to and not the hard shell he puts on for the rest of the world.

“Do you want to tell me what made you decide that coming into the city alone while I was out of town was a wise choice?”

“Do you want to share why you showed up?” I cross my arms over my chest and lean back, creating more distance between us.

“Oh, I know you’re not stupid, sweetness. Don’t ask questions you already know the answer to.”

I let out an annoyed huff. I know how he found me; that’s the easy part of the puzzle, but the reason is slightly unclear, even if he thought it was black and white. Was it simply because he didn’t want me alone in the city?

“You weren’t supposed to be back yet.”

“And you thought you could just slip away to the city, and we’d be none the wiser?” He laughs.

Well, when he puts it like that, I feel stupid. “Did you track me?”

“Of course,” he says without hesitation, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

“But how did you know?”

“Your search history.”

“Wait, what? How?”

“Again, with the stupid questions. I think that’s enough from you.” His voice drops low, and his frame grows in the small space. He looks down at the black watch adorned on his inked wrist. “And would you look at that? We still have thirty-eight minutes for you to come clean.” The wicked way his mouth turns up is my only warning before his body engulfs mine.

THIRTEEN

HARKIN

Taste of the Divine - Shaker, Zee, COBRA

She seemed surprised I’d keep tabs on her computer’s search history. Her laptop, phone, and body are all mine to trace at any given moment. Did it cross personal boundaries? Maybe to people who weren’t us. But we are who we are. A girl who grew up living through one horrific situation only to trade it for another and another. And a boy who was only starting to unravel the fucked-up mess his family chose to tangle the Greyson name in. Yet, a twisted sense of fate brought the two together—a catalyst for both families’ futures.

She’s been uneasy since we left Nikita’s. Her anxiety and anger grow the longer I let the quiet build between us. It was easy to spot on the subway. I watched her hands continually ball into fists and release to settle herself. When that didn’t work, her anger took hold.

My chest pushes against hers, shoving her flush against the car door. Her head connects with the glass, but my girl doesn’treact to the slight bite of pain. Unsure eyes watch me, waiting to see what I’ll do next.

The blush on her cheeks tinges a shade darker now that we’re alone and pressed together. Walls I erected earlier to process are ready to be torn down so we can share what’s on our minds. But what fun is a simple conversation when we can play a game? One where she refuses to tell me what happened and instead fights me at every turn with her smart mouth and defiant eyes. Open communication in a relationship was easy for those who didn’t have to fight through their trauma every day. What worked for them didn’t work for us. But what does, works so fucking well.

“Are you going to tell me what drove you to the city, sweetness?” I whisper, letting my tongue peek out and trace the curve of her ear.

Her breath hitches at the sensation, but she doesn’t answer.

“Were you just looking to catch up with anold friend?”

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