Page 111 of Shadow and Skulls

My gaze roams over the lake, stopping on Tank. A small grin pulls at the corner of his mouth.

“What?”

He laughs lightly, looking away to scan over the area. “I can’t believe we’re out in the open.”

“Do you feel a bit like a sitting duck?” The entire club is watching us.

“A little,” he admits, his attention turning back to me.

“Thank you for coming. It was nice having you by my side when I said goodbye to my mom today.”

“I’ve been worried about you,” he admits.

I lean back, trailing my fingers through the dark water below us. “I’m okay.”

He stretches his long legs out in front of me, tapping his foot against mine. “You didn’t write.”

“I wanted to let you read my letters from the club, so you could get to know them better.”

He’s quiet as he processes what I’ve said. “Did you know they were thinking about letting me back in to the club?”

“No.”

I drop my head against the wooden post, pulling my hand from the water. His gaze is heavy on my face as I wipe my hands down my jeans.

Tank, the most patient man on the planet, other than my father, waits for me to tell him why I really didn’t write to him.

“Fine. I didn’t write because I couldn’t.”

Laughter filters down the hill, drawing our attention to the warehouse for a moment before turning back to each other.

I sigh loudly. “I sent the letters because I didn’t know what else to do. But I didn’t want you to worry about me. I wanted to give you something.”

When he’s still quiet, I take a deep breath. “I saw Matt coming. I was watching for you.” My mind drifts back to that night.

He taps my foot again, pulling me from my thoughts. “What do you need from me?”

Our eyes meet, and the rest of the world fades away. I don’t know if anyone’s ever asked me that before.

“I waited for him. Heard the door click open and then shut. Felt him lift the blankets. Smelled his cologne …”

Tank’s green eyes pierce the dark as he waits for my next words.

“And then, when his face was inches from mine, I pulled my gun.”

His chest heaves as he takes a deep breath and slowly releases it.

“I hate that he was there. In my home. On my bed.” I look at him thoughtfully for a moment before telling him what I need.

“I need you to replace that memory.”

Chapter Fifty

Tank

Iwatch as she goes through her nightly routine. The last thing she does is light the star lantern I made for her before settling into her big four-poster bed.

I’m still blown away that it’s the second one I’ve made for her. My grandmother was right. Someone had found our lanterns, and she cherished them. Sure, I’ve talked about the string that runs between Kelsie and me, but I didn’t realize just how long that string had been there.

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