Page 28 of Forsaking All Others

He lifts his chin and his eyes find mine.

“Colt knows.”

I stare at him for a beat, waiting for him to elaborate, but he remains silent. His jaw gets tight and his eyes narrow in that menacing way he usually reserves for his club.

“Yes, I’m aware. Now, we can roll full steam ahead. I was thinking of making some calls tomorrow—”

“No, baby, he fuckingknows.” He glances over my shoulder at the house, then back at me. “You pocket dialed him when we were talking in the car, heard everything.”

My stomach drops as bits and pieces of mine and Mav’s conversation flash before me.

Me telling Mav about Colt’s job.

The possibility of losing our house.

The money.

The H & M plan.

Maverick telling me we’re still a team.

Baby, you gotta quit keeping tabs on my dick.

“Oh God.” I press a hand to my belly and meet Mav’s gaze. So much of what we spoke about can easily be misinterpreted. “He knows,” I whisper.

Mav jerks his chin.

“I see it’s clicking for you.”

Oh, it’s clicking all right. I raise a hand and smack Mav’s shoulder.

“Why didn’t you say something to me?” His eyes narrow at the question and that sickening feeling in the pit of my belly turns to anger. “You just stood there and let me lie to my husband.”

“First off, this was your fucking idea. Second, got the vibe that Colt doesn’t want you to know he knows. Now, he and I worked it out, made him understand how things are between you and me.”

I blink.

“What does that even mean?” I snap.

“It means you married somebody else, but you never stopped being my responsibility. Now, I’ve had my fill of this shit, I gotta get back to the club. You proceed however you want, but my suggestion—let the man hold onto his pride. He’s okay pretending to be in the dark so long as you’re happy.”

That’s not how Colt and I work—or at least it wasn’t until this morning. It’s crazy how much can change in a twenty-four hour span. How one lie can bleed into so many more.

Maverick’s engine purrs to life, pulling my attention back to him.

“Sit on it, Holly,” Maverick warns. “Before you get yourself in a bigger mess.”

He toes up his kickstand and throttles the engine. With a tip of his chin, he peels away from the curb. I stare after him, watching as he turns the corner and disappears out of sight.

I stand there in the middle of the road for some while, recalling Colt’s reaction to the H & M thing, the way he reached for my thigh and gave it a squeeze when I feigned excitement. I got the vibe he was happy or at least happy for me.

Mav’s voice echoes in my ears as I turn my attention back to the house.

You proceed however you want, but my suggestion—let the man hold onto his pride. He’s okay pretending to be in the dark so long as you’re happy.

The truth doesn’t cost much, but a lie can cost a person everything.

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