Page 82 of Wicked Promises (Fallen Royals 3)

I raise my eyebrows, and then it occurs to me that all of them are acting suspicious.

“What did you do?”

“We’re not done talking about our mothers,” Caleb warns. “But, we went to the junkyard to see if we could figure out a connection.”

“The car Matt used to hit me? It was still at the…” I wince. I almost just called it a crime scene. I mean, it is a crime scene—but it’s a lot more devastating than that.

Theo clears his throat. “Maybe we should take this to… anywhere else.”

Eli snaps his fingers. “To the couch!”

Liam and Theo follow Eli out. I start to go, too, but Caleb holds me back.

“How was it?” he asks.

I tilt my head. “Which part?”

“Seeing them. I should’ve known she knew where your mom was, but I… believed her.”

“It was weird to see your mom. She was definitely shocked. I think mine is working as a cook there, which makes sense…” I shrug, looking away.

He grips my chin, twisting my head back around. “Don’t hide from me.”

I stare at him. “Seriously?”

“I can see you leaving as we speak.”

I push at his chest. “And where have you been? Lurking in the shadows. Following me and so-called leads around town.” My voice drops. “We should be doing this together.”

His face softens. “Is that what you want?”

“To work with you on this? To spend time with you actually doing shit instead of avoiding each other?” I roll my eyes. “Of course that’s what I want.”

He smiles, and it lights up his face.

My heart skips a beat.

Damn you, heart.

“Let’s go solve this thing, then.”

I pull out my phone. “Riley should come, too.”

He nods, then presses a kiss to my forehead. It’s sweet, and it shoots tingles through my whole body.

Me: How soon can you be here?

Riley: Two minutes. I was heading there anyway.

I grin to myself.

Me: No texting and driving. ;) Did Eli invite you?

The bubble pops up that she’s typing, then it disappears. It comes up again…

I bite my lip.

Oh god, if I’m the result of another car accident, I’m just going to… lose my goddamn mind.

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