Page 31 of Murder & Mayhem

I meet his watchful gaze with a steady one of my own. “It’s possible she just forgot.”

“It is. Which is why I looked at your employee file.” I have to work hard to ensure the panic doesn’t show on my face. I hadn’t expected him to go to such lengths, and there’s no way the start date on the file will line up with the night I killed Chad.Fucking Chad.My palms begin to sweat, and it's almost painful to hold his gaze, but only a liar would break eye contact. I can barely hear his next words over the rushing of blood in my ears. “It checked out.”

My throat is dry, and I have to swallow before I can respond. “Of course it did.”Oh my god, how the hell did that happen?I can’t even let myself think about it in case I let something slip. “I didn’t lie to you.”

“No.” He drags out the word, still sounding suspicious. “It looks like you didn’t.”

“Can I get back to work now?” I bite out the words, letting anger replace the confusion and panic within me. “Or do you want to sit and interrogate me some more?”

I get nothing in response, not the slightest twitch of a muscle or blink of an eye. Eventually, he gives a barely perceptible jerk of his head, and I slowly, steadily, rise to my feet, cautious not to look as though I’m running away.

My stomach is still in knots as I step onto the street after my shift and glance around for the now-familiar Cadillac Escalade. Every night, a Reject member meets me after my shift and drives me home, and tonight is no exception as the car rolls to a stop in front of me.

Pulling open the door, a pleased grin lights up my face as I climb into the car. “Hey, you,” I greet Oliver, leaning across the console and placing a quick kiss on his lips. “Wasn’t expecting you to pick me up,” I tell him as I pull off my wig and remove my contacts.

He gives a casual shrug. “We had nothing going on, so I thought I’d grab us some late-night Chinese.” He points to a takeaway bag at my feet, and I groan as my mouth salivates.

“Mmm, that sounds amazing.”

Smiling, his gaze dips to my lips, and his voice has this rough, sexy quality as he says, “Can we take it back to your place? I don’t feel like sharing you with anyone else tonight.”Well, fuck, if that doesn’t have me wanting to forgo dinner and jump straight to dessert.I hesitate, though, and as if reading my mind, he tacks on, “Luc is at the clubhouse tonight with the kids.”

I grin, and my voice is a seductive purr when I say, “Let’s go then.”

Pulling onto the street, Oliver’s hand moves to rest just above my knee, and his fingers stroke lightly along my inner thigh. I barely feel the motion through my jeans, but the easy way he does it makes my insides go all gooey.

“How was tonight?” he asks, watching me out of the corner of his eye before returning his focus to the road.

“Looks like your stunt worked. Dante showed up.”

“And?”

I give a slight shrug. “He remembered me. Pulled me into the office, wanting to know who I was.” I’d explained to Oliver and Cain about my run-in with Dante the time I came to Belle Donne for a mark, and we’d all agreed to play dumb. “I did what we talked about.”

“And he bought it?”

“I think so. He hung around for a good while afterwards, so I’ve definitely got his attention.” I don’t verbalize the uneasiness in my stomach about that. It will only serve to worry Oliver, and he might even talk to Cain about it, and the two of them will gang up and convince me to abandon my plan. I won’t let that happen.

Oliver’s hand tightens on my thigh, and when I look his way, his face is pinched. Reaching out, I place my hand over his. “We talked about this,” I remind him. “This is a good thing. It’s what we want.”

“I know.” His voice is strained. “Doesn’t mean I have to like it, however. I hate not having eyes on you in there. You don’t even have anything to defend yourself with.”

“Jon’s been helping me improve my fighting skills.”

“Oh yeah?” A small smile curls on his lips as he turns to look at me for a second. “I’d like to see that.”

I laugh. “I’m pretty sure I spend more time on the mat than on my feet, but I think I’m making some headway.”

With another reassuring squeeze of my thigh, he says, “I’m sure you’re doing great.”

It’s not long before we pull up outside my apartment building. Grabbing the Chinese takeaway plus my bag, I get out of the car and lead Oliver into the building. “Make yourself at home,” I tell him when we step into my apartment. Flicking on the lights, I head into the kitchen to grab some plates and cutlery while he moves into the small living room. He takes a seat on the floor and starts setting various Chinese takeout containers out on the carpet.

“I wasn’t sure what you liked, so I got a mixture,” he explains when I join him.

“Sounds good.” I claim a spot on the floor opposite him and the two of us dig into our food. “So…” I begin when I’m halfway through my mu shu pork. “What were you in prison for?”

He barks out a surprised laugh. “How long have you been waiting to ask me that?”

I shrug unapologetically and smirk at him. “A while. Despite your affiliation with the Rejects, you just don’t seem like the type to do hard time.”

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