Page 58 of Forbidden Romeo

Aimee stares at me before asking quietly, “She’s safe?”

I grimace. “From me.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Aimee glowers at me.

I run a hand through my hair. “Padraic is looking for you both.”

Aimee’s eyes widen with disbelief, her voice trembling. “What have we ever done? Why would he be looking for both of us?”

“Because your brother killed mine,” I say quietly, my tone heavy with the weight of the truth.

Aimee’s face contorts. “Connor… He… No, he wouldn’t.”

“I was there.”

“You’re lying,” Aimee accuses, her voice laced with bitterness.

I try to keep my frustration at bay. “Why would I lie about this?”

“You’ve been lying to me since the moment we met!” Aimee raises her quivering voice. “How can you stand there and ask me to believe you?”

“Because I just put everything on the line to get you out of there,” I roar. “They were coming for you with the full strength of the Dead Eye forces. If anyone finds out what I’ve done here today, I have as much to lose as you do.”

I instantly regret losing my temper. A flicker of alarm crosses Aimee’s face as she backs away from me, straining against my grip. I close my eyes and try to regain some composure.

“You expect me to say ‘thank you’?” Aimee says once there’s space between us again. “It’s your fault they came after us in the first place.”

I breathe in and out. “I didn’t tell them anything, I swear. Someone found out you worked at the hospital and pulled your records.”

The mood immediately shifts. Where there was once anger and resentment, Aimee’s doe-like eyes are now filled with fear. “They… they know where we live?” Her voice is barely a whisper.

“Yes.”

“Roisin. Roisin is still in the apartment.”

My heart sinks. I failed to consider Roisin’s safety in the chaos.

“Jack,” Aimee pleads, struggling against my grip. “Jack, please. Let me go. I need to go get her. I need to make sure she’s safe.”

I shake my head. “You can’t leave this apartment.”

Aimee’s eyes blaze with defiance. “You can’t keep me here.”

“I can and I will,” I assert, my grip tightening. “You don’t know what’s out there waiting for you.”

She changes her tactic and begins to beg. “Please. Leave her out of this. I’ll do anything. You can take me to Padraic, even. I won’t resist.”

Aimee’s pleading eyes pierce through my resolve, but I know deep down that leaving her behind is the only way to keep her safe.

“I’m sorry.”

Aimee’s anger flares, her voice trembling. “You think you can make decisions for me? You think you know what’s best?”

“I’m doing this because I care about you,” I reply, hating the fact that I’m only admitting this aloud for the first time duringthisconversation. But it seems to soften Aimee’s hardness. “I will find Roisin and make sure she’s safe. It’s too dangerous for you out there right now.”

I let go of Aimee’s wrists, and she slumps to the floor. “What about you? You just took out three of your own men.”

“I’ll be fine,” I say as I stand up.

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