Page 79 of Enforcing the Rules

Bill glanced at the stampings and sign offs. “Well, I’ll be.” He dropped the paperwork and leaned in his chair, his eyes moving between me and Utah. “Okay. Fine. I’ll give you three days.” He pointed a finger at me. “Then I’m putting Otis on the job.”

“Thanks, Bill. I won’t let you down.”

I walked out, Utah at my side. We stood at the bike, and he passed me my helmet.

“What is it?” he asked when I hesitated to take it.

“What you just said in there… Did you mean all that?”

“Yeah, babe. I did. Every word.”

My heart melted a little more.

“You know, I want you to do what you want to do. I’m trying to be that guy, rather than the guy whose instinct it is to try to control you. Not sayin’ I won’t backslide. I probably will. Gonna need your help with that.”

“We support each other, and we help each other. Right? That’s what this relationship thing is all about.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Kate—

After I’d showered and Utah had helped scrub my back and wash my hair—which turned into the best shower sex I’d ever had—I picked up my father’s paperwork and reread the details. Something had nagged at me. It was on page two, and I’d skimmed over it. Now it stared blatantly back at me.

I grabbed my phone and dialed Edina. When she picked up, I didn’t waste time with pleasantries. “Have you seen Ray, Edina?”

“Kate? No, I haven’t. Why? What’s up?”

“The truth is, he skipped on his bail.”

“Bail? Bail for what?” She acted like she didn’t have a clue, but I heard the tremor in her voice, and I was beginning to suspect she knew way more than she was letting on.

“His fourth DUI, Edina. This time, they claim he killed two people.”

“Oh, my God.”

“Did you pay his bail? Did you put your house on the line?”

She stayed silent.

“Tell me you didn’t put your house up for that loser. The house your mother left you.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“It didn’t click at first. Because the name on the deed was wrong. Then I remembered. Your maiden name was Halbert. Someone named E.C. Halbert put up the property to secure his bond. That’s you, isn’t it? Edina Carol Halbert.”

“Okay. I did it, but what choice did I have? He’s my husband.”

“He missed his court date, Edina. Now your house is on the line. Did you realize that?”

“What? No. He told me he went to court. He told me charges were being dropped.”

“He tells you a lot of stuff. Most of them are lies. Where is he?”

“I don’t know.”

“Look, I don’t give a damn if your ass ends up living in your car, but I do care about my half-sister. Bethany deserves better. She deserves better than both of you. If you tell me where he is, I may still be able to save your damn house.”

There was silence for a long moment, then she sighed. “Okay. I’ll tell you where he’s staying.”

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