Aria took a deep breath, then pulled back her shoulders. She couldn’t believe she was going to go along with this, but if she didn’t, she might not live long enough for Diego to get his green card and leave. This was the best chance she had of finally being free. And more than that, the thought of Nash walking away from her door and not coming back filled her with a cold terror she hadn’t felt since her mom’s diagnosis. She felt guilty about taking Diego’s money then not going through with her end of the bargain, but enough was enough. He had lied to her about where he got the money, he’d put her life in danger, and on top of all that, he was a mean, abusive man. He didn’t deserve her feelings of guilt or remorse.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” she asked.
Nash winked at her. “Nothing will ever give me more pleasure than kicking that scumbag to the curb. Let’s go.”
Aria followed Nash to the door then unlocked it and let them both into the house. Diego was coming down the stairs as they came in.
“Who the fuck is that?” he snapped, glaring at the bear shifter.
And then recognition flashed over his face and his eyes widened in alarm.
“What’s going on?” he asked. “What is he doing in my house?”
“It’s not your house and it never was,” Nash said. “Go and pack a bag. You’re leaving.”
“What? I’m not going anywhere!”
“You can say that, you might even believe it, but if you don’t leave of your own free will, I will be forced to take matters into my own hands and I don’t think you want that, do you Diego?”
He turned to glare at Aria. “If you kick me out, you know what will happen.”
“Oh, and what’s that?” Nash asked, rolling out his broad shoulders casually. “Are you referring to your threats against Aria’s mother, or the issue of immigration finding out about your sham of a marriage?”
Diego’s eyes widened even further. Aria would have been lying if she said she didn’t take a small amount of pleasure from that.
“Now listen up and listen good,” Nash said, towering over Diego. “I work for the FBI, and I can make your life a living hell. I also have a good friend in the Mexican American community here in Miami. I only have to say the word and he will find who you stole that money off in the cartel and he will tell them exactly where you’ve been hiding.”
Diego’s face blanched. “You wouldn’t do that.”
“Oh, wouldn’t I? Then make another threat against Aria or her mom and call my bluff.” Nash checked his watch. “You’ve got fifteen minutes to pack and get out.”
Diego hesitated for only a moment before turning and hotfooting it up the stairs.
“I can’t believe that worked,” Aria whispered.
Nash chuckled. “Yeah, well, I can be very persuasive when I want to be.”
“So I see.”
Nash didn’t let her out of his sight while he called his brother Jake, and told him about the threats Diego had made on Aria’s mother. It was even worse hearing it spoken out loud by someone else. Had she really allowed Diego to terrorize her like that? Jake promised to have a man stationed outside her mom’s house within fifteen minutes. Aria couldn’t believe the relief she felt when she heard that, but a scared little part of her couldn’t help but wonder how long it would last. She hadn’t thought about it earlier, but how long could she reasonably expect Jake to keep up the surveillance on her mom’s house? Diego might just lie low until Jake and his friends left, and her mom would be right back in danger again. But today, at least, she was safe. That was something.
It didn’t take Diego the full fifteen minutes to pack his bag and come back downstairs. Aria had thought he would kick up more of a fuss, but he made a couple of threats that fell short after Nash’s speech to him earlier, then left without any more of a fuss.
“How are you feeling?” Nash asked.
“Like a weight has been lifted,” Aria admitted. “But I’m worried about my mom.”
“There’s nothing to worry about,” Nash said. “She has around the clock protection for as long as she needs it.”
Aria sighed. “Sure, but around the clock protection isn’t cheap. Your brother can’t be expected to foot the bill, and I can’t afford to pay for it. I work in a bakery, remember? And I got into this whole mess in the first place because I didn’t have any money.”
“My brother isn’t footing the bill, I’m paying for it,” Nash said in a matter-of-fact tone. “Well, I get a reduction on account of us being family, of course.”
Aria blinked across at him. “You’repaying for it?”
Nash chuckled. “Who did you think would be paying for it?”
“I…I don’t know. I mean, I never thought about it. It’s a lot of money, Nash.”
