“No shit, which is why you should have told me.” Tears and anger fill her eyes. The trust we had between us shattered.
“I’m gonna make it up to you,” I say. “I promise.”
“Just shut up and tell me what happened with Hally.”
Small steps. I don’t deserve it, but I’ll take whatever crumbs she has to give me.
CHAPTER
TWENTY-NINE
Willow
We make our way back to the station while Haze fills me in. I’m angry. So fucking angry.
What was the point in telling me he’d never hurt me, and then go behind my back and do it anyway?
“Say somethin’,” he says. I can feel his eyes on me as I drive. No way was I going on the back of his motorcycle.
“There’s nothing to say.”
“Yes, there is. Be mad at me, I deserve it, but the silent treatment? Come on, Wills.”
“Just don’t, Haze. I thought we were past petty shit and secrets, but it seems like we’re only just getting started.” I grip the steering wheel a little too tight. I’m trying to make it make sense, but every time I think about what I saw in those letters, my blood boils.
“I was gonna tell you tonight,” he says. “I had the file inside my cut. I didn’t want to keep anythin’ from you, but frankly, I don’t trust anyone in the NOPD, except you. There are people out there who don’t always want what’s best for you.”
“That decision wasn’t yours to make.” I shake my head. “My father, of all people.”
“His concern was genuine, no matter how you feel about him.”
“So, he’s your new best friend all of a sudden?”
“No, you know what I think of him. If he fucked off out of town right now, it’d be not soon enough.”
“I just don’t get why you didn’t tell me,” I say, wanting to ignore him, but equally wanting to smack his head into the dash repeatedly. “You’re concerned about my safety, but don’t tell me when I’m supposedly in imminent danger? Kinda defeats the purpose of it, doesn’t it?”
He palms the back of his head. “It was a week, so if you’re gonna hold that against me for a fuckin’ week, then be my guest. I will never apologize for keepin’ you safe, even if my actions and motives were questionable.”
“Spoken like a true Rebel,” I snark. “At the end of the day, you’ll just do whatever you like and take whatever course of action you feel like because you’re part of the MC. The law doesn’t seem to matter to any of you. Neither does being honest to your wife.”
“I’m not gonna beg for forgiveness this time,” he says, his voice hard. “I never stopped being sorry before, but now I take it back. I’m not sorry.”
“Oh, that’s mature.”
“I’d do it again if it meant I could catch whoever is doin’ this and put them out of their misery.”
I glance at him briefly. “Really? And how is that working out for you?”
He puffs his cheeks out, then palms the back of his head with both hands, lacing his fingers. “You’re a piece of work, you know that?”
“What did I do?” I all but screech. “Don’t you even dare turn this around on me!”
“So you’re tellin’ me if the situation were reversed, you’d tell me everythin’ about the case you’re workin’ on? That’s some bullshit right there.”
“That isn’t the same thing, Haze, and you know it.”
“It’s whatever you want it to be, sweet cakes. But you can’t have it both ways. I stand by protectin’ you and keepin’ you safe. Was it smart to keep it from you? Probably not. But I had to get a head start on this before things got out of hand and too many people got involved.” His way of explanation sucks. Yet he carries on like he isn’t somehow digging a bigger hole for himself. “Rock is keepin’ an eye on things, and let me tell you, you still have some shady ass people in that station.”
