Things that might end tonight.
When we get to my place, I park the truck but don't get out right away.
"Dime?" Allison's looking at me, concern in her eyes. "What's wrong?"
I take a deep breath. This is it. The moment where everything changes.
"We need to talk," I say. "There's something I need to tell you."
Sixteen
Allison
From the moment he uttered the words in the truck, I knew what he wanted to talk about. We don't speak as we head home. Not as we get out of the truck and head inside. Not as he pours a glass of bourbon for himself and a glass of wine for me.
"Go get changed," he says. "This is going to take a while, and I'd prefer for us both to be comfortable."
My stomach is full of nerves as I change into my comfortable clothes and then head back out to the kitchen. "Will you please talk to me, Dime?" I say as I have a seat.
He has a seat across from me and drinks the bourbon. "Grant," he hisses after swallowing the liquid.
"Sorry?" I say.
"My name is Grant."
The words hang in the air between us, and I watch as he sets down his glass with shaking hands. He won't meet my eyes, and I can see the tension in every line of his body. He's terrified. This man who rides a motorcycle and wears a leather cut and looks like he's never been afraid of anything in his life is absolutely terrified.
"Grant Swain," he continues, his voice rough. "That's my real name. Dime is just a nickname. A cover."
I take a sip of my wine, letting the information settle. "Okay."
His eyes snap to mine. "Okay? That's all you have to say?"
"What do you want me to say?" I set my glass down carefully. "That I'm shocked? That I had no idea?"
"Allison—"
"Dani told me months ago," I say quietly. "About you being undercover. About Devil too."
He goes completely still. "What?"
"She told me. She thought I should know what I was getting into." I wrap my hands around my wine glass, needing something to hold onto. "I've known for a while, Dime. Or Grant. Whichever you prefer."
He's staring at me like I've grown a second head. "You've known for months? And you didn't say anything?"
"What was I supposed to say? Hey, I know you're lying to me about who you are, want to talk about it?" I shake my head. "You would have told me when you were ready. And clearly, you're ready now."
He runs both hands through his hair, standing up and pacing the kitchen. "Fuck. I've been tearing myself apart trying to figure out how to tell you, and you've known the whole time?"
"Not the whole time. Just for a few months." I watch him pace, and my heart aches for him. "I'm not mad, if that's what you're worried about."
"You should be. I've been lying to you since the day we met."
"Have you?" I stand up and walk over to him, stopping his pacing by putting my hands on his chest. "Or have you just been using a different name?"
"It's more than just a name, Allison. My entire life is a lie. The club, the cut, everything I've built here is fake."
"Is it? Because from where I'm standing, it looks pretty real." I can feel his heart pounding under my palms. "The way you care about the people in that club, the way you protect them, the way you've built a family here. That's not fake, Grant."
