“Was it sexual?” I asked, and that startled a laugh out of him.
“Absolutely fucking not,” he said immediately, lifting his head. I noticed the flush to his cheeks.Interesting. “He took me to meet a guy. Teclas. He did some shit with Cruz’s phone that means he can trace the next text we get. The guy said Cruz owed him a favor in return, but he didn’t specify what the favor was. I’m… Fuck. You know what Cruz is like. No fucking self-preservation. That’s why I’ve been so pissed off with him. He’s putting himself in danger, and he’s not consulting any of us.”
Ava huffed out a breath, slumping back against me. “I don’t like the sound of this. Being able to trace the texts would be useful, but not at his expense. Can you tell us exactly what happened?”
My arm tightened around Ava’s waist, and my chin hooked over her shoulder as Grayson gave us a rundown of everything that had happened when they’d paid a visit to the hacker. Unease swirled in my stomach. Everything was spiraling out of control. It seemed as if we had a way to get some of the answers we desperately needed, but at what cost? Who were we tangling ourselves up with?
When Grayson was done, Ava sighed. “Cruz needs to be careful. He’s not invincible.”
“I know.” Grayson’s mouth thinned. “We’ll make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.”
I nodded, and some of the tension disappeared from his expression as our eyes met. He flashed me a quick smile, and I returned it before pressing a kiss to Ava’s temple.
“Okay, now we’re all in agreement that we’ll all watch out for Cruz… Please, let’s change the subject to anything but him,” Gray said.
Ava straightened up. “Oh, I have something. Micah, did you see the flyers for the Blackwell photo exhibition? All Blackwell U students and local residents are eligible to submit photos, and I’m sure the flyer said something about cash prizes.”
Gray leaned forward. “Photo exhibition?”
I groaned, burying my face in Ava’s shoulder. “There’s no point in talking about it. My professor wanted me to submit a portfolio, but my photos aren’t good enough for that level…” Trailing off, I shook my head, and Ava’s hand lifted to smooth over my hair.
“You are good enough,” she murmured.
“Micah—” Gray began.
“Please, can we drop it?” I begged.
When I lifted my head, I saw Grayson and Ava exchange glances, but thankfully, they dropped it. Ava launched into a story about one of her sorority sisters who had been caught in a compromising position with her boyfriend in the library, and I let myself relax, her soft voice soothing me.
For a few minutes, I could almost pretend that our lives were normal.
26
CRUZ
My hands shook as I held on to the steering wheel. I had always prided myself on being cool and able to take control of my car at any given moment, but today I felt anything but sure.
I hadn’t heard from Micah or Ava since yesterday, and that was my fault for ignoring my phone. I just felt like I needed a clear head to do what needed to be done, and if I was talking to them, I would let my insecurities take over.
As I drove toward the quack church, I couldn’t help but think about last night.
Fuck.
I didn’t even know what I was doing except that I was thinking with my dick—and it felt so fucking good, but I knew the one to pay for the consequences would be me.
Lately, I had begun to wonder what would happen if I just walked into the police station and confessed. A guy with my rep? The police would eat that shit up. They would ignore all the loose ends just to wrap up the case with a pretty pink bow.
Did I want to do that? Hell no, but I did like Ava, Micah, and maybe that fucker to be safe. Of the three of us, I would probablyhandle jail time best. I had made enough connections on my own without Big Dog that I wouldn’t die right away.
Now wasn’t the time to think about that. Instead, I focused on the dark road that led to the New Horizons church while I let my mind wander to last night. I couldn’t help but smirk at the memory of having Micah in my space.
“So, this is home?” Micah said as we stepped over the threshold of my apartment.
Maybe it was just my horny ass, but it felt like the air suddenly felt heavier.
“It’s not much, but it keeps me warm at night.”
“It’s nice,” Micah said.
