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I let go of a soft laugh. “That’s what I need from you, Trevan. No bullshit.” I snagged another apple and cheese slice and popped it into my mouth. “And another plate of these.”

His chuckle was rough. A scraping of gravel over my flesh. God, I loved the way it felt.

He took the plate and sauntered down the hall toward the backroom.

“I’ll do my best to oblige,” he hollered from over his shoulder.

But I wondered if a ton of how we treated each other was bullshit. The way we’d glazed and cemented over what had happened. The way the air and truth had seemed to change while Trevan had pretended like everything remained the same.

My phone vibrating in my pocket jolted me out of the thoughts, and I grinned when I pulled it out and saw the text.

Brinley

How did it go?

Me

It was great.

Brinley

And are you the proud employer of someone amazing?

Me

Not quite yet. I’m trying to choose between two applicants.

That’s if you won’t take mercy on me and come work at my side like a good bestie/sister would?

What could a little manipulation hurt?

I’d been pleading with her from the beginning.

Brinley

I’m the worst employee. Ask your brother.

I choked over a laugh.

She and Silas had gone round and round when she first came to the Crimson Crows’ compound. She thought she was working in the office of my brother’s autobody shop to pay off her brother’s debt, when it turned out Silas and the MC were actually protecting her.

She hated him at first, but I’d seen it for what it was.

Fireworks.

Me

Pssh. You were a great employee and turned the place around. He just didn’t know what to do with you.

Of course, she was no longer working for him, but rather, with him. She was now a vital part of the Crimson Crows’ secret society.

Cooking their books and making the transactions appear legal.

A badass vigilante.

Committed to their mission, even though what she was involved in was so criminal that I couldn’t help but worry what it might mean for her.

The same way as I worried for the rest. But what they did was important. Incredibly so. Even though there were times I wanted to, there was no chance I’d ever try to stand in the way. Even if half the nightmares I had at night were out of fear for my family.